Aperture

Position Title: Retail Manager

Reports to: Director of Book Sales & Operations

Status: Full-time

Date: March 26, 2025

Aperture is a nonprofit publisher that leads conversations around photography worldwide. From our base in New York, Aperture connects global audiences and supports artists through our acclaimed quarterly magazine, books, exhibitions, digital platforms, public programs, limited-edition prints, and awards. Established in 1952 to advance “creative thinking, significantly expressed in words and photographs,” Aperture champions photography’s vital role in nurturing curiosity and encouraging a more just, tolerant society.

With a capital campaign underway and new five-year strategic plan, Aperture is preparing to move in 2025 from Chelsea to a new, permanent home with a ground-floor retail bookstore, at 380 Columbus Avenue on the Upper West Side of New York City.

Position Summary:

In anticipation of moving to our new space at 380 Columbus Avenue, Aperture is seeking an enthusiastic, experienced, and organized Retail Manager to oversee daily operations, drive sales, and promote a passion for photography through books, prints, and related products. The ideal candidate will be experienced in retail management, have a strong appreciation for photobooks and photography, and be excited to work in a nonprofit environment that fosters creativity, education, and community engagement in an active Upper West Side retail space. The Retail Manager will work closely with the Director of Book Sales and Operations and the Director of Sales and Outreach to steward the goals, initiatives and priorities of the retail operation. 

This is a retail environment in a busy and vibrant nonprofit photography bookstore. The role will require working frequent evenings and weekends to accommodate events, special programming, and customer needs.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Retail Management/Supervision:

• Hire, train, and manage bookstore staff, ensuring they are knowledgeable about Aperture books and mission, and committed to providing excellent service to all visitors.
• Create staff schedules and ensure adequate coverage during peak times.
• Help manage and create visual merchandising campaigns on an ongoing basis.
• Develop and implement retail strategies to achieve sales targets.
• Create Aperture store signage as needed in coordination with Senior Designer.
• Assist Digital department with management of online store.
• Manage receiving and shipping for in-store and online sales of special editions.

Inventory Management:

• Oversee inventory control, including receiving, ordering, stocking, and managing product displays.
• Help oversee development of retail special editions.
• Coordinate with vendors and publishers to maintain strong relationships and ensure consistent product availability.

Community Engagements and Events:

• Coordinate retail events (appearances, signings and launches, as well as events in support of Development and Education departments.)
• Engage with customers, local photographers, and artists to promote community-based programming, events, and collaborations.
• Partner with other local nonprofits, businesses, and educational institutions to expand outreach and drive engagement with the bookstore.
• Collaborate with the communications and marketing teams to develop in-store promotions, social media campaigns, seasonal sales, and email newsletters.
• Support Aperture’s efforts to increase visibility and attract new customers through creative merchandising and store displays.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience preferred.
• Experience: Minimum 5 years of retail management and merchandising experience, preferably in a bookstore, nonprofit, or arts-related environment.
• Skills: Strong organizational, communication, and leadership skills. Ability to manage a diverse team and multitask effectively. Strong technical skills, including experience with point-of-sale systems, inventory management software, and other office tools (e.g., Microsoft Office, Google Suite).

• Physical Requirements: Must be able to stand and walk for extended periods of time; lift up to 50 lbs. regularly; and transport and stock retail supplies and materials. Must be able to bend, stoop, and climb a step ladder to reach inaccessible materials.

• Passion: A strong interest in photography, books, and the arts, with an understanding of the nonprofit sector and its unique challenges.

At Aperture, we value all types of experience. A successful candidate has many of the qualifications listed, and the desire and capacity to learn the rest on the job. If much, but not all, of a posting describes you, then we welcome your application.

TO APPLY

Using the link below, please send a resume and thoughtful cover letter in one PDF attachment and describe how your skills and experience meet the qualifications. 

Applications are due by April 30, 2025. NO CALLS, PLEASE. Only applicants who meet our requirements for this position will be contacted. If you have any questions, please contact HR@Aperture.org.

Aperture will be offering a salary of $55,000 – 70,000, depending on experience, along with excellent medical, dental, life, disability, and retirement plan coverage. Our staff also has generous vacation, sick leave, and personal days, access to a variety of cultural institutions, and a creative, professional, and collegial work environment.

Aperture seeks to build a diverse and inclusive workforce and welcomes all applications, regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation, cultural background, disability, age, or religion. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the heart of our strategic thinking, and reflected in the selection of artists and writers that we publish, the engagement programs we present, and our ongoing work to diversify our staff and board.

Aperture is a nonprofit publisher that leads conversations around photography worldwide. From our base in New York, Aperture connects global audiences and supports artists through our acclaimed quarterly magazine, books, exhibitions, digital platforms, public programs, limited-edition prints, and awards. Established in 1952 to advance “creative thinking, significantly expressed in words and photographs,” Aperture champions photography’s vital role in nurturing curiosity and encouraging a more just, tolerant society.

With a capital campaign underway and new five-year strategic plan, Aperture is preparing to move in 2025 from Chelsea to a new, permanent home with a ground-floor retail bookstore, at 380 Columbus Avenue on the Upper West Side of New York City.