BUS 300-90
Spring 2014
Dillard’s- 200 Monticello Ave, Norfolk, VA 23510- (757) 622-6800
Anita Goings, Shoe’s Manager
The sole purpose as a student intern is to gain some form of experience which you can transfer into your career. Every job before or thereafter should leave you with some type of learning experience that you can carry with you in life. My experience as a student intern at Dillard’s was amazing, as well as challenging in many aspects. Under the management of Mrs. Anita Goings I was able to learn the ins and outs of being a Ladies Shoe sale associate at Dillard’s MacArthur location in Norfolk, Va.
Dillard’s Inc is a department store which was founded in 1938 by the late William T. Dillard with his first store opening in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas. Little Rock is currently the headquarters for Dillard’s. Dillard’s specializes in the selling of products such as bedding, footwear, jewelry, men, women, and children apparel of high fashion names from Coach, Michael Kors, and Polo to name a few. The company also has brands that are exclusive only to Dillard’s such as Gianni Bini and Nurture. Currently the company has 300+ stores scattered amongst 29/50 states with 17 of those stores being clearance centers. Along with Dillard’s 300+ stores they have three prominent stores, or flagship stores, two of which are on the West coast and one on the East coast which happens to be the location I had the opportunity to do my internship, MacArthur Center in Norfolk, Virginia. In the early 60’s Dillard’s took the initiative to acquire many failing stores for a turnaround for success, in which they accomplished each time. In 2004, Dillard’s began their store credit card operation which began with their Dillard’s National Bank but was later sold to GE Money Bank where it continues to operate under. With the Dillard’s store credit card customers, as well as Dillard’s employees, have the opportunity to be issued a Dillard’s charge card or Dillard’s American Express charge, which one can use wherever American Express is accepted. Currently Dillard’s is under the leadership of Mr. William T. Dillard II, Chairman and CEO and Mr. Alex Dillard, President.
Entering my intern position at Dillard’s I thought it would maybe be simplistic, I soon was introduced to a fast pace, competitive work environment. I interned as a women’s footwear associate, so my primary responsibility was to make money and deliver great customer service as to guarantee the return of these customers. Along with selling the merchandise, I was responsible for the maintenance of a specific section in the stockroom as well as out on the sales floor. These sections are assigned to every associate in the shoe department by the supervisor, Anita Goings. In my sections I maintained four tables on the sales floor and five rows in the stockroom and was assigned an area with three other associates where we were responsible to complete stock on a daily basis. My tables and rows are to be maintained twice a week, Mondays and Fridays. For one of my assigned tables, Alex Marie brand, I have a merchandising sheet that is updated once a month. This merchandising sheet is just a visual of how the merchandise for this particular brand should be placed on the tables. The other tasks that go along with maintenance of my tables and rows are dusting, wiping down the glass, properly straightening my rows, and making sure all styles are on the tables. Eventually after I mastered the minor things I began assisting with more complex tasks. Due to the outstanding grasp I had for my job assignment I was given the opportunity to also assist with my department’s scout team. One of the major responsibilities of the scout team was to survey customers and gain feedback on what they would like to see in our store as well as receive feedback on their experience with Dillard’s customer service. This task allowed me to talk a little more with our customers to get in depth feedback on
