Sales & Experience Lead

FAO Schwarz•New York, NY

3d•$23 - $25•Onsite

About The Position

The Sales & Experience Lead helps bring the FAO Schwarz flagship to life by leading associates to create joyful, memorable experiences for guests. This visible, hands-on role coaches the team in real time, supports consistent guest service, and helps ensure the brand’s energy and theatricality are present throughout the sales floor. The position is based at the FAO Schwarz Flagship at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. The Lead sets guest-experience standards, observes and coaches associates, manages guest flow and floor coverage with the Manager on Duty, and leads floor execution for events and brand activations. The role develops and onboards team members, recognizes strong performance, addresses gaps in expectations, and reinforces product knowledge and selling skills through daily coaching. Operational responsibilities include managing the daily zone chart, leading opening and closing routines, maintaining the readiness of props, costumes, products, and equipment, and overseeing daily cash handling. The Lead also supports the Manager on Duty, uses performance data and floor observations to identify business opportunities, shares commercial context with the team, and collaborates with Visual, Operations, Store Leadership, and fellow Leads. The role aligns with Level M3 in the company’s Career Framework, reflecting first-line leadership responsibility and growing ownership of team performance and delivery. It can provide a foundation for progression into Assistant Manager roles at Level M4. The job description notes that duties may include other related functions as assigned.

Requirements

At least 2 years of leadership experience in retail, hospitality, theatre, performance, or experiential environments.
Experience coaching and developing a team through feedback and daily floor leadership, with the ability to adapt to different skill sets and responsibilities.
Strong presence on the floor and confidence making real-time decisions in a busy guest environment.
Ability to balance theatrical guest engagement with operational discipline and commercial awareness.
Genuine interest in toys, play, and what the brand stands for; a love of play is described as non-negotiable.
Ability to stand for extended periods and lift up to 25 pounds.
Flexibility to work days, evenings, weekends, and peak retail periods.

Nice To Haves

Experience in experiential, flagship, or performance-based environments.

Responsibilities

Set and maintain guest-experience standards across the sales floor, ensuring interactions are warm, energetic, theatrical, and on-brand.
Maintain a visible floor presence, observe guest interactions, and provide specific feedback to improve engagement, product knowledge, and service.
Manage guest flow and coordinate with the Manager on Duty to adjust floor zoning and coverage in response to business needs.
Lead floor-level execution of special events, brand activations, and experience refreshes.
Escalate guest feedback and experience issues to store leadership with relevant context and proposed solutions.
Coach and develop associates, adapting leadership approaches to different team members and responsibilities.
Support onboarding so new team members become confident and feel supported in their roles.
Recognize strong performance, hold associates accountable to expectations, and escalate people concerns when needed.
Reinforce product knowledge, storytelling, guest engagement, and sales skills through practical daily coaching.
Own the daily zone chart and deploy the team to maintain clear, balanced, responsive floor coverage.
Lead opening and closing routines and ensure the floor is operationally ready and properly set.
Maintain readiness of the assigned area, including props, costumes, product availability, and equipment, and resolve gaps before they affect guests.
Oversee daily cash-handling operations and ensure transactions meet accuracy and compliance standards.
Support the Manager on Duty by taking ownership of the floor and helping maintain the guest experience across areas.
Coach associates to sell confidently and convert guest curiosity into purchases using product knowledge and selling skills.
Use performance data, floor observations, and product knowledge to assess area performance and identify opportunities.
Share commercial context and business priorities with the team so associates understand how their engagement contributes to results.
Collaborate with Visual, Operations, and Store Leadership to keep the assigned area on-brand and aligned with daily priorities.
Partner with fellow Leads to share knowledge, maintain standards, and provide coverage.
Communicate guest insights, team feedback, operational trends, events, business goals, and expectations to relevant leaders and associates.
Ensure smooth handoffs when areas of responsibility rotate and help resolve guest concerns before they escalate.