Leasing Manager – Food & Beverage

Caliberly; Dubai; On-site; AED 420,000 - 660,000; Full time

Job summary

FFSU, Dubai, is seeking a Leasing Manager with extensive restaurant/QSR leasing experience to lead and own a leasing portfolio in the UAE. The role requires proven tenant-side experience, strong relationships with landlords and developers, and a track record of securing new site openings.

The candidate must demonstrate end-to-end deal leadership, from identification to signing and opening, with focus on multiples brands and franchisee environments. UAE driving licence is required.

Qualifications

• Total commercial real estate / leasing experience: minimum 8 years.

Responsibilities

• Evidence of rent reductions or lease restructures with site specifics.
• Site acquisition from identification to signing and opening.
• Delivery of franchisor or corporate approval files to completion; explain past rejection and fix.
• Renewal management with no lapses (no fines or defaults).
• Closures and relocations executed end-to-end (minimum 5).

Skills

Business English

Arabic

UAE driving licence

Negotiation

Education

Bachelor degree in Real Estate, Business Administration, Finance, Engineering or related

RICS / MRICS accreditation

UAE Broker Card / RERA registration

Postgraduate qualification

Tools

Lease analysis tools

NPV modelling in Excel

Job description

LEASING MANAGER — SELECTION CRITERIA

FFSU | Reports to: Country Manager | Dubai, UAE

1. EXPERIENCE — MANDATORY

• Total commercial real estate / leasing experience: minimum 8 years
• Restaurant, QSR or F&B leasing specifically: minimum 5 years, of which at least 3 within the last 5 years
• At Leasing Manager level or equivalent (own portfolio, own negotiation authority, not supporting someone else's): minimum 3 years
• Current or most recent role tenure: minimum 2 years — under 18 months in each of the last two roles is a stability flag to probe
• Portfolio personally managed: minimum 25 active leases at any one time
• New restaurant sites personally secured and opened: minimum 8 sites in the last 3 years
• Franchisor / corporate approval files (RFS or equivalent) personally compiled through to approval: minimum 10 files

2. MARKET — MANDATORY

• UAE market experience: minimum 4 years continuous, currently UAE-resident
• Occupier-side experience required — landlord-side or agency-side only does not qualify
• Trade-area knowledge: active working knowledge of Dubai and Sharjah as a minimum; Northern Emirates and Oman preferred
• Landlord and developer relationships: must be able to name specific individuals and organisations, not just describe the market

3. SECTOR — MANDATORY, AND THE PRIMARY SCREEN-OUT

• Direct restaurant / QSR / F&B portfolio experience, operator-side or franchisee-side
• Retail-only, mall-leasing-only, office or residential backgrounds are disqualified — this is the exact profile mismatch behind the current vacancy, and two referred candidates have already been rejected by the Country Manager on this ground
• Multi-brand portfolio experience preferred (3+ brands managed simultaneously)
• Franchisee-side QSR environment preferred (3+ years)

4. DEMONSTRATED CAPABILITY — PROOF REQUIRED, NO NUMBER SET

Candidate must be able to evidence each of the following with named sites, dates and outcomes. What matters at screening is that the capability is proven, not the size of the figure — scale is calibrated to their previous portfolio, not to ours.

• Rent reduction / lease restructuring — has personally led and closed rent reductions or restructured terms on existing leases. Must give the site, the opening position, the closing position, and what was conceded.
• Site acquisition — has personally taken restaurant sites from identification through to signed lease and opening
• Approval file delivery — has driven franchisor or corporate approval files to completion, and can explain a past rejection and how it was fixed
• Renewal management — can evidence a clean record: no lapsed renewals, no fines, no default notices in their portfolio
• Closures and relocations — has executed these end-to-end (preferred, minimum 5)

5. EDUCATION & CERTIFICATION

• Bachelor degree in Real Estate, Business Administration, Finance, Engineering or a related discipline — mandatory
• RICS / MRICS or equivalent professional accreditation — preferred, not required
• UAE Broker Card / RERA registration — preferred, not required, but indicates active market participation
• Postgraduate qualification — not required and should not be weighted

6. TECHNICAL SKILLS

• Lease commercial analysis — must be able to calculate effective rent, rent-free amortisation, turnover rent breakpoint, and total occupancy cost as a percentage of sales. Test this live with a term sheet.
• Financial modelling — builds own rent comparison and NPV models in Excel
• Structured site selection methodology — catchment, footfall, co-tenancy, access, visibility, competitor proximity
• Portfolio administration — maintains a lease expiry calendar with renewal trigger dates

7. PERSONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Business English — fluent, written and spoken
• Arabic — preferred, not mandatory
• UAE driving licence and own vehicle — mandatory, site visits are a daily requirement
• Notice period — maximum 60 days

8. DISQUALIFIERS — REJECT AT CV STAGE

• Retail-only, office or residential background with no restaurant portfolio
• Landlord-side or agency-side only, no occupier-side experience
• Fewer than 8 restaurant sites delivered in the last 3 years
• Notice period exceeding 60 days
• No UAE driving licence