Note: This Position Has Been Filled
Position:
Museum Store Operations Project Manager
Type:
Temporary Contractor, potential to become a Corner Store Co-op worker-owner
Job Opening Primary Contact:
Danté Hamilton, info@cornerstorecoop.com
Corner Store Co-op, LWCA
Co-Founders:
Dante Hamilton, Natalie Crüe, Nakia Sims, Takisha Smith, Anton Hilton, Chalonda McIntosh
Salary & Terms:
The stipend is $4500/month, plus reimbursement for expenses, paid monthly at the end of each month. Exact details to be determined and outlined during the contracting process.
Important note:
Corner Store Co-op, LWCA is a for-profit, legal entity separate from the National Public Housing Museum, which is solely managing the search for this position, as a sponsor of the co-op.
How to Apply:
To apply, Click “Employment Application Form” link below
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About Corner Store Co-op
Corner Store Co-op LWCA, which is a co-op currently being incubated and sponsored by the National Public Housing Museum (NPHM) and will be located at the museum’s site upon opening in 2024, partners with youth, artists, designers, and entrepreneurs from public housing communities across the United States to offer custom clothing, handmade accessories, books, limited edition zines, and more. Since 2021, NPHM staff have been working with six current and former public housing residents as part of a cooperative working group to design and pilot retail and programming initiatives, including launching and operating the e-commerce store, cornerstorecoop.com.
Corner Store Co-op aims to amplify the entrepreneurial history of public housing and supports small businesses and cooperatives owned by public housing residents to promote economic equity. In addition to serving as the primary retail provider for the National Public Housing Museum, the physical and online stores also function as informal sites of activation for visitors and community members to learn and share the important history and present-day advocacy of cooperatives, including how public housing residents contribute to, and benefit from, a solidarity economy ecosystem.
Project Description
We are seeking a motivated entrepreneur with experience in start-ups, business administration, retail, or management in an adjacent field, who is excited to lead a small, growing team in developing Corner Store Co-op LWCA in its first full year as a legal entity.
The Museum Store Operations Project Manager is a 10-12 month contractor position that works closely with Corner Store Co-op’s Store Operations Team with additional support and resources provided by National Public Housing Museum, including funding, and other resources and administrative support, as needed.
The ideal contractor will be a community-oriented professional that has lived in public housing or Section 8 housing. Other meaningful connections to public housing will also be considered. This contractor position has the potential to develop into a worker-owner position should the contractor have an interest in doing so.
The Store Operations Team is responsible for the daily operations of the brick and mortar and online business, including:
- Maintaining and staffing the brick and mortar store
- Maintaining the e-commerce website
- Upkeep and tracking inventory
- Photographing products and generating product descriptions
- Managing orders and fulfillment: customer service, shipping orders, and ordering shipping materials
- Track sales and payments to members, vendors, and contractors
- Make recommendations for future products/vendors based on sales
- Maintain relationships with other Chicago cooperatives
- Onboard new worker/consumer owners
- Implement and provide feedback on promotional and communication strategies and materials for print, email, social media, and press releases
The deliverables for the Store Operations Project Manager 10-month contract to follow:
Conduct a full audit and make recommendations for improving operational policies and procedures for the e-commerce store, including: website maintenance, shipping fulfillment, tracking inventory customer, and vendor communication, etc.
- Audit and make recommendations for website
- Audit and make recommendations shipping fulfillment protocols, customer service, and vendor communications standards and procedures
- Audit and propose a system improvements for tracking online inventory
Develop and implement operational policies and procedures for a brick and mortar store.
- Set hours of operation and staffing for first 3-months of operations
- Develop shipping and receiving protocols and procedures
- Develop system for tracking in-store inventory
- Develop customer service standards and procedures
- Develop vendor communications standards and procedures
Business plan
- Draft a business plan, including but limited to operations, marketing, start-up budget, financial projections, etc.
Fiscal management
- Develop a bookkeeping system for: tracking sales and payments to members, vendors, and contractors, adhering to policies and procedures, and complies with all applicable laws, government rules and regulations
- Develop fiscal year budgeting process and year-round monitoring
- Research, prepare & lead tax compliance
Develop promotional and communication strategies
- Work with graphic designers to develop materials for print, email, social media, and press releases
- Propose process and procedures for periodic vending at outdoor markets and other site-based activations, beyond the onsite location
Contribute to CRM system development
- Make recommendations for tracking relationships with customers; workers and producers; sponsors and investors; partners, and other key stakeholders.
Deadlines will be determined as part of the contracting process, once both parties have made any necessary adjustments to the deliverables and solidify a development plan.
Minimum Requirements
- Three plus years experience in Retail Management of Business Operations
- Experience and/or commitment to cooperative principles and business practices
- Must be professional, analytical, detail-oriented and have excellent communication skills
- Experience managing time effectively and multi-tasking
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, environment with a high degree of self-direction, and self-motivation
- Effective with collaborating across organizations, a range of stakeholders, and cross functional teams when needed to accomplish fiscal goals and related projects
- Comfortable in an environment experiencing accelerating growth and a sense of urgency in the need to create new accounting and budgeting processes
- Demonstrate highest standards of personal and professional integrity
Preferred Qualifications
- Retail business experience
- Experience gathering and evaluating financial information and making recommendations
- Solid understanding of general accounting principles
- Ability to analyze and reconcile balance sheet accounts and bank statements
- Skills with regards to accounting software, Quickbooks Online, Microsoft Excel, and other related computer programs
- Has lived experience with public housing as current or former resident of public or Section 8 housing
