Opening a flagship store in a new overseas market is a special kind of challenge in the retail sector. It takes tenacity and vision to establish brand awareness, build product knowledge and set the required performance standards for everyone from the general manager right down to recently hired frontline staff. Britain-based home improvements retailer B&Q has done just this by opening its first local store in East Kowloon earlier this month. - But there is an extra dimension in that the company has introduced a whole new concept in the shape of a 'superstore' focused on home decor and improvement. Shoppers will be able to find anything from nuts and bolts to tins of paint, window frames to bathroom sets, all under one roof. 'It is a one-stop shop,' said Johanna Cheung Hoi-ka, human resources manager of B&Q Asia, who added that, as a home decoration and DIY supplier, the store would have a unique market position. Achieving this depends on recruiting high-quality staff with the right experience. The firm is keen to find people with specialist skills and has been hiring craftsmen including painters, decorators and builders to be the store's 'trade experts' and help customers with DIY inquiries. B&Q targeted retired or semi-retired craftspeople with years of trade knowledge and expertise who wanted to apply their skills in a retail environment. 'These people will help our clients by offering product knowledge and doing demonstrations,' Ms Cheung said. This hiring initiative is in line with corporate policy as 24 per cent of the firm's 38,000 employees worldwide are over the age of 50 and many of them have returned to work after a break or have changed career direction. With the average age of Hong Kong's population steadily rising, employers hiring older workers will be able to benefit from this growing 'resource'. 'We need people who are mature, who can understand our customers' needs and analyse their problems to create successful home solutions,' Ms Cheung said. 'In the recruitment process, we ask them technical questions to see whether they are able to do a good job.' Such questions might include asking an applicant to teach someone how to paint a wall, or to explain the difference between different kinds of paint. In that way, it is possible to test practical communication skills and if a person is good in their field. New recruits also go through in-house training courses to help them adapt their core skills to B&Q's retailing needs. Programmes will include store-operating procedures, customer-service skills, sales techniques, health and safety, and crime-prevention awareness. 'Everybody does this training, and we try to make it fun [by giving] it an interactive format,' Ms Cheung said. 'But it is particularly important for the trade experts because they need to know our brands when they do demonstrations.' Once a person is 'up and running' they will have the opportunity to share their skills not just with customers, but also with other staff. This apprentice-style relationship makes older staff feel valued and appreciated for their knowledge and work experience, while younger staff learn the skills of the trade from respected professionals. This has proved a successful formula in other countries and, with the demographic shift now evident in Hong Kong, it is one that other local companies may well look to replicate. DIY guide Home improvement retailer opens first one-stop superstore in Hong Kong. Keen to recruit older staff with trade skills and experience to add value for customers Particular demand for expert painters, decorators and electricians looking for a post-retirement job or a change of career direction Wide-ranging training programmes to familiarise staff with the retail environment and to orientate their skills to the company's needs Experienced staff encouraged to share their trade skills with younger colleagues, as well as customers