Area Manager

Area Manager - Belfast

A people-first, service-led retail leadership opportunity

Our team is supporting an ambitious and growing food retail business in the appointment of an experienced Manager to lead its Multi Site locations across Belfast with lots of further locations to come.

This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who genuinely enjoys being around people, developing teams, creating great customer experiences and building an environment where people take pride in what they do.

We're looking for a experience Retail Manager or Area Manager who is visible, approachable and commercially aware, with the confidence to lead from the front and make things happen. You will have worked ideally in the QSR, Hospitality, Food or Convenience sector to really understand the pace and customer expectations.

The role

Creating consistently excellent experiences for both customers and colleagues across the Multi Sites.
Alongside the people and service focus, you'll have responsibility for the commercial and operational performance of the locations - including sales, labour, standards, stock and waste.

What you'll be responsible for

Leading people: Build engaged, motivated teams where people feel supported, valued and clear about what great looks like.
Developing talent: Recruit great people, coach consistently and identify and develop future managers and leaders.
Creating great service: Make sure customers feel genuinely welcomed, listened to and looked after every time they visit.
Being visible: Spend time on the shop floor, understand what is happening day to day and lead by example.
Setting standards: Maintain high standards across service, presentation, cleanliness, food safety and product availability.
Improving performance: Understand the commercial performance of each location and work with your teams to continually improve results.
Managing resources: Plan rotas effectively, manage labour and minimise avoidable waste while protecting service and product quality.
Listening and responding: Take customer and colleague feedback seriously, resolve issues quickly and identify opportunities to improve.
Working collaboratively: Build strong relationships with the bakery, production, commercial and marketing teams to improve availability, stock flow and the overall customer experience.
Supporting growth: Contribute to future site opportunities, helping recruit, train and establish new teams and locations.
Keeping leadership informed: Bring useful insight, honest feedback and practical recommendations to the senior team.

What we're looking for;

We're looking for an experienced retail leader who puts people and service at the heart of how they manage.
You might currently be managing multiple shops, a larger retail operation or a substantial customer-facing team. More important than the exact environment is your ability to demonstrate that you have built strong teams, improved customer experiences and delivered consistently high standards.

You'll ideally bring:

Proven experience leading and developing customer-facing teams.
A genuine passion for people development, coaching and creating positive team cultures.
A strong customer-service mindset and an understanding of what great service looks like.
The confidence to be hands-on, visible and involved in the day-to-day operation.
The ability to set clear expectations while being fair, supportive and consistent.
Commercial awareness and the confidence to understand and use your key KPIs.
Good judgement and the ability to balance people, service, standards and commercial performance.
Strong communication skills and the confidence to deliver the communication.
The ability to listen, take feedback and turn it into meaningful action.
Experience within food retail, hospitality, convenience or another high-volume customer environment would be beneficial.
Experience of opening new locations or supporting business growth would be advantageous.

Why join?

This is an opportunity to join a growing business at an exciting point in its journey, with genuine scope to make a difference.
You'll have ownership from day one, a strong level of autonomy and the opportunity to shape how the retail teams work, how customers experience the business and how future locations are developed.
It's an environment where things move quickly, ideas are welcomed and managers are expected to make a difference rather than simply follow a playbook.
Most importantly, you'll be joining a business that wants its people to enjoy coming to work and its customers to feel genuinely welcome.

The Benefits;

Working 5 out of 7 days a week, based on a 37.5 hour contract.
No Sundays or Late Nights.
Getting involved in Fun, Social Events to drive the business.
Clear opportunities of development to senior positions as the business grows
28 days holidays inc BH
Bonus potential
Pension scheme
Salary flexibility which will be reflective of experience - £45,000 to £55,000
You will need to hold a full UK License and have access to a vehicle, as the business grows and your role evolves you will be provided with a company car and additional benefits.

If you're a people-focused retail leader who loves developing teams, delivering great service and making a positive difference to the customer experience, our team would love to hear from you.

BH37545