Department Manager

JD Sports; Gateshead; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

GO Outdoors in Gateshead is seeking a Store Manager to lead and develop a high-performing team, delivering outstanding customer service and store standards. You will coach colleagues, manage day-to-day operations, and contribute to achieving sales KPIs while ensuring a safe work environment.

The role emphasises staff development, effective communication, and operational excellence to drive growth and customer satisfaction in a busy retail setting.

Qualifications

• Experience coaching and developing store teams.
• Strong communication to engage colleagues and customers.
• Proven ability to drive KPIs and store performance.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach and develop a high-performing store team.
• Deliver exceptional customer experiences driving loyalty and repeat visits.
• Ensure a safe, compliant store environment for colleagues and customers.
• Assist in achieving monthly store targets and KPIs.
• Oversee day-to-day operations including opening and closing.
• Support recruitment, onboarding and training of new colleagues.
• Provide feedback to improve performance and colleague coverage.

Skills

Coaching & development

Team leadership

Retail customer service

Communication skills

Job description

This is GO Outdoors. Made for Exploring. Built for Everyone.

At GO Outdoors, our purpose is simple: to inspire and equip everyone for life outdoors. From hikers to cyclists, cold-water dippers to weekend campers, we believe the outdoors should be for all - and we’re here to make it accessible with trusted kit and unbeatable value.

We’re passionate, practical, and people focused. Our values - welcoming, responsible, authentic, and innovative - guide everything we do as we help the nation discover the joy of being out there. If you’re driven to empower every kind of adventurer and make the outdoors accessible to all, you’ll feel right at home with us.

This is your moment. This is GO Outdoors. Are you in?

Role overview:

Create a positive and engaging environment for colleagues and customers through the effective leadership and management of your department or defined business area. Support, coach and develop store colleagues to deliver service which has customers at the heart, through exceptional store standards and highly engaged colleagues.

Responsibilities:

• Support the Store Manager in leading, coaching and developing a high-performing, engaged team.
• Deliver exceptional customer experiences that encourage customer loyalty and repeat visits.
• Develop store teams through internal development programme to support future talent and career pathways to help us grow our business.
• Help maintain a safe and compliant store environment for colleagues and customers.
• Contribute to delivering financial results in line with or exceeding company targets.
• Support other retail management duties where required.
• Act as the point of contact for colleagues in the manager’s absence.
• Provide excellent customer service, addressing inquiries and resolving complaints professionally.
• Help manage day-to-day operations, including opening and closing procedures.
• Support cash management tasks, such as processing transactions and reconciling tills.
• Participate in hiring, onboarding, and training new employees.
• Provide feedback and coaching to colleagues to improve performance.
• Support the Store Manager in maintaining colleague schedules to ensure proper coverage and productivity

Role objectives and KPI’s:

• Contribute to achieving or exceeding the store’s monthly sales target.
• Drive all additional KPIs including but not limited to Units, Conversion, ATV, UPT.
• Achieve upselling or cross-selling targets.
• Maintain a high customer metric score.
• Ensure stock accuracy during store Audits.
• Ensure all new colleagues complete mandatory training required.
• Ensure colleague engagement survey results meet or exceed company benchmarks.
• Assist in keeping operational costs within the allocated budget

Skills and Experience:

• Great coaching, mentoring and team building skills that drives team performance.
• Strong communicator with the ability to engage, support and influence colleagues effectively.
• Experience leading, coaching and developing colleagues within a retail or customer-focused environment.
• Experience of effectively prioritising and delegating workload to achieve team goals and objectives.
• Experience supporting business growth through customer engagement, local activity or community initiatives.
• Commitment to delivering excellent customer service and customer experiences.
• Be able to demonstrate the ability to improve store performance & standards through effective planning.
• Strong understanding of retail KPIs and commercial performance measures.
• Knowledge of local market trends, competitor activity and the ability to identify local community growth opportunities.
• Leads with a plan/do/review mindset.
• Effective decision-maker with the ability to assess information and make informed decisions.
• Communicates in a way that inspires and engages.
• Demonstrates a commitment to continuous learning and improvement.
• Resilient and positive attitude even under pressure.
• Demonstrates accountability and ownership of responsibilities.
• Demonstrates company values and behaviours in day-to-day activities.
• Committed to supporting colleague development and progression.
• Committed to two-way, clear, and honest feedback.
• Builds positive working relationships with colleagues, customers and stakeholders.

Due to the high volumes of applications our opportunities attract, it takes time to review them all. If you don't hear back within two weeks of you applying, please consider your application to have been unsuccessful on this occasion Applications that meet the skills criteria will be contacted for a 1st stage meeting with the talent team. Shortlisted candidates will then be invited to interview with the hiring manager. Thank you again for your time