Relationship Manager Operations · Southwold

Awaze; Southwold; Remote; GBP 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous holiday discounts

Growth opportunities across countries

Job summary

Awaze is seeking a Relationship Manager for the James Collection in Southwold to lead the local studio and a premium owner-focused portfolio. You will manage commercial performance, develop the local team and ensure delivery of a high-touch service to owners and guests.

Role focuses on building strong community and industry relationships, identifying growth opportunities, and driving revenue, occupancy and guest satisfaction across the portfolio.

Qualifications

• Proven experience managing premium or complex client relationships.
• Excellent relationship-building and stakeholder management.
• Strong commercial awareness and data interpretation.
• Experience leading, coaching and developing colleagues.
• Experience in luxury hospitality, premium travel, property, or related fields.
• Experience using CRM systems and reporting tools.

Responsibilities

• Own the commercial performance of the Southwold portfolio, using insight and local knowledge to identify opportunities for growth.
• Build trusted, long-term relationships with a portfolio of owners, tailoring your communication and support to their needs.
• Lead the overall relationship strategy and service quality across the portfolio, supporting high-value owner relationships.
• Visit properties regularly to assess presentation, quality and commercial appeal, recommending improvements.
• Lead, inspire and develop the Southwold team, coaching colleagues to deliver premium service.
• Collaborate with Pricing, Marketing, Guest Services, Operations and Business Development to improve portfolio performance.
• Resolve complex owner queries with professionalism and pace.
• Build relationships with local estate agents and partners to create a pipeline of owners.
• Represent the James Collection at local events to strengthen reputation and generate referrals.
• Maintain accurate CRM records and prioritise activity based on insights.

Skills

Relationship management

Commercial awareness

Communication skills

Leadership

CRM experience

Attention to detail

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

Are you passionate about building exceptional relationships and delivering a truly premium service? As our Relationship Manager for the James Collection in Southwold, you’ll lead our local team and portfolio, working closely with owners of prestigious holiday homes while helping strengthen the James Collection’s reputation and presence in the local community.

Your mission

As our Relationship Manager, your mission is to lead the James Collection’s Southwold studio and portfolio, creating a highly personalised, relationship-led experience for our owners and guests. You’ll take ownership of the portfolio’s commercial and relationship performance, lead and develop the local Relationship team, and ensure our premium service proposition is delivered consistently.

As our senior local ambassador, you’ll also build influential relationships across the community and property sector, helping us identify new opportunities, grow the portfolio and deliver an exceptional experience for both existing and prospective owners and our guests.

What you'll be doing

• Own the commercial performance of the Southwold portfolio, using insight and local knowledge to identify opportunities for growth.
• Build trusted, long-term relationships with a portfolio of owners, tailoring your communication and support to their individual needs.
• Lead the overall relationship strategy and service quality across the portfolio, personally supporting strategic, high-value or complex owner relationships where required.
• Visit properties regularly to assess presentation, quality and commercial appeal, proactively recommending improvements that enhance owner outcomes and guest appeal.
• Lead, inspire and develop the Southwold team, setting clear expectations and coaching colleagues to consistently deliver the premium service that defines the James Collection.
• Collaborate with Pricing, Marketing, Guest Services, Operations and Business Development to improve portfolio performance and deliver exceptional owner and guest experiences.
• Resolve complex owner queries with professionalism, pace and sound judgement, while ensuring owner feedback helps inform service improvements and commercial decisions.
• Build relationships with local estate agents, property professionals, developers, tradespeople, interior designers and other influential partners to create a sustainable pipeline of prospective owners.
• Represent the James Collection at local networking events, community initiatives and industry forums, strengthening our reputation and generating referrals and new opportunities.
• Maintain accurate CRM records and use owner, property and performance insight to prioritise activity and follow-up.

Who we’re looking for

You’ll thrive in this role if you’re someone who genuinely enjoys building relationships, understands what exceptional service looks like and combines a premium customer mindset with strong commercial judgement. You’ll be comfortable taking ownership, leading others and representing the James Collection within the local community.

We’re looking for someone who brings:

• Proven experience managing premium or complex client relationships.
• Excellent relationship-building, stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Strong commercial awareness, with the confidence to interpret performance data and turn insight into practical recommendations.
• Experience leading, coaching and developing colleagues while setting clear expectations and maintaining high standards.
• Exceptional organisation and attention to detail, with the ability to prioritise a high-value portfolio.
• A professional, discreet and solutions-focused approach, including confidence handling sensitive or complex conversations.
• Experience within luxury hospitality, premium travel, property, holiday letting or relationship management.
• Experience using CRM systems and performance reporting tools to manage portfolio activity and customer relationships.

How you'll make an impact

Success in this role will mean creating strong, lasting relationships while delivering sustainable growth for the Southwold portfolio. You’ll:

• Build outstanding owner advocacy, satisfaction and long-term retention across the James Collection portfolio.
• Drive growth in revenue, occupancy and overall commercial performance.
• Proactively identify opportunities to improve property presentation, owner outcomes and guest appeal.
• Ensure premium service standards are delivered consistently across owner interactions and portfolio activity.
• Grow the portfolio through locally generated opportunities, trusted partnerships and referrals.
• Strengthen awareness and advocacy for the James Collection within the local community.
• Build an engaged, high-performing team and develop capability for the future.
• Generate positive owner feedback, testimonials and referrals that strengthen both the James Collection and Awaze brands.

Why you’ll want to work at Awaze

We offer a versatile position in a strong professional and social environment - one you’ll have the opportunity to influence and help shape. You’ll be part of an international company that invests in the future, and join a dynamic, fast-paced department with skilled and committed colleagues who support each other.

We’re a people-first business - and we know that our success starts with our teams. Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll enjoy:

• Generous discounts on holidays across our brands
• Real opportunities to grow, learn and shape your role as well as careers progression vertically or horizontally, cross countries and responsibilities.

About Awaze

At Awaze, we bring holidays to life. With over 110,000 holiday homes across 25 countries, we’re Europe’s largest holiday rentals company. Our purpose is simple – to delight our guests and homeowners while building an inspiring place to work for our people.

Awaze A/S is part of Europe’s leading provider of holiday homes. The company operates more than 25 historical brands, including Cottages.com, NOVASOL, and Hoseasons.

You will be employed by Awaze A/S and work with the NOVASOL brand, which has the largest selection of holiday homes in Denmark and over 50,000 holiday homes across Europe.

Worth knowing

This role is based in Southwold and has a strong local presence. It includes regular visits to properties, building relationships with local partners and representing the James Collection at networking, community and industry events. It is full-time, permanent, and requires a full and clean driving license. Our Studio is open Monday-Saturday, so full flexibility is desired.

We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. All applicants will receive equal consideration for employment, and if you have any specific requirements or adjustments needed for the interview, just let us know when you accept your invitation - we’re happy to accommodate.