Getting a job at LHS

[Quintin 16]

Okay so not long ago, there was a new LHS that opened and I thought I'd want to have a job there. Now how should I approach it? I've heard a couple of guys on here got offered because of being so knowledgable of hockey gear but that might not be the case for here. Should I just treat it like another place I'd want to work ie. hand in a CV and go from there?

Thanks and hope you guys can help :)

[All Torhs Team 0]

Is it a big chain like total hockey or something small that some guy owns?

[UMWhockey 0]

when I was managing a shop, whenever I hired someone I looked for someone who was very open and who could hold their end of a conversation. We have a lot of shops in the area and I always wanted staff who were very friendly, polite, and could build a rapport between themselves and someone else quickly in a conversation. The manager can teach you how to sharpen and product knowledge, but if you don't have the people skills, then you wouldn't be someone that I would hire for a pro shop.

I would go in and see if you can talk to the manager. Try to be very conversational and polite. Don't go overkill talking about all your product knowledge. Try to portray your excitement for wanting to work in a shop and how hard a worker you are. If in this little meeting, the manager seems to like you, then he may offer you a job on the spot if he is looking for help at the moment.

[sdcopp 1]

customer service and a friendly personality trumps product knowledge any day of the week. People can read up all day on specs and features and know exactly what any product offers. What they can't always get is good service and a little time with someone willing to help.

In this day and age where everyone is an expert because of all the information out there, remember that the customer may not always be right, but they had always better be happy. What I mean by that is people get preconceived notions of what is good and not, and they might be misinformed. If you're the type to take time and make sure they become correctly informed and leave happy, than you become worth your weight in gold to any workplace, especially a pro shop environment. If a shop manger can feel that from you, it ups your chances considerably.

[TBLfan 25]

actually, it's a good mix of both. A good salesman can sell anything, but more importantly a good salesman can sell him or herself. It's all about confidence, charisma and a touch of knowledge, but the more knowledge the better... as long as you know how to present the knowledge. If you go on and on you're going to overwhelm and confuse the customer and then you'll have to start over again... which just wastes their time and yours.

[sdcopp 1]

actually, it's a good mix of both. A good salesman can sell anything, but more importantly a good salesman can sell him or herself. It's all about confidence, charisma and a touch of knowledge, but the more knowledge the better... as long as you know how to present the knowledge. If you go on and on you're going to overwhelm and confuse the customer and then you'll have to start over again... which just wastes their time and yours.

my point is, product knowledge can be learned and good disposition cannot. I know handfuls of sales reps at work with multi-million dollar quotas that don't know all the ins and outs of products, but many don't need to. They build rapport and are good with customers, and can take the time to look up everything while working with a customer. From retail to executive sales it's all the same. That's the key to repeat business, which is what any shop wants, aquiring new customers is more expensive than maintaining existing ones.

[LkptTiger 1]

I can tell you that Great Skate's staff in Amherst is fairly ignorant. With the exception of a few guys, it doesn't seem like they have much of a background in the game. They seem to be, however, fairly persuasive salespeople - so much so that I have seen some clueless customers make some very poor decisions under the (incorrect/false) direction of one of these employees.

I'm told by a few of my older buddies that their company hockey team blows, as well - but that's neither here nor there.

Just be yourself - if you have to put on an act when you go into work everyday, it's probably not a job you're going to enjoy very much, if at all.

[mack 44]

Best of luck with the job as we always need more space monkeys employed at LHSs.

[JR Boucicaut 3803]

What you guys must realize about working in a hockey shop is that it is different than any other form of retail. It is specialized - every one of your customers are involved in the sport.

What I tell my employees is that every "customer" who walks in is a potential relationship - you will see them 5x a week. Therefore, I'm going to want someone who is friendly and can carry a conversation with someone because almost all of the time, the person who comes in is not going to buy a $500 pair of skates.

You also must learn how to put your knowledge in layman's terms. Most people won't care about the specs - you can still go over the specs, but must explain what it is going to do for them.

[Cobra2717 0]

I can tell you that Great Skate's staff in Amherst is fairly ignorant. With the exception of a few guys, it doesn't seem like they have much of a background in the game. They seem to be, however, fairly persuasive salespeople - so much so that I have seen some clueless customers make some very poor decisions under the (incorrect/false) direction of one of these employees.

I'm told by a few of my older buddies that their company hockey team blows, as well - but that's neither here nor there.

Just be yourself - if you have to put on an act when you go into work everyday, it's probably not a job you're going to enjoy very much, if at all.

I actually worked there one summer, and this is very true. It's why I dont work there anymore. One of Great Skate's policies, when it comes to hiring, is that if u play at a high level, they will not hire you, because they know the schedule is very demanding for travel/college/junior hockey. So in turn, the staff is not as knowledgeable about the game as other candidates may be. Now dont get me wrong, you dont have to be good at puck to know alot about equipment...but i would think it helps a bit.

[TBLfan 25]

actually, it's a good mix of both. A good salesman can sell anything, but more importantly a good salesman can sell him or herself. It's all about confidence, charisma and a touch of knowledge, but the more knowledge the better... as long as you know how to present the knowledge. If you go on and on you're going to overwhelm and confuse the customer and then you'll have to start over again... which just wastes their time and yours.

my point is, product knowledge can be learned and good disposition cannot. I know handfuls of sales reps at work with multi-million dollar quotas that don't know all the ins and outs of products, but many don't need to. They build rapport and are good with customers, and can take the time to look up everything while working with a customer. From retail to executive sales it's all the same. That's the key to repeat business, which is what any shop wants, aquiring new customers is more expensive than maintaining existing ones.

I wasn't disregarding your point. BUT while the information can be taught to someone it's going to take time. If you aren't able to take the time to teach someone the ropes and what is what then they'll just be selling whatever for whatever reason. I can tell you that I can sell something to someone that knows just as much about something or even more than me, simply because of a uniform and a name tag(and the way I approach the sale). BUT that doesn't make for a good employee at a place like a LHS. Like JR was saying, a LHS is going to see a lot of the same people often, so you want someone that is knowledgeable that isn't going to bs someone. You want someone that is patient and will build a relationship with someone all while knowing what they are talking about. In something like a car dealership a salesman is all you need, he or she doesn't need to know a ton about the product... just enough to get by. Because the reality is that they aren't going to be coming back in a few days or a week to buy something else.

While I agree with you about the importance of a good disposition and how it cannot be learned; it just doesn't seem feasable to bring in someone that couldn't tell you the difference between a tapered shaft and a standard shaft and expect to be able to teach them how to fit people for skates, help them find the right equipment or even be able to answer that question; "I saw the other night that "player X" from "team Y" was using a blue stick. What kind was that?

If your store has enough free time to be able to train someone like that then I doubt you'd actually need another employee in the first place. IDK maybe that's too much to ask for, a employee that knows his stuff that has a good disposition and patience to deal with a customer.

[JR Boucicaut 3803]

I can tell you that Great Skate's staff in Amherst is fairly ignorant. With the exception of a few guys, it doesn't seem like they have much of a background in the game. They seem to be, however, fairly persuasive salespeople - so much so that I have seen some clueless customers make some very poor decisions under the (incorrect/false) direction of one of these employees.

I'm told by a few of my older buddies that their company hockey team blows, as well - but that's neither here nor there.

Just be yourself - if you have to put on an act when you go into work everyday, it's probably not a job you're going to enjoy very much, if at all.

I actually worked there one summer, and this is very true. It's why I dont work there anymore. One of Great Skate's policies, when it comes to hiring, is that if u play at a high level, they will not hire you, because they know the schedule is very demanding for travel/college/junior hockey. So in turn, the staff is not as knowledgeable about the game as other candidates may be. Now dont get me wrong, you dont have to be good at puck to know alot about equipment...but i would think it helps a bit.

That goes across the board for any shop. No way do I hire a high-level playing candidate.

[oggy_3 0]

I work at hockey shop, its a franchise company but we specialize in hockey. i got hired there and i told her id play Bantam aaa the year b4 and will be playing midget aaa and she never minded, so not all companys are like that.

[JR Boucicaut 3803]

Not the point - the point is, why am I going to waste hrs and training on someone who is going to be able to work once a week?

[oggy_3 0]

yeah i can see that, i only work once twice a week and on a good week 3 times. it was prolly a waste of training except for in the summer.

[Edge 0]

Not the point - the point is, why am I going to waste hrs and training on someone who is going to be able to work once a week?

I won't lie...thats the case with me. I usually work about 2-3 times a week after school for a few hours and that is about it (aside from summer obviously). Boss man doesn't seem to mind though.

[DarkStar50 679]

The new guys in the shop who you think will be very good usually stink while the other new guys who you are not sure about at all end up being the best employees. I am way below 50% at figuring out who will be the best new employee. Put them on probation/try-outs and see what happens in a few weeks.

[Chadd 916]

I can tell you that Great Skate's staff in Amherst is fairly ignorant. With the exception of a few guys, it doesn't seem like they have much of a background in the game. They seem to be, however, fairly persuasive salespeople - so much so that I have seen some clueless customers make some very poor decisions under the (incorrect/false) direction of one of these employees.

I'm told by a few of my older buddies that their company hockey team blows, as well - but that's neither here nor there.

Just be yourself - if you have to put on an act when you go into work everyday, it's probably not a job you're going to enjoy very much, if at all.

I actually worked there one summer, and this is very true. It's why I dont work there anymore. One of Great Skate's policies, when it comes to hiring, is that if u play at a high level, they will not hire you, because they know the schedule is very demanding for travel/college/junior hockey. So in turn, the staff is not as knowledgeable about the game as other candidates may be. Now dont get me wrong, you dont have to be good at puck to know alot about equipment...but i would think it helps a bit.

That goes across the board for any shop. No way do I hire a high-level playing candidate.

I found that a lot of higher level players in my area had very little product knowledge, other than "lighter is better" or that the most expensive product is the best. I'd rather have an adult working as a second job than most teens. It's not about telling people what they should buy and most kids end up telling people what they should buy instead of trying to find the right piece of gear for that particular customer.

For me, the most important thing when hiring someone is to find someone who wants to learn (there's always something to learn) and someone who takes pride in their work. I was training a woman that we hired and one of the first things she said about sharpening skates was that she didn't want people to be afraid to have her sharpen their skates. That's when I knew she was a good pick.

Obviously there has to be some ability to communicate and build relationships, because as already mentioned, it's all about building relationships with your customers.

[LkptTiger 1]

Cobra - You're absolutely right. I applied there a little while ago (over the summer) and was very disappointed when I found out that only a handful of the other guys there had ever played anything above a house select league. I was hoping I would be working with other guys who were playing AAA, or older guys playing Junior.

The fact of the matter is that their scheduling, from what I was told by the individual who interviewed me (the name escapes me now), is that the scheduling was crazy - particularly for a kid working a summer job and trying to re-hab at the same time. Apparently, my presence would have been required every weekend, as well as four to five nights during the week. I have no problem with working, but I was trying to get my knee in playing shape in time for the season, and obviously did not want to spend my entire summer in a store when I should be at the rink two minutes down the road - fuck that.

They blow ass when it comes to sharpening, too.