Area Manager

McCarthy Recruitment Ltd; West of England; On-site; GBP 63,000 - 77,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company car

Performance bonus up to 20%

Autonomy to manage your area

Job summary

McCarthy Recruitment Ltd is seeking an experienced Area Manager to oversee 12–14 stores in the South West, driving commercial and operational performance and developing Store Managers to their full potential.

You will be visible in stores, balance commercial targets with people development, and travel to your area to support teams and deliver consistent results. This role offers autonomy and a comprehensive benefits package.

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of the commercial and operational performance of approximately 12–14 stores across your area.
• Lead, coach and develop Store Managers to reach their full potential.
• Drive key retail KPIs including sales, profitability, labour and stock availability.
• Identify opportunities to improve performance and implement effective action plans.
• Support underperforming stores and deliver sustainable improvements.
• Build succession plans and develop future retail leaders.
• Create a culture of accountability, teamwork and continuous improvement.

Job description

Salary: Up to £70,000 per annum + Car + Bonus

Role: Permanent | Full-time

Are you an experienced Area Manager looking for your next challenge? Or have you stepped into an Area Manager role through a secondment and are ready to take that next step?

We're recruiting for an exciting opportunity with a successful, well-established national retailer that is continuing to grow and invest in its people.

This is an opportunity to take responsibility for a portfolio of 14 stores across the South West, driving commercial performance, developing Store Managers and making a genuine impact across your area.

We're looking for someone who is passionate about retail, understands what drives successful stores and, most importantly, knows how to get the best out of their people.

You'll have the autonomy to manage your own diary, identify where your support is needed most and work closely with your Store Managers to deliver consistent results.

This isn't about sitting behind a desk analysing reports. It's about being visible in stores, understanding your teams, celebrating success and challenging performance when needed.

What you'll be doing as an Area Manager:

• Taking ownership of the commercial and operational performance of approximately 12–14 stores.
• Leading, coaching and developing Store Managers to achieve their full potential.
• Driving key retail KPIs, including sales, profitability, labour, waste, stock availability and operational standards.
• Identifying opportunities to improve performance and implementing effective action plans.
• Supporting underperforming stores and helping management teams deliver sustainable improvements.
• Building strong succession plans and developing future retail leaders.
• Creating a culture of accountability, teamwork and continuous improvement.
• Managing costs effectively while maintaining excellent customer service and store standards.
• Sharing best practice across your area and encouraging collaboration between stores.
• Spending time in stores, getting to know your people and understanding the challenges they face.

What we're looking for:

You’ll be an experienced retail leader who understands the challenges of managing multiple stores and knows how to balance commercial performance with developing great teams.

You may already be an established Area Manager or Regional Manager, or you may have gained valuable multi-site leadership experience through an Area Manager secondment.

We're particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate:

• Proven experience managing multiple retail stores across a geographical area.
• Experience directly leading, coaching and developing Store Managers.
• Previous experience within food retail at some point in your career.
• Strong commercial awareness, including sales, labour, waste, profitability and operational KPIs.
• A track record of improving store performance and delivering measurable results.
• The ability to identify underperformance and confidently put improvement plans in place.
• A supportive but challenging leadership style that brings out the best in people.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to build relationships across different teams.
• The confidence to make decisions, take ownership and work independently.
• A genuine passion for retail and developing future leaders.

Have you covered an Area Manager role on secondment?

We'd still love to hear from you! If you've taken responsibility for a portfolio of stores, managed Store Managers and delivered results across an area, your experience could be exactly what we're looking for.

Experience within supermarkets, convenience retail, discount retail or other high-volume retail environments would be particularly relevant.

Exposure to online retail, home delivery or Click & Collect operations would also be beneficial.

This is more than just another Area Manager position. It's an opportunity to join a growing retailer that genuinely values its people and recognises the importance of strong leadership.

You’ll be trusted to manage your area, develop your Store Managers and make decisions that have a real impact on business performance.

You’ll receive:

• Competitive salary of up to £70,000 per annum.
• Performance-related bonus of up to 20%.
• Company car.
• Genuine autonomy to manage your own diary and area.
• Responsibility for an established portfolio of stores.
• A people-focused culture where coaching and development are encouraged.
• Opportunities for long-term career progression.
• The chance to make a real difference within a growing national retailer.

If you're an experienced multi-site retail leader who loves developing people, improving performance and making things happen, we'd love to hear from you.

Commutable Locations: Bath, Chippenham, Corsham, Trowbridge, Melksham, Warminster, Frome, Street and surrounding areas.

About us

The Legal Bit: We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation or age. By applying for this role, you are explicitly consenting for McCarthy Recruitment to hold and process your data in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulations. Your details will be added to our holding database. We process certain personal information about you for our legitimate business interests to identify and contact suitable candidates about positions that may be relevant to them. Details are set out in our privacy policy. If you wish to exercise your right to access, erase or restrict the processing of your data, please contact us at the office and we will respond to your query.