Congratulations to the 60 retail employees studying on the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision who graduated with a Level 6 Advanced Certificate in Retail Supervision

On Thursday 10th November 2022, hundreds of people descended upon the Athlone Springs Hotel to celebrate the remarkable achievements of the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision graduating class of 2020. It was a wonderful celebration which was made possible by the attendance of the graduates, their friends and family, employers, workplace mentors and our colleagues from Solas, Ibec and Skillnet Ireland. Our honorary guest was Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, Minister Damien English.

Minister English has always been a very active supporter of the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision programme and it was wonderful that he could be present to see the life-changing opportunity the Apprenticeship programme has given retail employees from all over Ireland.

The graduates started the programme in September 2020, when Covid-19 was in full swing and they were working on the frontline. It takes courage and determination to enrol in a two-year programme whilst working full-time and in the middle of a pandemic. Over the two years, apprentices complete modules in a number of key retail areas including selling, customer experience, legal issues, supervision, supply chain, account, marketing, consumer behaviour, IT, merchandising and security. They showed real strength of character and resilience by overcoming different challenges along the way, making the graduation even more significant.

The Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision programme has become one of Ireland’s leading apprenticeship programmes with many of Ireland’s leading retailers participating on the programme. Retailers identified the reasons they have got involved in the programme as follows: 87.50% – Succession planning, 62.50% – Address knowledge gap, 50.00% – Talent attraction, 37.50% – Reduce staff turnover, 37.50% – Improve employee morale, and 12.50% – Enhance employer branding. Without great retailer employers and workplace mentors, this apprenticeship programme would not be possible. A special word of thanks to all the wonderful employers and mentors who so actively and wholeheartedly supported their apprentices over the two years of the programme.

We currently have 200 people studying on the Apprenticeship in Retail Supervision programme and are currently taking expressions of interest for September 2023. If you would like to find out more, email info@retailirelandskillnet.com or visit our website here>>https://retailirelandskillnet.com/apprenticeship-in-retail-supervision

Event Photographer: Clive Wasson