NRF Foundation’s Executive Director, Kathy Mance, traveled to Beijing, China earlier this month to follow up on a training program first delivered in December.  While there, Kathy watched a retail training program in action (and delivered in Chinese!), tasted new cuisine and climbed the Great Wall of China. But what excited her most was learning about the retail opportunities in China through the growth of NRFF’s retail curriculum. We interviewed her to find out more about her trip.

What was the main purpose of your trip to China?

NRFF initiated a program to prepare candidates as managers of retail operations in Beijing last December when Sarah Conrad, NRFF’s Director of Learning Operations, delivered a Train-The-Trainer session. I visited Beijing to meet personally with all those interested in the success of this program in China. This included NRFF partners: Castle Worldwide (CWW), China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), and Global Business Solutions (GBS), and other Chinese retail trade associations, retailers and educators.  NRF, through NRF Foundation, was specifically sought as a key partner in this endeavor because of NRF’s brand and the level of confidence and prestige it enjoys around the world.  My goal was to support the in-country program and to witness it firsthand.

NRFF with partners Castle Worldwide, China Chamber of International Commerce
and Global Business Solutions

Tell us about the curriculum that NRFF has helped put in place in Beijing.

NRFF created the training, Retail Operations and Management Curriculum, with help from a team of retail experts from Saks, The Home Depot and other retail companies, and has been used in the U.S. for several years. Working with Castle Worldwide, we engaged Subject Matter Experts in both the U.S. and China to review, validate and localize the training to ensure that it has the same relevance and success in effectively communicating the skills and knowledge that it currently does in the U.S.  This is critical as China’s retail industry continues to expand and require prepared and experienced managers for Chinese retailers and those entering this exciting retail space from around the world.

What was the best part of your visit?

I had the opportunity to watch a class of about 20 young people being trained – the first time I’d seen this done in a language I could not understand.  It was beyond exciting and even moving to see the work NRFF and its U.S. retail partners have done for more than a decade to develop standards-based training and certification validating and impacting young people starting their careers on the other side of the world.  While I didn’t understand the words, I clearly got the level of excitement and interest the management trainees displayed for this new way to approach managing a department or even a store.  I was dazzled as I watched them work together eagerly to solve problems and manage scenarios that they will soon encounter as new managers.  Hands in the air! Big smiles! I’ve got the answer to that one! You’re on our team!  I stood there watching these kids’ opinions of their futures change and felt so lucky to be there for so many who have done the work to make this possible.

What is your expectation for the curriculum offered in Beijing 5 years from now?

We met with officials from the Beijing Technical and Business University (BTBU) and, with members of their faculty, discussed for an audience of retail Human Resource managers how this training can provide benefit for their companies.  The University committed to add this training to its offerings, which was very exciting, as we understand that this will create the impetus for our partners CCOIC and GBS to engage other institutions of higher education to quickly adopt this curriculum or be left behind.  We already have strong interest in other provinces and our partners in China are enthusiastically spreading the message.  Our success in providing a generation of trained Chinese retailers will, of course, depend on many variables outside anyone’s control, but the signs are good and NRFF and CWW are well into development of the second level of education, Advanced Retail Operations and Management, and will deliver that training in Beijing in July.  We’ll then work on the third area of interest, Customer Service and Sales and Selling Skills. It’s easy to see that the opportunity is huge as more affluent consumers up the ante for retailers. Fortunately, there are so many people eager to build relevant skills sets that can help them get jobs in industries with a future that the stars seem to be aligning.

What is the opinion of careers in retail in China?

We visited a number of malls and some shops while in Beijing and, of course, had the opportunity to speak with Chinese retailers from many provinces who had gathered for the convention of the China Department Store Summit, sponsored with the China Commerce Association for General Merchandise. My colleague Denise Brasse, SVP Industry Relations at NRF, and Kimberly Grabel, SVP Marketing at Saks Fifth Avenue, joined me in speaking at this conference.  It’s clear from our conversations that luxury is the name of the retail game in China, and careers in retailing around an esteemed or aspirational brand are viewed quite positively.  My honest opinion is that retailing, in some ways, is new ground.  Chinese agencies are investing in retail as their economy grows, to fulfill the needs and wants of their growing middle class.

There’s a great opportunity for China’s retailers to match the level of esteem for retail careers with that being given to the new lifestyle and choices retailers deliver to their customers.  We’ll continue to work with our partners in China to offer the best lessons learned by retailers in the U.S. and elsewhere in how to invest in optimizing their workers’ skills and performance, not only to grow sales, but to wow the customer – a sure way to engage the associate and raise the customer’s opinion of the role that associate plays.

What else did you do on your trip?

I shopped, of course! I’m a big fan of pearls and was given the “secret location” of the best place to get great pearls in Beijing.  Let’s just say that I was not disappointed and even got a bit of holiday shopping done in advance this year.

I ate!  Our Chinese hosts were so gracious and kind, offering us the best of everything and I thanked them with my chopsticks.  If I wanted to know more about a certain dish (and I did) the chef was brought from the kitchen to discuss – again, thanks to our very accomplished hosts, who translated for me.  Great fun!  We were accompanied by our hosts to climb the Great Wall, an overwhelming and humbling experience, to tour the Forbidden City, which defies description, and to visit the former Olympic Village and Tian’anmen Square.  History and time have new meaning since this trip and I’m looking forward to moving some things around on my reading list to try to keep these new memories alive.