An international team of researchers studied the following aspects of training in the United Kingdom's retail sector: structure and characteristics, institutional and social context, employment and labor, changing conditions and their implications for skill requirements, and training and recruitment. Data were collected from an analysis of social and labor/employment statistics, literature review, and case studies of a department store, grocery retailer, menswear chain, cooperative society, pharmacy, and health food shop. The four largest companies all had polices of providing training throughout the company, and all had recently increased the amount of training they provided. At the two independent companies studied, the existence of relevant training providers was crucial. Level of training was often determined by whether employees were eligible for promotion. Distance learning and/or open learning packages were being used by four companies. No company performed formal cost-benefit analyses of training. The employers interviewed were concerned with how the new national Retail Certificate would fit into their company needs. Unions were not generally involved in discussions of local training issues. Most employees interviewed considered their training valuable; however, none had strong views regarding how it could be improved. (Contains 43 tables/figures and 46 references.) (MN)