Sales Associate – Growth Path

Pay: $18-20/hour to start, depending on experience
Growth: Key Holder → Buyer or Similar Position
Type: Full-time
Location: Olde Town Arvada
Shifts: 12-8pm, some 8-4pm or 10-6pm
Schedule: Weekends required, please do not apply if you cannot work weekends and evenings consistently

About Us

Arvada Army Navy Surplus is a family-owned store in Olde Town Arvada, serving Colorado since 1984. We carry Carhartt, Levi's, work and hiking boots, knives, military surplus, and outdoor gear. We're not a big box and we're not a hobby shop, we're a working specialty retailer. Our customers come here because our people know the product and know how to help them buy.

The Opportunity

We're looking for someone who wants to build something here, not just clock hours. This is a sales floor position, and we mean sales. Our floor associates have real conversations with customers, make confident recommendations, and aren't shy about helping people leave with what they actually need.

For the right person it turns into a real career — buying product, managing a department, merchandising the floor, maybe running our surplus events. We don't hand those roles out on day one. You earn them by showing up, learning the product, taking care of customers, and proving you can be trusted. If you do that, the path is real.

Day to Day

• Have real conversations with customers about the job they're doing, what's wearing out, what they're shopping for
• Make recommendations confidently. We carry a curated selection because we believe in what we sell — your job is to help people find the right item, not just point them at the wall
• Walk customers to what they need, don't point from across the store
• Add to the sale when it makes sense, socks with boots, a sharpener with a knife, the right belt with the workwear
• Keep your department stocked, clean, and shoppable
• Work the register
• Jump in wherever the team needs help, small crew, everyone contributes

Who Thrives Here

• You actually like people. The customer who walks in not knowing what they need, the regular who wants to chat about hunting season, the contractor in a hurry — you can read each one and meet them where they are
• You believe selling is helping. You don't see "selling" as pushy or sleazy — you see it as making sure the customer leaves with what they actually need, including the things they didn't know to ask for
• You're genuinely into gear — boots, workwear, knives, camping, military surplus, hunting, or some combination
• You're curious about product and want to learn what makes one brand better than another
• You take initiative without being asked
• You're reliable — on time, every shift, no excuses

Benefits

• Health reimbursement — up to $500/month toward your insurance or medical expenses
• Dental insurance
• 10 paid vacation days after year one
• IRA retirement matching
• Employee discount on all gear and clothing

This is a civilian position — no military service required. We're looking for the right attitude, curiosity about product, willingness to sell, and willingness to earn your way up.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $18.00 - $20.00 per hour

Benefits:

• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee discount
• Health insurance
• Paid time off

Application Question(s):

• What’s a product category you know well — boots, knives, workwear, outdoor gear, surplus — and what do you know about it that most people don’t?
• Tell us about a time you helped a customer find exactly what they needed, even if they didn’t know what they were looking for.
• This role requires 12–8pm shifts and weekends. Can you work this schedule consistently?
• What are you currently doing for work, and why are you looking to make a change?

Ability to Commute:

• Arvada, CO 80002 (Required)

Work Location: In person