Leading Labels are a multi-branded clothing retailer with numerous stores throughout the UK and Ireland. The Restart Scheme has been working with Leading Labels since May 2022 after Sue Gaskell, Employment Engagement Coordinator for the Restart Scheme, spoke to Warren Ponter, Retail Operations Controller for Leading Labels. With a new store opening in West Bromwich, Sue thought they would be a perfect match for Restart Scheme Participants looking for jobs.

Working with Restart Scheme delivery partners, Sue ensured pre-screening took place to select suitable Participants to put forward for the recruitment for Retail Assistant and Retail Supervisor roles. The Participants were then invited to assessment days which included learning more about the job roles available, understanding Leading Label’s company values, team working and interview preparations. This helped the Participants gain a greater understanding of the business and what the job would be like, and with this being a new store, the demands the job would entail. From this, interviews were set up in the Go Train office in West Bromwich with the new store management team, specifically for Restart Scheme Participants.

The interviews proved to be a success and the Leading Labels management team were so impressed with the calibre, motivation and willingness to learn from the Restart Scheme Participants that, in total, 7 people were offered jobs!

Sue visited the new store recently, as part of the Restart Scheme aftercare, to see how everyone was settling into their roles and on speaking with the team and Participants, feedback was that all the new employees have grown in confidence and that Leading Labels have found some great employees. Furthermore, the Participants have been offered support with upskilling and on-the-job training. Sue and the team at the Restart Scheme look forward to continuing to develop their relationship with Leading Labels to offer ongoing recruitment across the whole region. 

Warren Ponter – Retail Operations Controller for Leading Labels said:

“Thanks to the Restart Scheme team at Serco, who have provided some quality candidates who were motivated, keen to work and showed great potential. They have taken the additional pressure from the Management Team to recruit reliable and enthusiastic staff who are continuing to make progress and drive the store to become more successful.”

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