Head of Store Operations

Heart of England Co-operative Society Ltd; Coventry; On-site; GBP 81,000 - 99,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday

Staff discount 10%

Life insurance

Enhanced maternity & redundancy

Employee Assistance Programme

Wellbeing services

Long service awards

Staff benefits access

Job summary

Heart of England Co-operative Society Ltd in Coventry area seeks a Head of Store Operations to lead our Food store estate and central operations, driving sales, profitability and high standards. You will inspire Area Managers, Store Managers and Central Operations to create a strong trading culture and ownership across our business.

You will combine commercial acumen with people leadership to empower teams and deliver outstanding customer experiences, while aligning with our co-operative values

Qualifications

• Significant experience leading multi-site retail operations, ideally within food retail or FMCG.
• Strong track record delivering sales, profit, cost control and performance.
• Experience leading and developing senior operational management teams.
• Capability to identify talent, implement succession plans and build leadership capability.
• Excellent budgeting, forecasting, payroll and cost management.
• Experience driving high store standards and customer experience.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills with stakeholders at all levels.
• Hands-on, visible leadership with passion for time in stores and connecting with colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Drive sales, profitability and overall store performance, meeting budgets and targets.
• Set and maintain high standards across customer experience, availability, merchandising and cleanliness.
• Build leadership pipeline and develop future leaders; enable internal progression.
• Lead Central Operations to deliver practical, coordinated plans in stores.
• Create a high-performance culture with accountability and support for colleagues.
• Drive payroll efficiency, waste reduction, stock-loss control and productivity.
• Collaborate with Commercial, Supply Chain, Marketing, People & Culture, Finance and Property.

Skills

Multi-site leadership

Retail operations

Commercial acumen

People leadership

Budgeting & forecasting

Store standards

Customer experience

Stakeholder collaboration

In-store presence

Job description

Lead our stores. Inspire our people. Shape our future.

Are you an inspirational retail leader with the commercial ambition, operational expertise and people leadership skills to take a multi-site retail operation to the next level?

We are looking for an exceptional Head of Store Operations to lead the performance of our Food store estate and Central Operations function, driving commercial success, operational excellence and a high-performing culture across our business. This is a key senior leadership opportunity for someone who thrives on delivering results, developing talented teams and creating an environment where colleagues are empowered to take ownership, deliver outstanding customer experiences and achieve their full potential.

About the role

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, you will take overall responsibility for the performance of our Food store estate, ensuring we deliver strong sales and profitability alongside consistently high operational standards.

You will lead and inspire our Area Managers, Store Managers and Central Operations team, creating a strong trading and performance culture where accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement are at the heart of everything we do. You will be highly visible across our stores, building strong relationships with colleagues, understanding the challenges and opportunities within our businesses, recognising great performance and providing support and challenge where needed.

Key areas of responsibility will include:

• Commercial Performance: Drive sales, profitability and overall store performance, ensuring budgets and targets are achieved or exceeded.
• Operational Excellence: Set and maintain consistently high standards across customer experience, availability, merchandising, cleanliness and compliance.
• Leadership & Development: Build a strong leadership pipeline, identifying talent, developing future leaders and creating opportunities for internal progression.
• Central Operations: Lead the Central Operations function, ensuring business plans, communications and initiatives are practical, coordinated and delivered effectively in stores.
• People & Culture: Create an engaging, positive and high-performance culture where colleagues feel motivated, valued and accountable for delivering results.
• Cost & Productivity: Drive effective payroll management, waste reduction, stock-loss control and operational efficiency.
• Collaboration: Work closely with Commercial, Supply Chain, Marketing, People & Culture, Finance and Property teams to ensure business plans translate into successful operational delivery.

About you

You will be an accomplished multi-site retail leader with a proven track record of delivering commercial and operational results across a geographically dispersed store estate. You will combine strong commercial acumen with an engaging and inspirational leadership style, knowing how to motivate teams, develop talent and create a culture of ownership and accountability.

You will also bring:

• Significant experience leading multi-site retail operations, ideally within food retail, convenience or FMCG.
• A strong track record of delivering sales, profit, cost control and operational performance.
• Experience leading and developing senior operational management teams.
• The ability to identify and develop talent, implement succession plans and build future leadership capability.
• Strong financial understanding, including budgeting, forecasting, payroll and cost management.
• Experience driving consistently high store standards and customer experience.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the ability to build effective relationships across all levels of an organisation.
• A hands-on, visible leadership approach, with a genuine passion for spending time in stores and connecting with colleagues and customers.

Above all, you will be commercially driven, people-focused and ambitious to make a real difference.

About us

We are an independent regional Co-operative with roots dating back to 1832. As a membership organisation, we are proud to serve our members and communities, predominantly across Coventry, Warwickshire, South Leicestershire and Northamptonshire. Today, our business includes 40 Food Convenience Stores, 14 Funeral Homes and 4 Coffee Shops, and we continue to look for opportunities to grow and develop.

Our vision is to enrich the lives of our members, customers and colleagues by putting them at the heart of every decision. We are passionate about being a forward-thinking Co-operative that adds value to local communities. Joining us means becoming part of an organisation where people, communities and long-term success matter.

What we offer

• Competitive salary of £90,000 per annum.
• 30 days' annual holiday, inclusive of bank holidays, increasing with length of service.
• 10% colleague discount, with double discount on our four-weekly pay weekend in Food stores.
• Life insurance at twice your salary.
• Enhanced maternity and redundancy benefits.
• Employee Assistance Programme, including GP access and wellbeing support.
• Health Assured wellbeing services and My Healthy Advantage app.
• Long Service Awards.
• Access to My Staff Shop, Stream and a range of additional colleague benefits.

Ready to make an impact?

If you are an ambitious retail leader who can bring commercial drive, operational excellence and inspirational leadership to our business, we would love to hear from you.

The closing date for this role is Monday 30th November 2026.