Associate Manager, Retail Customer Experience

New York Botanical Garden•New York, NY

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Associate Manager, Retail Customer Experience supports and continuously improves the Shop’s visitor experience. The role enhances the customer journey, establishes and delivers service standards and behaviors that support business objectives, and develops visitor-facing education and engagement programming that brings the Shop’s assortment to life. Under the direction of the Director of Retail, the Associate Manager serves as the Shop’s liaison to NYBG’s broader visitor-facing functions and is the primary driver of training for customer-facing staff. The position works alongside Associate Managers leading Operations and Merchandising. The role requires regular on-site, on-floor presence and includes periodic outdoor work in varied weather, assisting with and unloading stock deliveries, climbing ladders, and lifting or moving items up to 30 pounds. The baseline schedule is 35 hours per week, Wednesday through Sunday, rotating between 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and 11 a.m.–7 p.m. Occasional evenings and/or holidays are required based on NYBG’s events and programming schedule. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.

Requirements

At least 4 years of retail experience, including at least 1–2 years in a supervisory, lead, or management role.
Proven ability to lead a team and manage a retail floor in a fast-paced environment.
Demonstrated experience coaching, training, and developing team members, including in areas outside one’s initial expertise.
Excellent communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills, with a professional, solutions-oriented approach to problem-solving.
Proficiency with POS systems and Microsoft Office.

Nice To Haves

Experience translating customer feedback—such as reviews, direct comments, and observed patterns—into service standards or coaching.
Experience designing or delivering staff training and onboarding.
Knowledge of or genuine enthusiasm for horticultural and botanical products; deep horticultural expertise is not required.
Shopify POS experience is preferred.

Responsibilities

Assume responsibility for the Shop’s visitor journey, from entry and browsing through checkout and post-purchase, identifying friction points and leading improvements across touchpoints.
Monitor customer feedback across channels, identify trends, and turn them into service improvements and staff coaching.
Set and drive customer-service behaviors and standards that support business goals.
Maintain and refine the Shop’s service-recovery approach for complaints and escalations across in-person and email channels, and serve as the escalation point for complaints requiring managerial judgment.
With the Director’s support and oversight, design and deliver training and onboarding for customer-facing staff, including curricula, new-hire onboarding, coaching, and floor walks.
Serve as the Shop’s liaison to NYBG visitor-facing functions, including Membership, Admissions, Guest Services, and Education/Public Programs, to integrate the Shop into the Garden-wide visitor journey.
With the Director’s support and oversight, develop and lead visitor-facing education and engagement programming, such as care guides, in-store tips, workshops, and seasonal events, partnering with subject-matter staff to ensure technical accuracy on plant and horticultural content.
Model NYBG’s customer-service standards as a visible, engaged floor leader and provide day-to-day coaching and functional guidance to the team.
Perform other related duties as assigned.