Fashion rules the retail industry with 5,325 unique job applications in H1 2013 compared to 177 in the supermarket sector. Jobs in the luxury sector are continually rising, with strong competition for each role. Despite overall retail jobs reaching 2009 recession levels, the fashion industry continues to power ahead with increases across the board.
For recruitment in the retail sector, the levels for the first half of 2013 had fallen back to the recessionary levels last seen in 2009 according to one specialise retail and fashion recruitment website. Retail job opportunities are heavily biased towards the South East of England, with London and its surrounding areas leading the way in unique jobs appearing on one specialist recruitment website. In Hertfordshire and North London there were 37 applications for each role in the luxury sector and 20 in London. The leisure and hospitality sector saw the lowest competition for positions with only 11 people applying for each supermarket role in London and 7 in Buckinghamshire and NW London.
Digging deeper into the data of the report, we can see even more interesting trends. In H1 2013 there were 8,300 unique job adverts in London compared to only 192 in Liverpool and Merseyside. That is certainly a very dramatic north/south divide in the area of retail and fashion jobs. It is worth noting that, according to earlier data in the retail sector, the number of unique job adverts in the London area has fallen by over 1,200 since H1 2012 (down to 8,300 compared to 9,529 last year).
From a competitive perspective, retail workforces within the M4 corridor face the stiffest challenge, with an average of 37 applications per advertised vacancy, compared to 13 in Leicestershire and 18 in London. So while the number of job adverts may be higher in the south, this does not necessarily mean it is more difficult to get a fashion job in the north of the UK compared to the south. Sadly the figures seem to indicate that despite the higher number of things like applicants for fashion job adverts that it may in fact be easier in the south. Job hunters in East Kent, Glasgow and Merseyside found themselves competing against between 30 and 40 other applications for a single post.
Of course, London is always going to be more desirable place to find a job in fashion. With numerous famous designers, many fashion boutiques, and the glamour of the big city, London attracts more and its fair share of fashion job seekers who are hoping for a variety of outcomes – including fame.
Overall, fashion job vacancies continue to dominate, as they have for some time. London and the South East continue to offer greater opportunities for retail employment while opportunities continue to decline as we move North and West. In all recent reports suggest that structural changes across retail are biting. It will be interesting to see how retail changes in the second half, and whether fashion jobs continue to dominate.
The retail recruitment outlook is improving so if you’re looking for fashion jobs, RetailChoice continues to add new jobs daily with varying skills and salary levels.
