After leaving the Armed Forces, Dave Templar, a 50-year-old Store Manager, traded the military life for retail management. Here, Dave describes how he put his transferable skills to the test in a new role at Aldi.

“I wasn’t sure what career options were available to me when I left the Army, as it can be quite difficult to integrate back into civilian life. However, with my managerial experience, I thought a role in which I could motivate a team would be a great place to start. I’d heard Aldi had a fantastic progression scheme with great rewards and after finding out more about the types of role on offer, I decided I would be the perfect fit.

“I didn’t have any experience in retail when I applied to be an Assistant Store Manager, but I knew I had the skills to manage colleagues and develop others due to my time in the Army. Throughout my military career I was part of the Royal Logistics Corp, where I gained important leadership skills, spent my time developing others and oversaw the running of the department.”

These skills stood out in Dave’s application and he secured the role of Assistant Store Manager at a store in Plymouth, only to be promoted to Store Manager at the Hollerton store, just a few months later. He was then asked to be the Store Manager of the Paignton store, which opened in 2015, where he continues to lead a successful team.

Dave explains how his days as a Store Manager can be very fast paced: “It’s rather full on from the minute I start, to the minute I finish, but I love it. There’s so much variety and every day is different, so you never know what your day will entail. During my time with the Royal Logistics Corp, I learnt to be reliable, highly skilled and ready for action, all of which come in handy as a Store Manager.

“My role is very diverse but I think the best part of my job is seeing members of my team move up the ladder and progress to more senior roles, as I find it really satisfying to see that I’ve helped others in their development. On the flip side, meeting daily sales targets can be a challenge, but I receive lots of support from my Area Manager and every member of the team contributes to the stores’ success, which really helps.”

The Store Manager believes the benefits of the role go far beyond the excellent pay and benefits on offer: “The salary for Store Managers is very generous, it’s definitely one of the selling points, but I think the challenge of running a store day-to-day, managing a great team and being part of the wider Aldi business is just as rewarding.”

“I think to be a Store Manager you need to be resilient and able to manage lots of things at once.” Dave continues: “You need to be willing to work hard, be highly organised and know how to get the best out of your team. I always say it’s better to ask colleagues to do something rather than tell them, as you get a lot more from people when you show them respect and meet them half way – with a good team on your side you can achieve great things.”

Dave gives advice to anyone looking to apply for a Store Manager role with Aldi: “I’d say visit your local store and observe the day-to-day operations of the team to see if it is something you would like to be part of before rushing into your application. Do your homework and find out as much about the company as possible, because it’s important you understand Aldi’s core values.

“There’s a wide range of training available at Aldi and opportunities to progress if you want them - you just need to be willing to work hard and deliver great results.”

Looking to the future, Dave plans to be the best Store Manager he can be: “I just want to keep my store running efficiently, make sure my colleagues enjoy coming to work and see lots of promotions along the way. Aldi really was a natural fit for me and I would recommend the company to anyone leaving the armed forces, who is looking for a challenging and rewarding career with excellent benefits. It’s a reputable company which really looks after its staff and I plan to stay here until I retire; which speaks volumes.”