Hawker
Also known as: stall holder, indoor market trader, street seller, outdoor market trader, peddler, licensed hawker
About this occupation
Hawkers sell goods and services on established routes, street and market locations.
Essential skills and knowledge
- assist customers
- demonstrate products' features
- perform manual work autonomously
- use different communication channels
- maintain work area cleanliness
- ensure customer focus
- sales argumentation
- guarantee customer satisfaction
- carry out active selling
- ensure product preparation
- organise product display
- process payments
Typical tasks and preparation
From the related US occupation profile Fast Food and Counter Workers (O*NET 35-3023.00). Linked by an official crosswalk: related, not identical; details vary by country.
- Accept payment from customers, and make change as necessary.
- Serve customers in eating places that specialize in fast service and inexpensive carry-out food.
- Request and record customer orders, and compute bills, using cash registers, multi-counting machines, or pencil and paper.
- Balance receipts and payments in cash registers.
- Communicate with customers regarding orders, comments, and complaints.
- Serve food, beverages, or desserts to customers in such settings as take-out counters of restaurants or lunchrooms, business or industrial establishments, hotel rooms, and cars.
- Typical education (US)
- Less than a High School Diploma
- Preparation
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Interests
- Conventional, Realistic, Social
Top skills: Active Listening, Social Perceptiveness, Coordination, Service Orientation, Monitoring, Speaking
US median pay: US$31,200 a year (2025), 3,854,050 employed. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Subjects this work relies on
How important each subject's knowledge is in the job itself, rated by people doing it (1 to 5).
- English or Literature in EnglishO*NET: English LanguageVery important (3.5)
- Agriculture or Foods and NutritionO*NET: Food ProductionImportant (3.4)
- Mathematics or StatisticsO*NET: MathematicsImportant (3.0)
O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Preparation needed
Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Most common education (US)
- Less than a High School Diploma
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
- Training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Related occupations
Occupations O*NET links to this one by similar work, skills and knowledge.
- Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers
- Food Preparation Workers
- Food Servers, Nonrestaurant
- Baristas
- Waiters and Waitresses
- Cooks, Restaurant
- Cooks, Short Order
- Dishwashers
- Bartenders
- Cooks, Fast Food
O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.