Final answer:
Retail employers do not typically require all employees to have specialized industry knowledge unrelated to retail, such as engineering or law. They focus more on transferable skills and knowledge that apply directly to retail tasks and customer service.
Step-by-step explanation:
Retail employers commonly seek candidates with certain foundational knowledge and skills that are essential in the retail environment. These include customer service expertise, basic numeracy for handling transactions, understanding of inventory management, and familiarity with point-of-sale systems. The knowledge area not typically required for all employees would be specialized industry knowledge not relevant to retail, such as in-depth knowledge of a field like engineering or law that doesn't directly apply to daily retail operations.
Retailers often look for employees with transferable skills. These skills are adaptable and can be applied to various aspects of the job. For instance, good communication skills are valuable because they help in customer interaction and teamwork. Other desirable traits include a positive attitude, teamwork capabilities, adaptability, a quick learning curve, reliability, and a strong work ethic.
Although specific technical skills or knowledge might be necessary for specialized roles within retail, such as a butchers needing to understand meat cuts or an electronics section employee needing to know about the latest technology, there are certain areas of expertise that are not focused on for every employee. For example, having advanced knowledge in a subject like quantum physics is not considered foundational knowledge that all retail employees need.