Last week, the Old Navy store in Laurel partnered with Hearts & Homes for Youth and provided a job readiness day for the youth in our program!

At Camp Old Navy, youth from our programs spent the day learning the ins and outs of the popular retail chain. They learned what it’s like to have a job in apparel retail and experienced hands-on training in retail management, sales and merchandising, working the sales floor alongside actual employees. Just like regular employees, the teens learned the specifics of how “their” store works and is laid out, and learned a little about what the company expects from its employees and how it wants its stores run.

Camp Old Navy is a partnership between Gap Inc. (Old Navy’s parent company) and local youth development programs. The program brings teens into Old Navy stores for a half-day job shadow experience that helps them develop job readiness skills and explore career opportunities. The teens get to experience firsthand what it’s like to work in retail and to try out new experiences like searching for merchandise using  a retail computer system and learning how to work a cash register to make transactions, all in a supportive, educational environment.

Old Navy in Laurel partnered with Hearts & Homes for Youth last year and youth who participated had a great time!