Retail Keyholder & Brand Ambassador, Part-Time

Company Description

Lingua Franca is an NYC-based luxury clothing and accessory brand known for our hand-embroidered cashmere goods and ethically sourced ready-to-wear collection. Our pieces are designed to spark conversation and showcase an irreverent point of view. Founded in 2016, Lingua Franca's unique embroidery aesthetic has gained a loyal following.

Qualifications, skills, and all relevant experience needed for this role can be found in the full description below.

Role Description

The Retail Keyholder & Brand Ambassador is a part-time, commission-eligible sales leader who brings the Lingua Franca townhouse experience to clients, both at our West Village flagship and on the road. You'll spend most of your time with clients: styling, selling, recommending custom embroidery, and building relationships that turn first visits into loyal customers.

In the store, you're a trusted leader on our West Village flagship team. You'll welcome and assist clients, drive sales through personalized service and clienteling, and help create a warm, memorable shopping experience that reflects Lingua Franca's commitment to craftsmanship, storytelling, and community. You'll process transactions, maintain visual merchandising standards, and keep the store organized, stocked, and running smoothly. As a keyholder, you'll open and close the flagship, set the pace for the team. Working closely with the Retail Director and fellow associates, you'll help achieve sales goals while shadowing day-to-day operations and learning our standards inside and out. You're adaptable, detail-oriented, and thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.

On the road, you're a key brand ambassador, bringing the Lingua Franca in-store experience to trunk shows and events. You'll travel a minimum of 3 days per month; each month depends on the shows we book and may include evening hours, with more events during our busier holiday months. As a brand steward, you're solely responsible for the end-to-end logistics of a successful show: setup, merchandising, payment processing, custom orders, and building the relationship with our host.

Above all, you have strong retail instincts. You're organized, a problem solver, and energized by travel and the retail experience, dedicated to building relationships and delivering a best-in-class experience on the road and off. This position is based at our 95 Jane Street flagship in New York and reports to the Retail Director.

Type: Part-time, travel-focus

Travel: Minimum 3 days per month, by car and air

Store Hours: Minimum 2-3 days a week

Based in: West Village, NYC

Reports to: Retail Director

Responsibilities:

In the store (Flagship, West Village)

• Welcome clients and create a warm, personalized shopping experience
• Develop strong product knowledge and confidently share our craftsmanship, sustainability practices, and brand story
• Team sell to achieve monthly store goals, mentoring associates with in-the-moment coaching on selling, styling, and clienteling
• Wardrobe clients by building complete looks, recommending custom embroidery, and cross-selling to increase average purchase
• Use our clienteling and CRM platforms and your client book to capture customer information and drive repeat business through personalized outreach
• Open and close the store as a keyholder, following all key-control, cash-handling, and security procedures
• Support inventory accuracy and loss prevention to help protect company assets
• Process incoming shipments, replenish the floor daily, and assist with organization and cycle counts
• Fulfill, package, and ship online orders accurately and efficiently
• Communicate inventory needs, customer feedback, and product requests to support business goals
• Keep displays, fixtures, and all visual areas reflective of current visual direction, and the store clean, organized, and beautiful
• Help facilitate in-store events, activations, brand partnerships, and private appointments
• Resolve client concerns and complaints quickly and gracefully
• Process sales, returns, and exchanges accurately in Shopify POS

On the road (Trunk Shows & Events)

• Travel to trunk shows and pop-ups at least 3 days per month, with opportunities to travel more often
• Become an expert in our cashmere, styling, and custom embroidery, so every client leaves with something personal
• Deliver a best-in-class luxury experience centered on quality, sales, and lasting client relationships
• Keep every setup client-ready, with displays merchandised to Lingua Franca standards and tidy at all times
• Own show logistics end to end: packing, shipping, setup, breakdown, and making sure all product and displays come home correctly
• Ring all sales, custom orders, and payments accurately through Shopify POS, reconcile inventory after each show, and flag what's selling so we can plan inventory for the next one
• Serve as the brand's liaison with trunk show hosts and partners, upholding our values
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• Grow the business by building genuine relationships with customers and following up after each show

Who You Are:

• Strong retail instincts: you can read a customer, build a sale naturally, and consistently hit or beat goals
• 2+ years of selling experience in luxury, fashion, or boutique retail, with a track record you can speak to
• Full understanding of specialty retail, including business development, visual merchandising, and store operations
• Strong aesthetic sensibilities and a personal sense of style
• A sharp eye for the floor: what's moving, what needs restocking, and how a display drives sales
• A natural at clienteling: you remember names, purchases, and preferences, and turn a first visit into a repeat customer
• Strong leadership, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, and calm under pressure when you're running a show on your own
• A natural brand steward: warm, polished, and genuinely energized by people and travel
• Comfortable on camera for social media, in both stills and video
• Able to work weekends and peak seasonal periods, and to travel at least one full weekend per month, including some evenings, with more during the holidays
• Computer skills, including retail POS systems (Shopify a plus), Word, Excel, and email
• Able to lift and carry up to 30 lbs and stand for extended periods
• Bonus: an existing client base, event or trunk show experience, or a love of knitwear

Compensation + Benefits:

• $25 / hour plus sales-based commission
• Employee discount
• Travel expenses