Specialty Retail
Pros
- You get to help out people with what is hopefully a love of your own - running - Connections to the specialty run industry and adjacent fields like physical therapy, podiatry, etc. - Really fantastic deals on pretty much any brand your store carries - Each shop is independently owned, so it doesn't feel corporate, but that changes from store to store - Get paid to run if you're a part of training programs or weekly runs/workouts - At the right store you can get trained on everything from biomechanics to nutrition to coaching that can honestly be better than any "course" you'd pay for elsewhere - Likewise, at the right store, you may learn better customer service skills here than anywhere else you'll ever work
Cons
- You have to help out almost every person that walks through the door - specialty retail means they aren't coming in to pick something off the wall and this can become trying with needy and irritable consumers. You must be patient - Will eventually get monotonous if you are nothing more than a fitter - Most likely are going to have to work weekends - Unless you're applying at one of the larger stores, the pay isn't great and you may see very little in the way of a raise - Those big local races means you're working instead of running, especially if you're part time