CHRISTOPHER CARSON
Hellertown
Summary
Enthusiastic leader with 29 years of experience planning, leading and improving operational functions. Strategic in developing policies, managing day to day activities and sales. Focused on motivating staff and working with diverse personality types to achieve common goals.
Overview
33
33
years of professional experience
Work History
General Manager
Trumbauer's Lawn & Garden
09.2020 - Current
- Managed budget implementations, employee reviews, training, schedules, and contract negotiations.
- Managed a diverse team of professionals, fostering a positive work environment and high employee satisfaction.
- Developed and implemented strategies to increase sales and profitability.
- Cultivated strong relationships with clients, vendors, and partners to ensure long-term success and loyalty.
- Monitored financial performance, set budgets and controlled expenses to provide financial stability and long-term organizational growth.
- Drove year-over-year business growth while leading operations, strategic vision, and long-range planning.
- Tracked trends and suggested enhancements to both challenge and refine company's product offerings. Added several new brands and product to the lineup we offer.
- Set up exciting new merchandise displays to catch attention of store customers. Refreshed and cleaned up showroom appearance creating an updated, brighter, easier to shop area focusing on add on sales, pop products and accessories to close with sale.
- Reduced operational risks while organizing data to forecast performance trends. Removed underperforming sku's in parts and wholegoods to make way for better turning items.
- Identified and qualified customer needs and negotiated and closed profitable deals with high success rate. Managed commercial / consumer financing processes.
- Reduced financial inconsistencies while assessing and verifying billing invoices and expense reports. Streamlined distributor parts purchases to cut shipping costs for store, thereby saving the customer money as well as implementing an omni-channel process for increased sales.
OPE Manager
Neighbor's Lawn and Garden
06.2019 - 09.2020
- Developed comprehensive training programs for new hires to facilitate seamless integration within store culture and processes rapidly.
- Maintained a well-organized and visually appealing sales floor, driving customer engagement and boosting sales.
- Reduced inventory shrinkage through effective loss prevention techniques and staff training.
- Managed daily operations for optimal efficiency and productivity, achieving store performance goals consistently.
- Handled problematic customers and clients to assist lower-level employees and maintain excellent customer service.
- Managed purchasing, sales, marketing and customer account operations efficiently.
- Stocked, monitored, and maintained inventory of diverse products.
- Sold parts and wholegoods as well as managed residential and commercial financing programs
- Established strong relationships with vendors to ensure timely delivery of merchandise and minimize out-of-stock situations.
- Ensured compliance with local health regulations by maintaining a clean environment throughout the store premises consistently.
Operations Manager
Lowe's Companies Inc.
05.2006 - 06.2019
- Conducted regular performance reviews, identifying areas for improvement and developing action plans to address them.
- Managed inventory and supply chain operations to achieve timely and accurate delivery of goods and services.
- Led hiring, onboarding and training of new hires to fulfill business requirements.
- Established positive and effective communication among unit staff and organization leadership, reducing miscommunications, and missed deadlines.
- Oversaw facility maintenance, ensuring optimal functionality of equipment and infrastructure at all times.
- Identified and resolved unauthorized, unsafe, or ineffective practices.
- Handled staff training initiatives aimed at upskilling the workforce to meet dynamic industry demands.
- Assisted in recruiting, hiring and training of team members. Trained and guided team members to maintain high productivity and performance metrics.
- Handled problematic customers and clients to assist lower-level employees and maintain excellent customer service.
- Observed each employee's individual strengths and initiated mentoring program to improve areas of weakness.
- Analyzed and reported on key performance metrics to senior market and regional management. Performed audits within my home stores and when tasked, throughout market, to identify opportunities and ways to correct deficiencies. Discussed findings with each individual stores management teams.
- Held several different job titles and responsibilities as Lowe's restructured to meet business needs in an ever changing retail environment. Dept Manager, Zone Manager, Assistant Store Manager, Sales Manager, Administrative Manager & Operations Manager were some of the most prevalent. Several times throughout my career with Lowe's I was asked to move to a different store because my areas of expertise pertained to the opportunities within that particular store. I have always cooperated within the needs of the business.
Operations Manager/ Acting Store Manager
Sears Hardware
05.2005 - 05.2006
- Was hired by Sears Hardware as the Tool Department Manager
- Was immediately promoted to Operations manager (assistant Store manager) and soon found myself as acting store manager for both the Quakertown and Nazareth locations during a mass exodus of personnel during a company restructure
- Was responsible for customer service, ordering, hiring, book keeping, money handling and asset protection for both locations
Owner/ Operator
Carson's Hardware
12.2002 - 10.2004
- Took over all operations of family business
- Opened a subsidiary (Carson's Seasonal Sales) specializing in holiday merchandise, lawn and garden, outdoor power equipment and paint / stain
- Closed store in 2004 after incurring catastrophic loss from Hurricane Ivan
- Spent a year repairing, cleaning out and trying to reopen but the financial burden was too much
Manager
Carson's Hardware
07.2000 - 12.2002
- Managed parents hardware store as they took a step back
- Responsible for day to day operations, book keeping, customer service, purchasing, hiring, payroll and asset protection
CSA
Carson's Hardware
12.1991 - 07.2000
- Started working part time for my grandparents selling Christmas Trees
- After that worked part time after school and on weekends
- My parents bought the business in the mid nineties and in 1996 I started working full time eventually managing the business
- I became a certified small engine tech and helped to bring back small engine sales and service to the business
- I was instrumental in the revitalization of the store and helped to find new ways to compete in changing economic times focusing on niches and ways to serve the community that our competition could not
Education
High School Diploma -
Saucon Valley
Hellertown, PA01.1996
Skills
- Budgeting and forecasting
- P&L management
- Purchasing and procurement
- Dependable
- Employee relations and conflict resolution
- Unsurpassed work ethic
- Logistics management
- Performance evaluations
- Expense reports
- Sales background
- Business operations
- Superb time management skills
- Organized
Timeline
General Manager
Trumbauer's Lawn & Garden
09.2020 - Current
OPE Manager
Neighbor's Lawn and Garden
06.2019 - 09.2020
Operations Manager
Lowe's Companies Inc.
05.2006 - 06.2019
Operations Manager/ Acting Store Manager
Sears Hardware
05.2005 - 05.2006
Owner/ Operator
Carson's Hardware
12.2002 - 10.2004
Manager
Carson's Hardware
07.2000 - 12.2002
CSA
Carson's Hardware
12.1991 - 07.2000
High School Diploma -
Saucon Valley
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