Specialty Departments: Music/DVD

First Love: Music
Rick Smith, music manager
Richmond, Virginia

Books take too long for Rick Smith.  He likes compact, involving stories.

Combine his preference for this type of storytelling with his enjoyment of beautiful cinematography and his first love, music — and you have a personality type perfect for success in our Music/DVD Department. 

Rick joined Barnes & Noble in 2000 and immediately gravitated toward selling music and DVDs.  And he’s been a top performer in the Richmond, VA, store ever since.

Rick firmly believes that effective book and music/DVD sellers should approach customers as friends, on equal footing, and gain their trust.  When asked about his best hand-selling tip, Rick says, “Read between the lines of what a customer tells you they are looking for.  You often have to decode their messages.  Develop loyal customers, know their taste and seek out titles they would enjoy.”

Although his first love is music, Rick is a big movie lover, and prefers foreign and “chick” flicks. “I go for emotion over action,” says Rick, whose favorite films are To Kill A Mockingbird, The Talented Mr. Ripley and Cinderella Man.  The film he gets asked for the most is The Sound of Music.

“I’m so glad I took this position with Barnes & Noble,” he adds.  “I feel part of a family in the store, and I love telling people I work here.  It’s the best job I’ve ever had.”