Employment Development & Training

We believe in the professional growth of our Associates and provide ongoing training to help Associates achieve career goals including advancing within the company. Here's a glimpse of what we have to offer:

• New-Hire Orientation Training

Our orientation training provides a company overview along with touching on a wide range of topics including customer service, company policies and programs, uniform issue and signing required HR forms.

• Management Trainee Program

We believe in promoting from within. This course is for designated management trainees and newly promoted assistant managers. The class focuses on operations and store financials; human resources; training, marketing and visual merchandising.

• Assistant Manager Training

This course is for assistant managers and newly promoted store managers. It's a hands-on advanced management course with extra emphasis on leadership, store financials, human resource issues and visual merchandising. Half the class sessions are in-store with the Director of Learning and Development, the Regional Managers and the Visual Merchandising Manager.

• Sales Skill Workshop

This 3-hour workshop is focused on offering great customer service as we enter our busy spring selling season. Topics include: engaging the customer, tie-in and suggestive selling, benefit selling, closing the sale and how and when to overcome objections by customers to purchase suggestions. A final exam and three workshop scenarios reinforce topics discussed. For all store associates: managers, assistant managers, sales associates, maintenance associates, cashiers and home delivery drivers since we all play a role in exceeding the customers’ expectations through customer service.

• New Product Training

Developed to train our Associates on new product offerings like new plants, insect control, patio furniture, grills and more. New product training is typically done during store meetings and often times vendors will conduct the training.

• Pike Nurseries Trade Show and Product Knowledge Fair

An annual event in February, this trade show is exclusively for Pike Nurseries Associates and features all of our product vendors. We get a chance to ask the experts, our vendor partners, questions and attend training sessions offered throughout the day on hot gardening and retail topics.