Commercial Sales & Event Manager

The Old Vic; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 35,000 - 38,000; Full time

Job summary

A renowned London theatre is seeking a motivated individual to manage venue hire and events. This role involves proactive sales, planning, and client liaison to deliver high-quality events. Candidates should have a solid background in venue sales, strong organizational skills, and excellent customer service abilities. This position offers a competitive salary of £35,000 - £38,000, with flexible home-working options as part of a hybrid model.

Qualifications

• Previous experience of venue sales and event management, ideally in a theatre or cultural environment.
• Ability to manage budgets of up to £200k.
• Strong organization and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Act as the first contact for venue hire and event enquiries.
• Develop tailored proposals and manage client relationships.
• Lead on event planning and coordination.

Skills

Venue sales experience

Event management

Strong sales acumen

IT literacy

Excellent customer service

Tools

Microsoft Office

Excel

Job description

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Summary

The purpose of the post is to manage the delivery and growth of commercial venue hire and events at The Old Vic, maximising income through proactive sales activity and delivering high-quality, well-managed events that reflect the theatre's brand values and commitment to excellent customer service.

More Details

Department/Team: Business and Backstage Team

Responsible to: Head of Commercial Event Sales

Contract: Permanent

Location: Mix of home working and from The Old Vic, 103 The Cut, London, SE1 8NB (min 4 office days)

Hours: Full-Time

The Old Vic offers the ability to work these flexibly under the guidelines in our Hybrid Working policy. Additional hours may be necessary in order to fulfil the requirements of the post

Salary: £35,000 - £38,000 per annum

Direct Reports: No direct reports

Areas of responsibility

The Role will be responsible for:

Sales & Client Liaison

• Acting as the first point of contact for all venue hire, filming and event enquiries.
• Proactively generating and responding to event sales leads, providing accurate information on spaces, capacities, rates and facilities.
• Developing tailored proposals and quotes that meet client needs while maximising income and upholding The Old Vic's brand values.
• Managing client relationships from enquiry through to contract signature, delivery and final invoicing.
• Preparing and issuing hire agreements, ensuring compliance with The Old Vic's policies, licensing regulations and insurance requirements.
• Maintaining accurate records of sales pipelines, bookings and income to support reporting and forecasting.

Event Planning & Coordination

• Leading on the detailed planning of each confirmed event, producing schedules and operational booking documents in line with client requirements.
• Overseeing all food and beverage arrangements for in-house catering, confirming menu choices and guest numbers.
• Liaising with internal teams (Technical, Operations, FOH, Finance, Business, Marketing, Production) to ensure clear communication of all event requirements.
• Managing relationships with external suppliers, such as caterers, production companies and equipment hire firms, ensuring delivery to agreed standards, budgets and timelines.
• Ensuring all health & safety, access and licensing requirements are met, completing risk assessments and documentation as required.
• Maintaining accurate event information across internal systems, updating changes in real time.

On-the-Day Event Management

• Working as the Event Duty Manager as required, or working closely with the Event Duty Manager, overseeing setup and delivery.
• Leading briefings with staff, contractors and volunteers to communicate event plans, timings and expectations.
• Providing professional, calm and welcoming support to clients and guests, resolving any issues swiftly.
• Managing event timings, hospitality and guest experience, maintaining The Old Vic's high service standards.

Administration & Reporting

• Managing hire agreements and financial administration, including raising invoices, processing payments and reconciling event costs.
• Evaluating events post-delivery, gathering client and internal feedback to inform continuous improvement.
• Supporting the wider team in meeting annual commercial income targets.

This is not an exhaustive list of duties and the Theatre's management may, at any time, allocate other tasks which are of a similar nature or level.

Person Specification

• Previous experience of venue sales and event management, ideally within a theatre, heritage or cultural environment.
• Experience of managing budgets of up to £200k
• Strong sales acumen with the ability to convert enquiries into bookings and maximise income opportunities
• Adept understanding of event operations, logistics and health & safety procedures
• Exemplary organisation skills as well as written and verbal communication skills.
• A positive 'can do' approach and strong relationship building skills across departments
• Acute attention to detail.
• A proven ability to work effectively and efficiently.
• Excellent customer service skills with a people-centric approach.
• A skilled team player.
• IT literacy, with good experience of the Microsoft Office suite and Excel in particular. (Training will be given on software programs as required.)
• Ability to work to deadlines and prioritise tasks.
• Strong networker and able to bring innovative ideas into the team