Visual merchandiser CV examples

The best displays tell a story – and so should your CV. Whether you’ve styled windows for a flagship store or transformed seasonal layouts to boost footfall, this is your chance to present your skills in a clean, cohesive format.

In the next few sections, you’ll be writing a CV which structures your experience, highlight your creativity, and tailor your application to retail brands looking for someone with an eye for both design and results.

In retail, presentation is everything – and the same applies to your CVs structure. Employers want to quickly see your experience, your creative strengths, and how your work drives customer engagement and sales performance.

Here’s how your CV should be laid out:

• Name and contact details – Keep these personal info at the top so a potential employer can reach out to you.
• Profile – Immediately draw in the recruiter with a brief summary of your skills and experience.
• Core skills – Quickly bullet point to highlight technical and creative abilities.
• Work experience – List your previous roles starting with the most recent, and show how your designs made an impact.
• Education & certifications – Go through qualifications related to fashion, design, or retail, like degrees and certificates.
• Additional info – You can optionally list any relevant hobbies and interests, and awards which help to convey your suitability.

Keep your formatting polished and concise: use a clear, professional font, divide each section with clean headings, present details in bullet points where appropriate, and keep your CV length under two pages: save any more for a CV cover letter. Following these simple formatting tips will keep the focus on your expertise, not your mistakes.

This brief introduction is your chance to showcase both your creative flair and commercial focus. It should immediately communicate your experience and the strengths that make you a standout visual merchandiser. You need to convey your value to recruiters, and your CV profile is the perfect way to do this quickly.

Here’s what to include:

• Where you’ve worked – Mention the brands or retailers you’ve supported, such as fashion chains, department stores, or high-street brands.
• Your top qualifications – Highlight any relevant certifications or diplomas in visual merchandising, design, or retail.
• Essential skills – Include strengths like spatial awareness, styling, trend interpretation, and planning displays.
• Experience with campaign and seasonal rollouts – Show you’ve executed visual plans for promotions or new collections.
• Ability to work cross-functionally with retail and marketing teams – Emphasise collaboration with store managers and head office departments.

Your CV skills section should be sharp and tailored to the job. This is where you show recruiters that you’ve got the creative instincts and the commercial understanding to boost foot traffic and maximise product visibility.

Stick to skills that reflect your strengths in planning, styling, display execution, retail strategy, and any relevant software. Use bullet points to make them instantly scannable.

This section should show how you’ve used creativity and strategy to influence in-store experience and drive sales. Go beyond listing tasks – focus on your impact: increased customer engagement, improved product visibility, successful promotional rollouts, and so on.

List your roles in reverse order, starting with the most recent. Include store type and key responsibilities or campaign work that make you stand out. If possible, mention measurable outcomes (e.g. “contributed to 15% uplift in seasonal sales”).

• Outline – Briefly describe the company and store type, and your role within the visual merchandising team.
• Responsibilities – Describe core duties using action words like “styled,” “implemented,” “revamped,” or “collaborated.”
• Achievements – Highlight results like sales uplifts, successful campaign launches, or improved footfall.

While experience is key in visual merchandising, formal education and creative training can add a strong edge. Start with your most recent qualifications – whether in fashion, retail, design, or visual communication.

Also include any on-the-job training or short courses you’ve completed in areas like trend analysis, display design, or customer experience. Keep this part concise to make room for your work experience, which hiring managers value more.