Staffing, Recruitment, & HR Blog
Our client, and one of the fastest growing apparel brands, is hiring for 3 new roles in LA. These are great opportunities if you have a passion for trends in streetwear and Gen Z fashion.
Click the links below to learn more about these roles and to apply:
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We’re searching for a PD Manager for our client, an LA based womenswear brand. This is a great opportunity for someone with 8-10 years of experience in product development and is interested in a focus on imports. Denim experience is a plus!
Hiring trends in the retail industry typically remain similar from year to year, however, as retailers rapidly approach peak seasonal hiring this year, many brands are adopting new strategies.
Brands noted that in late 2021, they struggled to staff their stores and omni channel supporting teams in time for the peak season. This time last year, brands were still battling COVID safety protocols, retail burnout, and symptoms of the great resignation, all on top of the typical retail talent fluctuation during 3rd and 4th quarter.
It’s time to start talent acquisition planning for the 2022 peak season. Here are some of the latest retail staffing trends that may be the key to securing top retail talent prior to the 2022 holiday season.
1. Virtual recruiting: Since the pandemic, brands and talent have grown accustomed to Zoom and other forms of virtual meetings. To make the talent acquisition process more seamless, brands are meeting their desired talent where they are, quite literally, and minimizing friction in the hiring process by keeping as much of the hiring process virtual as possible.
2. A shift in social recruiting: Social recruiting typically used to occur in-store or at hiring events and soirees. This season, to reach talent where they spend majority of their time, brands are advertising their job openings and conducting outreach via social media and other digital tools.
3. Creating a seamless hiring process: Brands are making a seamless hiring process a priority in 2022. Convenience is key, and from start to finish, brands are improving their applicant systems, better training and developing their hiring managers, and creating an overall more efficient and effective hiring experience. Smoother processes represent an organized and secure workplace for candidates.
4. Hiring generalists and specialists (play to strengths): Diversifying your talent team creates a healthy balance of those with broad skillsets and those who can excel within a specific area of roles and responsibilities. Help your retail team work smarter, not harder.
5. Brands are communicating offerings for continued development, training, and education as greater incentive: Talent is often looking for the “value added” when accepting new opportunities. Many brands have started to adopt these offerings and share with talent as a draw to join with discounts, benefits, etc.
6. Nature Vs. Nurture: Brands are focusing more on brand DNA fit vs. the perfect skillset match during the interview process. In doing this, brands are finding that this yields greater investment from the talent, performance, and retention. You can learn more about finding the perfect fit and brand DNA on our Blog":
Brand DNA- Finding the Authentic Match
Brands that are exploring these hiring trends and are assessing their own creative approaches to what they need talent wise for the season, are seeing great return on their efforts. Now is the time to start assessing and frontloading peak hiring talent needs to ensure a well-supported remainder of Q3 and a seamless and fruitful Q4.
AdditionalSources:
10 Future Retail Trends & Forecasts for 2022/2023 - A Look Into What’s Next - Financesonline.com
Introducing Scott - a people-oriented leader in the boutique fitness space. Currently in his role at REGYMEN Fitness, Scott wears multiple hats. From developing workout programs to training coaches and staff across multiple franchise locations in the U.S. and Canada, Scott is all about creating fun and positive experiences for people. He says that the highlight of his job is getting to work hands-on with the different coaches he trains.
Having been involved in the start-up stages of the business, Scott is experienced in building things from the ground up, being quick to pivot and try something new, and recognizing different pain points to better align to the larger vision and goals of a company.
Scott is always looking for new opportunities to grow and loves collaborative, team-oriented environments where he can listen and learn from others as much as they listen and learn from him.
When he's not in the studio, Scott loves being at the beach with his friends or cheering on the Oregon ducks as a self-proclaimed die-hard college football fan! Connect with Scott here or at Emerging Blue.
While online shopping, options are endless. As long as you have a phone, laptop, or desktop at your disposal, you can shop conveniently from almost anywhere. eCommerce has completely reshaped the retail sector as we once knew it.
Whether it’s the introduction of advanced product features, faster shipping options, or better customer service, improvements are constantly being made to enhance the online shopping experience. We’re seeing changes every day in this new form of retail, and behind each new feature is a team of people who bring it to life.
eCommerce isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. If you’re looking for your next career move, you may want to consider one of the thousands of job opportunities in this rapidly expanding industry.
Calling creatives in LA! This is a great opportunity to collaborate with other designers for this unique brand. Hybrid capacity with two days a week in their awesome Downtown LA Studio in the Art’s District.
Our EB 360 solution is like having a small army to add to your recruiting and HR team. We provide an Account Director/Sr. Recruiter and a sourcing team to work on, and fill, any staffing needs.
EB 360 provides recruitment management that can be customizable to fit the unique staffing needs of each client we support. EB 360 services extend beyond talent acquisition to include HR support and candidate-facing employer branding.
With our EB 360 recruiting team, the benefits are plentiful:
1. Reduced hiring time: By assigning a team to your job, we’re able to multiply traditional sourcing time and conduct more screenings, speeding up the entire hiring process.
2. More suitable talent: With more eyes working on a role and more screenings conducted, our team will only submit talent that aligns with your brand DNA and is best suited for the job.
3. Extended network: With nearly 60K followers on LinkedIn, we utilize our Emerging Blue page, website, and social platforms to advertise your brand as well as your jobs. In addition, our recruiters utilize their own personal networks, casting a wider net to capture more suitable candidates.
4. Better resources: We have an exclusive internal database of screened candidates that are looking for their next opportunity. We will utilize every tool, system, and resource available to find you the talent you’ve been looking for.
Both efficient and cost-effective, EB 360 is a recruiting solution customized to meet our clients’ needs. If you’re looking for the best talent for the job, we’ve got the best team and resources to help you do so. With EB 360, you’ll get an army of Recruiting Support.
Meet Natalie - a positive and high-energy team player who believes in the power of making connections. Coming from a fashion-focused background, Natalie is well versed in all things retail, merchandising, and e-commerce and loves to pour herself into whatever role she is in. In her past roles, Natalie has been recognized as a hard worker who can get the job done but is also someone whose empathy and love for people has made an impact during stressful times in business.
When asked what her favorite part of her career journey has been, she emphasized the experience of getting to master difficult systems that she never would have seen herself thriving in before. As someone who is not daunted by challenges, Natalie has cultivated the ability to buckle down and tackle new tasks by asking questions, listening to others, and trying to understand the underlying tips and tricks of what makes something click.
In her next opportunity, Natalie is looking for a place to bring her e-commerce skills to the table and would love to tap more into her creative side. Being a big people person, Natalie would love to work within a transparent and well-connected team where she can help others and build meaningful connections. Although work is a high priority, Natalie believes that at the end of the day we're all people who have different voices that need to be heard.
When she shuts her laptop down at the end of the day, you can find Natalie out trying new restaurants, looking up new recipes, at the nursery, or out on the golf range trying to improve her game! Connect with Natalie here or at Emerging Blue.
Tapestry is expanding their efforts to create a workplace that prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion at all employee levels. Way to lead by example!👏
Makers of the most comfortable underwear on the planet, our our newest client is a lifestyle brand that is challenging the meaning of comfort in both men and women’s fashion. You know them best for their ultra-comfortable underwear, socks, loungewear, and apparel, but what you may not know is the courage, drive, and innovation that has led them to great success. We’re thrilled to share our newest EB 360 partnership with the exceptional team at Tommy John.
A First for Everything
Tom Patterson was a medical device salesman frustrated by his bulky undershirt, he set out to create a better one. With no prior design experience, Tom and his wife, Erin Fujimoto, decided to risk it all for the sake of one thing: comfort. A company built on firsts, Tommy John successfully launched in their men’s line in 2008 and later their women’s line in 2018. Today, Tommy John now has 5 store locations and is available in nearly 3,000 points of wholesale distribution, and if you ask them, they’re only getting started.
#WorkAtTommyJohn
With their proprietary fabrics, innovative fit, and problem solving functionality, it’s no question that Tommy John delivers exceptional products. Their success, however, can be attributed to more than just that. The team at Tommy John wears 5 values at their core. They strive to:
Be humble
Be adaptable
Be curious
Be mindful
GDS 2.0 (Get Shit Done, on the next level.)
What do these 5 core values look like every day for the team at Tommy John? You can always see what their team is up to by visiting their hashtag, #WorkAtTommyJohn. Rated impressively on Great Place to Work, some of Tommy John’s employees’ most favored qualities of the brand are their genuine and supportive leaders, strong company culture, and overall fun atmosphere.
“I’d say we’re humbled every day by the people who show up here and work so hard.”
Future-Focused
As we team up with Tommy John and support their vision for growth, we’re on the lookout for talent that is equally as committed to their values. The team at Tommy John is made up of go-getters, people that are ready to roll-up their sleeves and dive into any task at hand. A positive attitude and a love for the brand is key, as is a drive for innovation and an appreciation for collaboration.
Tommy John is building their dream team of people who are passionate to ensure longevity of the brand. We are eager to integrate our teams and to support their heightening success as they continue to ‘help make the world a more comfortable place.’
Be Right with the TIME and you will be right with the TRENDS!
In today’s world where trends and styles change by the second, we all must take some time and think.
What is right for us? What is good for us? Will this be right for our planet and the next generation? Will this be good for our planet and our future generations?
As a mother, I want to let my kids know that life is full of opportunities, and we should make something great out of every experience! Together, we can fight adversity and find the cool, creative, happy side of life, despite the pain of dealing with extreme hardships. I want to tell them not to let our trials and tribulations define us, but to have hope and find beauty!
As a designer, I was fortunate enough to study and work with some of the amazing people in the industry and be inspired to create garments that are beautiful both inside and out. Not just good-looking designs is what makes a brand, but it’s the joy, love, and connection with people and nature that life gives it life!
With my last brand, we aspired to design with a purpose… To make you feel good, do good, & be good.
For 20 years I have continued to work in the industry, and am fortunate to represent and partner with brands that are defining, understanding, and making responsible fashion a trend!
My very first project as a Fashion Recruiting Account Director with Emerging Blue was to work with the Creative Director at Bolt Threads to help him grow his team of designers. As I dug deep to understand the company and their Brand DNA, I grew more and more in love with it!
Bolt Threads is “A BRAND INSPIRED BY NATURE. DESIGNING FOR THE FUTURE.” They are a ‘material solutions company with nature as [their] inspiration.’ and they ‘invent cutting-edge materials for the fashion and beauty industries to put us us on a path toward a more sustainable future.’
‘Through innovative collaborations with world-class brands and supply chain partners,’ Bolt Threads is on a mission to ‘create way better materials for a way better world.’
Their recent collaboration with brands like Stella McCartney, Lululemon, and Adidas makes it very real and available to masses!
I love their vision:
“We envision a world where we don’t have to deplete or pollute our forests, oceans, and rivers to benefit from nature’s secrets.”
Read more about Bolt Threads and their sustainable mission here.
Also, check out this great video on sustainability in fashion.
Pooja Sachan
If you’re interested in connecting with Pooja and learning more about her recruiting experience for apparel design, technical design, and product development, please reach out to us at info@emergingblue.com.
We believe that good people know good people. Learn more about how you can refer a friend and get paid.
#TripleJobAlert! A growing brand for womenswear and denim is building both their design and digital teams in Vernon, CA! We’re #hiring a Senior Technical Designer, an eCommerce Manager and a Graphic Designer. Learn more about these opportunities below:
The term ‘Brand DNA’ isn’t new to brands within the retail industry, but it has grown to be more of a focus in brand talent consideration and acquisition.
Much like in biology, Brand DNA is the core of the brand. It is the make up of the brand’s personality, ethos, and voice within the industry. A brand’s DNA is what separates it from its competitors, not necessarily in strategy or product, but in identity and values.
In retail specifically, setting a clear of expression of brand DNA creates greater opportunity for customer brand loyalty and attracts talent that parallels brand DNA.
Image Source: Brandculture.com
It is often said that people are a company’s greatest asset. Employees are an extension of the brand. Hiring the right talent that inherently possesses the brand DNA ensures a more seamless and authentic experience for the customer.
In retail specifically, skills can be taught. DNA, however, is inherent and can only be enriched. Hiring a new associate for a retail space will likely require training of the POS system, restock procedure, and cleanliness and merchandising standards. Often brands even go as far as instructing the new hires on how to greet, engage with, and sell to the customer. It is fair to say that customer interactions may take some time to become comfortable.
The difference between hiring someone with the basic retail skillset vs. someone who shares the brand DNA, is authenticity in engagement and enthusiasm for the task being completed. When a brand hires individuals who share the personality, ethos, and voice of their brand, the talent better represents the brand during the time of development and will be more authentic in doing so. Naturally, shared purpose + shared fate= higher performance + better results.
According to statistics pulled from a commissioned Forrester Consulting study conducted on behalf of Shopify,
“Forty-nine percent of retailers say hiring and retaining employees will be a top challenge over the next year, something 40% of brands are striving to improve. This comes as no surprise considering staff at major retailers have been expressing their frustration with the industry through striking and quitting.”
Now more than ever, talent is focusing on finding brands that they identify with to work for. According to the same study, “83% of millennials expect brands to align with their values.”
Brands are being called to greater transparency in their practices and values. Brandculture.com said it well,
“ Your employee brand experience represents the manifestation of what employees see in the company now… and the aspirations of what they’re working for in the future. By defining the value, you claim as a company and creating an employee brand experience rooted in a common bond and shared values, the flag of your culture will fly high, long into the future.”
Clearly, hiring brand DNA matched individuals leads to greater retention and reduces turn over.
Vuori, a premium performance apparel brand, is a great example of a brand who is in touch with their brand DNA and keeps it at the forefront of their hiring process. They look for those who are an authentic match and not just those who have the skillset.
They are a value-based business who aim to “bring together people from all walks of life to create and share positive, meaningful experiences.”
“At Vuori our guiding principles are simple...we aim to make great products, be in great relationships and live extraordinary lives.”
Since the retail staffing environment is competitive and challenging, finding that authentic brand DNA match can take time and work. As a brand focused recruiting agency, Emerging Blue makes it a priority to understand your brand’s DNA, ethos, and culture to the fullest extent.
With a robust internal database of candidates and recruiters with large networks of talent connections, Emerging Blue is driven to find candidates that are not only top tier talent but that inherently possess your brand DNA.
If you’re looking for talent that shares your brand’s DNA, connect with us here or send us an email at info@emergingblue.com.
Additional Sources:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/brand-identity-hiring-employees-fit-planning-your-recruitment-gill
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-ensure-your-employees-have-companys-dna-rosalin-mohanty
