In July 2020, 28.1% of all retail sales was made up of internet sales, with a peak in May this year at 32.8% (1). This is hardly surprising with the global pandemic going on, forcing shops to close their doors and switch their businesses to being predominantly online.
For the Head of Ecommerce at Love Shopping Direct, Andy Lockley, making sure that this team had the in-house skills required to capitalise on this boom was crucial. Continuing to grow multiple websites such as; www.airconcentre.co.uk & www.ledbulbs.co.uk was a challenge & he decided that he needed a digital marketing apprentice because Andy believes; “apprentices have fresh minds with new and exciting ideas to support the e- commerce strategy which can be injected into the business”.
Through Estio Training he found Ronnie Cox who tells us, “I’ve always had a passion for digital technology and computers since I was young, doing an apprenticeship was a way for me to learn my passion hands on.” After searching online for the perfect apprenticeship company to reel in his passion he discovered Estio Training. Ronnie says, “I’ve always had ideas but never had the confidence to voice them” but through the duration of his apprenticeship his confidence rocketed and says, “now I can put forward my ideas confidently to groups of people.”
As well as reeling in his passion of digital technology and computing, Ronnie also had the desire to achieve his English qualification. With a qualification in English it has provided Ronnie with the skills needed to create innovative digital content for the Love Shopping Direct’s websites. A key technical skill Ronnie needed to learn about was Coding and according to Andy he did more than just learn. Andy tells us a story, “Ronnie went on a HTML course and when he came back he was able to one up our incumbent expert by using his newfound knowledge, he is now the go-to person for HTML.” It is skilled workers like Ronnie who have helped Andy’s team to battle its way through the highly saturated markets.
These excellent achievements could not have been achieved without the support provided by Ronnie’s PMC’s. Ronnie says, “I was talked through all the tasks I was given and told how to improve my work regularly. Even through the hardships of the pandemic virtual contact remained by using Zoom. There was never a time I didn’t know what I was doing.” The continued efforts of our staff are what gives apprentices the ability to reach their full potential.
Both Andy and Ronnie could not recommend doing an apprenticeship with Estio more. Andy says, “if you’re looking to recruit an apprentice, Estio is an excellent provider. It has brought great success to our team.” As for Ronnie he does not hesitate to say, “It is the best thing I ever did, and I would recommend Estio to anyone. I love my job.”
(1) ONS-https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/retailindustry/timeseries/j4mc/drsi
