Retail Manager

Chicago, IL
Full Time
Mid Level

ABOUT WNDR

WNDR Museum is an immersive experience located in the vibrant West Loop of Chicago. Our mission is to ignite curiosity, creativity, and wonder within everyone who walks through our doors. We foster a culture of innovation, inclusivity, and endless possibilities, providing a dynamic and interactive environment for exploration.

 

Title: Retail Experience Manager

Reports To: General Manager

Compensation: $20 - $24 / Hour BOE

 

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Retail Experience Manager is a key member of the WNDR Chicago leadership team, responsible for elevating the guest experience through world-class service, exceptional retail strategy, and dynamic floor leadership. This role operates at the intersection of hospitality and business operations—ensuring every touchpoint, from our retail shop to our lounge and museum floor, is intentionally designed, well-executed, and deeply memorable.

Reporting to the General Manager, the Retail Experience Manager serves as Manager on Duty (MOD) in the absence of the GM and AGM, and is expected to lead with presence, energy, and hands-on engagement. This individual is equal parts floor leader, coach, and operator—with a focus on guest experience, team performance, retail per caps, staffing efficiencies, and daily operations.

This role follows a weekly rhythm of:

  • 2 Days as Floor Manager
  • 2 Days as Retail Experience Leader
  • 1 Day of Administrative Focus (Inventory, Merchandising, Scheduling, and Reporting)

This is a full-time, on-site role located in Chicago, IL with regular working days of Wednesday through Sunday.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Leadership & Guest Experience

  • Lead by example with high visibility and engagement across the floor
  • Serve as Manager on Duty, owning museum-wide operations in absence of GM or AGM
  • Actively coach and mentor staff through real-time feedback and ongoing development
  • Deliver exceptional service through a culture of curiosity, ownership, and hospitality
  • Uphold and reinforce WNDR’s values, tone, and service expectations through modeling and leadership
  • Assist guests with escalated service needs, ticketing issues, rebookings, and recovery moments

Retail & Merchandising

  • In collaboration with WNDR Global’s Revenue Operations team, own the retail and F&B space presentation, visual merchandising, cleanliness, and guest readiness
  • Monitor and improve per capita spend through product strategy, sales coaching, and upsell initiatives
  • Maintain and manage stock levels, conduct regular inventory, loss prevention, and cycle counts
  • Create and deliver product knowledge training, new item rollouts, and upselling prompts
  • Develop and maintain merchandising standards that reflect the WNDR brand and current trends

Team & Operations

  • Supervise and mentor Retail Ambassadors and cross-functional Ambassadors
  • Ensure adequate staffing levels, training coverage, and shift assignments
  • Identify and develop high-performing team members; provide coaching to underperformers
  • Participate in the hiring, onboarding, and continued development of staff
  • Lead and support opening and closing procedures across museum operations
  • Collaborate with the AGM and GM on team schedules, feedback loops, and team culture

Administrative & Strategic

  • Maintain weekly reporting on sales performance, inventory, and staffing
  • Own retail-specific KPIs including sales goals, conversion, and per caps
  • Review trends and provide insights to improve product offerings and guest interest
  • Liaise with senior leadership to create seasonal product plans and promotional moments
  • Review and help optimize vendor relationships for efficiency and cost-effectiveness

QUALIFICATIONS:

  • 3+ years of experience in retail management, hospitality, or guest experience leadership
  • Demonstrated success in driving sales, coaching teams, and managing retail operations
  • Excellent communication, organization, and problem-solving skills
  • Highly adaptable and comfortable operating in a fast-paced, ever-evolving environment
  • Passion for art, design, or immersive experiences is a plus
  • Ability to work evenings, weekends, holidays as needed
  • Preferred experience using backend managerial functions of Square POS. 
  • Knowledge of basic technical troubleshooting preferred.
  • Mobility: This position involves both active and stationary activities, including: standing, reaching, kneeling, climbing, using a ladder and maintaining balance while walking.
  • Lifting: Candidates must be capable of lifting, carrying, and placing items weighing up to 50 pounds.
  • Being present in a space with a significant amount of multi-sensory stimulation including but not limited to multiple recorded audio tracks played over speakers, crowd noise, abrupt shifts in lighting, strobe lights and multiple video devices visible at once.
  • A passion for delivering exceptional guest experiences and fostering a positive team environment.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS (with our without accommodations)

  • Mobility: The ability to consistently walk and move around is essential for this role.
  • Stationary Tasks: This position involves frequent stationary activities, including standing, reaching, and maintaining balance while walking.
  • Body Movements: Occasional physical activities such as kneeling, crouching, climbing, bending, or stooping may be required.
  • Equipment Handling: The role could include pushing or pulling equipment, such as shelving bays, dollies, and carts.
  • Lifting: Candidates must be capable of lifting, carrying, and placing items weighing up to 25pounds.
  • Being present in a space with a significant amount of multi-sensory stimulation including but not limited to multiple recorded audio tracks played over speakers, crowd noise, abrupt shifts in lighting, strobe lights and multiple video devices visible at once.

WNDR Museum warmly welcomes people of all ages, identities, ethnicities, beliefs, religions, and backgrounds to join our team. WNDR Museum is an equal opportunity employer, fully committed to achieving an inclusive and diverse workplace and we strongly encourage nontraditional candidates to apply. We hold ourselves to our commitment and continuously strive to attract, engage, and grow with our talented team.

Share

Apply for this position

Required*
We've received your resume. Click here to update it.
Attach resume or Paste resume
Attach resume as .pdf, .doc, .docx, .odt, .txt, or .rtf (limit 5MB) or Paste resume

Paste your resume here or Attach resume file

To comply with government Equal Employment Opportunity and/or Affirmative Action reporting regulations, we are requesting (but NOT requiring) that you enter this personal data. This information will not be used in connection with any employment decisions, and will be used solely as permitted by state and federal law. Your voluntary cooperation would be appreciated. Learn more.
Invitation for Job Applicants to Self-Identify as a U.S. Veteran
  • A “disabled veteran” is one of the following:
    • a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or
    • a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.
  • A “recently separated veteran” means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.
  • An “active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran” means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.
  • An “Armed forces service medal veteran” means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.
Veteran status


Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability
Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability Form CC-305
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026
Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Please check one of the boxes below:

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.

You must enter your name and date
Human Check*