Crunch time

Not just department stores, but a whole range of companies seek to add staff during the holiday shopping season. And in a tight labor market, when it comes to recruiting, some are stepping outside the box.

Some retailers such as Old Navy and Bed Bath & Beyond did the usual and staged job fairs, says Tina Grefrath, manager at Nevada JobConnect.

"But we haven't had that much of a rush on retail like we have in years past," she says. She speculates that in such a tight job market unemployment in the region has hovered at 4 percent or less for many months retailers might have just given up trying. One sign of that: Some large stores have closed some of the cashier stations scattered about the floors.

Many people wanting to pick up a job for the Christmas season first think of going to large department stores such as Gottschalks or Macy's and don't realize that all manner of companies are hiring.

At Lifetouch Portrait Studios in Golden Valley, Kay Putman, human resources manager, added 80 people for the season, a 65 percent increase over the summer staff.

Lifetouch employees process film and make prints of family portraits taken at JCPenney and Target stores nationwide. That's hundreds of smiling faces flooding in from 600 studios.

"It's very fun," says Putman. "A quarter of the people we hire are returnees that come back to work for us every year."

"We ask a lot of the people who work here," she says. But in return, Lifetouch stands on its head to make it a fun place to work. With a Halloween costume contest. Strolling carolers from high school choirs. And food: popcorn and muffins and hot cocoa.

At Lifetouch, the additional staffing starts just after Labor Day, well in advance of the general retail rush. "I usually start hiring before others do so I get a jump on the season," says Putman.

The best hiring tool, she says, is that old standby, the help wanted ads. Next comes JobConnect. But also big is word-of-mouth. The company pays a referral bonus to existing employees who recruit for Lifetouch.

Tiny boutiques are hiring, too.

At Styles in the Smithridge Plaza, manager Robin Dory says, "This time of year, everyone's desperate. Reno's a hard market to find staff."

To sell its line of junior wear, Styles primarily employs part-time students. And, unlike many retailers, Dory hopes to make the holiday hire permanent.

It could be beneficial for job seekers to apply at a small store because the seasonal job is more likely to become permanent, she says. At the big department stores, a post-holiday layoff is likely.

To recruit help, Dory posts a sign in the store's window and posts flyers at schools. But she or the district manager have also gone to shopping malls where potential student help hangs out. Once there, they'll walk up to a group of young adults and ask if any of them want a job.

The ideal holiday employee?

Punctual, she says, with an interest in fashion and merchandising display because, "We're moving stuff around all the time."

And a sense of humor can't hurt.

Training is more rushed with holiday help, says Dory. Year-round employees must deal with the occasional frustrated customer, but during the holidays, retail clerks deal with a continuous stream of stressed-out shoppers who labor to fulfill their shopping duties.

While many merchants find recruitment difficult, it's not hard for Karin Wells, owner of the South Meadows florist shop KaBloom.

"I don't even advertise because people think it would be nice to work with flowers and so think they would like to work here," she says. Plus, her holiday employees from last year came back.

Besides the two owners and two employees, she plans to hire two more shop workers and two extra delivery drivers.

The floral rush starts at Thanksgiving and continues through Christmas, as people order centerpieces for holiday dinners and parties, florals for hostess gifts, and arrangements for out-of-town delivery.

Christmas is the days of wine and roses at Vino 100, a wine retailer in South Meadows.

Owner Carmen Robert wants to add help and, she jokingly adds, a basket expert would be great.

Boosting the holiday gift basket business is the store's corporate gift program. A single business customer can mean the sale of 25 cases of sparkling wine. And scores of gift boxes bottle duos nested in wooden crates and custom branded with company logo.

Then, think about the thousands of gifts that get shipped.

That translates into hiring extra help at The UPS Store at South Meadows.

"We hired some early so we can have them trained ahead of time," says owner Jamison Panzer. Shipping has gone high-tech now that everything is computerized. Plus, new workers take a packaging class.

With four already hired, Panzer's still looking to add two or three more. "But it's an employees' market," he says.

His ideal employee? "Someone who shows up on time and does a good job." And someone who is able to lift 50 pounds.

The busy season for The UPS Store lasts well past New Years Day, into February. In the shipping business, people are sending late items, returning gifts, and playing catch-up, sending "I forgot" and "Sorry I'm late" packages.

To recruit help, Panzer hangs a sign on the door, and posts flyers at college campuses. He also runs help wanted ads online at free job sites such as the one run by Nevada Job Connect. But what works best, he says, is word of mouth, so he actively taps employees and customers for referrals.

People give more than gifts at Christmas. They also give cash. So non-profits traditionally put their donation requests on speed dial this time of year to tap into that generosity.

But that takes extra people to solicit donations. So Reno-area residents are getting phone calls at home with a job offer.

The company doing the hiring is Community Support Inc. Its office on Mill Street is a satellite of The Fundraising Office, a telemarketing company based in Wayne, N.J., that makes fundraising calls on behalf of non-profits.

To prospect for the call center workers it needs, Community Support employed an electronic phone book to call area homes, randomly offering jobs to folks who answer the phone.