He discovered that the right path is not always the one you originally planned.
David Brady is encouraging local people to consider a career in retail
This is David Brady who is encouraging local people to consider a career in retail, having discovered himself that the right path is not always the one you originally planned.
David first joined M&S on Lisburn Road in 2006 at the age of 16, taking on a part-time role while pursuing his ambition of becoming a civil engineer.
“I genuinely thought M&S would just be a temporary job until I started my engineering career. I enjoyed the work, but my focus was always on becoming an engineer,” he said.
After eight years with M&S, David qualified in civil engineering and left the business in 2014 to pursue his chosen profession full-time. However, it quickly became clear that the career he had worked towards was not the right fit.
“I realised within my first year that I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I expected. Engineering was very computer-based and often involved working alone on sites. Looking back, I probably should have stayed in retail.”
Alongside his day job, music was a major passion. In his spare time, he performed original material, toured across England and played weddings and events as a guitarist. When engineering wasn’t what David had hoped it would be, he decided to take a leap and turn music from a side passion into his full-time focus. However, not long after making this decision, the Covid-19 pandemic arrived in 2020.
With live events paused, David says he returned to retail, working across a range of roles before progressing into management: “Going back into retail reminded me how much I enjoyed it, especially working with people. That was what I had missed. I realised the part I value most in any job is human interaction.”
In 2023, David returned to M&S as a Team Manager in the Lisburn store: “I’d never had a bad experience working for M&S. It was always a positive environment. Retail can be busy and bring pressure, but it is a type of pressure I enjoy. I like helping people, developing teams and being part of a store at the heart of its community.”
From Lisburn, David joined the Aldergrove store in October 2025 as Relief Store Manager through the ‘Stepping Into Store Manager’ programme, before being permanently appointed in January 2026.
Now overseeing the store’s biggest transformation in recent years, he is keen to encourage others to consider the opportunities available.
“Retail has given me a career that I genuinely love. If you had asked me at 16 where I would end up, I would have said engineering without hesitation. Life does not always work out the way you expect, but sometimes that works in your favour,” he added.
As part of the Aldergrove redevelopment, M&S is recruiting for up to 25 roles across the store, including customer-facing shop floor positions, in-store bakery roles and backstage operations focused on stock management and supporting store operations. Contracts ranging from 12 to 30 hours are available, with successful applicants invited to the assessment centre in Lisburn on June 23 and 24.
Applications are now open via https://jobs.marksandspencer.com.
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