Assistant Store Manager

About Woander World

Woander World is a specialty toy and game shop in the heart of Mill Valley, curated for curious kids, creative families, and lifelong players. We stock thoughtfully chosen games, puzzles, plush, STEM kits, and imaginative play items—and we're the retail home of Wylding Woods, our immersive children's entertainment brand. We are a small, tight-knit team where every person has real responsibility and real impact.

Role Summary

We're looking for a full time highly organized, dependable Assistant Store Manager to keep the day-to-day engine of the store running smoothly. This role is the operational backbone of Woander: you'll own staff scheduling and inventory ordering, while also delivering warm, knowledgeable customer service and supporting a positive team culture. If you love systems, can juggle competing priorities without losing your cool, and genuinely enjoy helping families find the perfect toy or game, this role is for you.

Core Responsibilities

Scheduling & Team Coordination

  • Build and publish the weekly staff schedule, ensuring appropriate coverage for peak days, events, and holidays

  • Proactively manage shift swaps, call-outs, and last-minute coverage gaps with minimal disruption

  • Onboard new hires to scheduling tools, shift expectations, and store protocols

Inventory & Purchasing

  • Own the reorder process: monitor stock levels daily, identify low-stock and out-of-stock items, and place purchase orders on a consistent cadence

  • Maintain accurate item records in Square POS including cost, category, vendor, and reorder thresholds

  • Receive and process incoming shipments: check against purchase orders, enter into POS, tag, and stock efficiently

  • Build and maintain vendor relationships; track lead times and communicate delays

  • Track COGS and shrink; escalate discrepancies promptly

Store Operations

  • Open and close the store according to established procedures

  • Maintain visual merchandising standards: ensure shelves are full, organized, and seasonally refreshed

  • Handle cash reconciliation, weekly deposits, and basic POS troubleshooting

  • Respond to and resolve customer service issues with empathy and sound judgment

  • Enforce store policies and ensure a safe, welcoming environment for all guests

Qualifications

Required

  • 2+ years of retail experience, with at least 1 year in a supervisory or lead role

  • Demonstrated experience building staff schedules for a team of 3 or more people

  • Hands-on experience placing purchase orders and managing inventory in a retail POS system

  • Strong written and verbal communication skills

  • Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously

  • Comfortable working some weekends and occasional evenings

Preferred

  • Experience in specialty retail, toy/game, children's products, or gift categories

  • Comfort with basic spreadsheets and reporting for inventory and sales tracking

  • Genuine enthusiasm for games, puzzles, creative play, or children's media

What Success Looks Like

  • The schedule is published on time every month with no coverage gaps and labor hours within target

  • Shelves are consistently stocked; popular items never run out without a reorder already in flight

  • Receiving is processed same-day or next-day with zero POS entry errors

  • The team knows where to turn and feels supported when the owner is not on the floor

  • Customers leave with the right product and a great experience

Compensation & Benefits

  • Full-time, 32–40 hrs/week, benefits-eligible

  • $24 to $27 / hour commensurate upon experience

  • Health insurance reimbursement

  • PTO

  • Performance bonus eligibility tied to store performance goals

  • Employee discount on all Woander World merchandise

  • Opportunity to grow with a small, mission-driven team at the intersection of retail and immersive entertainment

How to Apply

If you’re excited about creating memorable customer experiences through games, toys, books, storytelling, and imagination, we’d love to hear from you! Please send your resume along with a brief cover letter telling us why you’d be a great fit for the Woander team to jobs@woanderworld.com