Retail Area Manager

The Works Stores Ltd; Glasgow; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25% Colleague Discount

MyWorks

Family Friendly Leave

Holiday – 33 days

Stream – wage access

Can-Do Academy

Share Scheme

24/7 support for you and your family

Healthcare Cash Plan

Long service awards

Pension

Life Assurance

Cycle to Work

Charity giving

Job summary

The Works Stores Ltd in the United Kingdom is seeking a Retail Area Manager to lead multiple stores and drive commercial success with strong leadership and a customer-first mindset.

You will empower teams, ensure high engagement, and deliver outstanding in-store experiences while achieving sales targets and cost control across the designated area. This role emphasizes collaboration, innovation, and a proactive approach to problem-solving.

Qualifications

Responsibilities

• Inspire, motivate, and develop high-performing store teams to deliver exceptional customer experiences.
• Communicate with your store teams and spend time with them in store to keep engagement high.
• Drive retail commerciality like a boss! Striving for sales, profitability, safety, store standards, pricing, and cost control.
• Drive operational excellence and achieve outstanding results across your designated retail area.
• Create store experiences that are fun, friendly, accessible, and inclusive for colleagues and customers.
• Hire Store Managers who align with our purpose, values and mission. Spot potential and use their strengths to add value to your area.
• Implement effective visual merchandising strategies to enhance the customer journey.
• Collaborate with fellow Retail Area Managers to share best practices and drive continuous improvement.
• Ensure the delivery of commercial targets, including sales, profitability, and cost control.

Skills

Leadership

People management

Customer service

Commercial acumen

Communication

Retail experience

Job description

Stores on this patch

• Ayr
• Clydebank
• East Kilbride
• Glasgow (Braehead)
• Glasgow (Sauchiehall Street)
• Glasgow (Silverburn)
• Glasgow Forge
• Glasgow Fort
• Glasgow St Enoch Centre
• Greenock
• Hamilton
• Inverness
• Inverness Shopping Park
• Kilmarnock
• Loch Lomond Outlet
• Motherwell
• Paisley

Why The Works?

10th Best Big Company to Work For 2024 - 'Best Companies'

We don’t just sell products.

We inspire reading, learning, creativity and play.

The Works. It literally means everything. And whatever your story or background, we’re all about unlocking imagination and making creativity accessible to everyone. Whether you’re engaging with customers on the frontline or supporting our colleagues behind the scenes, your impact can be profound and far-reaching. This is more than toys and books and art supplies. This is about inspiring people to read, learn, create and play. So, with the right passion, it all starts with you.

Become a Retail Area Manager

As a Retail Area Manager, you'll be at the helm of multiple retail locations, steering them towards success with your dynamic leadership and strategic vision. Your primary goal will be driving commercial success, infused with a dash of innovation and a sprinkle of charm.

You’ll empower your teams, aiding them in reaching their full potential while ensuring a joyful journey – after all, it's part of our DNA! We firmly believe that a team that thrives is one that is both happy and engaged.

Expect to spend a significant portion of your time across the designated area, collaborating closely with your teams to drive commercial success and set the pace.

Your Mission

Inspire, motivate, and develop high-performing store teams to deliver exceptional customer experiences.

• Communicate with your store teams and spend time with them in store to keep engagement high.
• Drive retail commerciality like a boss! Striving for fantastic sales and high performance across all KPI’s including, sales, profitability, safety, store standards, pricing, and cost control.
• Drive operational excellence and achieve outstanding results across your designated retail area.
• Create store experiences that are fun, friendly, accessible, and inclusive for colleagues and customers.
• Hire Store Managers who align with our purpose, values and mission. Spot potential and use their strengths to add value to your area.
• Implement effective visual merchandising strategies to enhance the customer journey.
• Collaborate with fellow Retail Area Managers to share best practices and drive continuous improvement.
• Ensure the delivery of commercial targets, including sales, profitability, and cost control.

Skills / Behaviours That Will Set You Apart

• A positive ambassador for our brand and our values
• Inspirational leadership style with a positive outlook
• Passion for delivering exceptional customer service.
• People skills with a track record of developing high-performing teams.
• Commercial acumen with the ability to drive sales and profitability.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Collaborative mindset and a team player. Working with departments and colleagues as 'one team'.
• Able to drive growth, maximise sales and profitability whilst leading our customer-first service strategy.
• Willing to lend a hand - If you're on a store visit and the teams are busy or overwhelmed, you're happy to help by getting stuck in, working shoulder-to-shoulder with them to support. It's all about the shadow you cast!
• Resilience in a dynamic retail environment.
• Innovative thinking and a proactive approach to problem-solving.

Being a Great Leader

As a great leader with wonderful people skills, you'll create an environment that's more than just co-workers — it's a team.

• Align Goals with Values: Ensure that your team’s goals are clearly connected to the company’s values and purpose. This helps colleagues see the bigger picture and understand how their work contributes to the overall mission.
• Clear Communication: Ensure that your team understands the goals, expectations, and their roles. Regularly share updates, encourage open dialogue and have regular check-ins.
• Role Model: Lead by example. Demonstrate the behaviours and attitudes you expect from your team, such as punctuality, responsibility, and being a brand ambassador.
• Provide Feedback: Offer constructive feedback regularly. Recognise achievements and address areas for improvement in a supportive and continuous growth manner.
• Empower Your Team: Delegate tasks and trust your team to handle them. This builds confidence and promotes professional growth.
• Conflict Resolution: Address conflicts promptly and fairly. Foster an environment where issues can be discussed openly and resolve amicably.
• Empathy: Understand and consider the feelings and perspectives of your team members. This helps in building strong, supportive relationships

And let's not forget about the most important part… your team's well-being and aspirations. You'll be their biggest supporter, cheering them on. You'll have amazing everyday conversations with your team, discussing everything from their performance to their wildest career aspirations.

Our PERKS really are ‘The Works’

• 25% Colleague Discount! - Plus, exclusive Double Discount days!
• MyWorks - Access exclusive online discounts across hundreds of retailers, holidays, utilities deals, tech and more!
• Family Friendly Leave - Enjoy some time well spent with enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay.
• Holiday – 33 days, including bank holidays
• Stream - Claim early access to 50% of your wages as you earn them – for when ‘life’ happens!
• Can-Do Academy - Grow your skills and career with instant access to further training and development in areas that interest you.
• Share Scheme - Unleash your inner Monopoly mogul and own a piece of The Works!
• 24/7 support for you and your family - Through our partnership with the Retail Trust who provide an Employee Assistance Programme and so much more!
• Healthcare Cash Plan – To support your everyday healthcare costs.
• And loads more! – Long service awards, pension, life assurance, Cycle to Work scheme and optional charity giving.

Our Purpose

To inspire reading, learning, creativity and play

Our Values

• We are Crafty | Smart with what we've got.
• We are Caring | Heart in every action.
• We are Can-do | Energy that gets it done.

We Listen. We Care

Each year, we run an anonymous colleague engagement survey. This is so important for us to hear your feedback and suggestions. We want to know what’s going great, and what needs a couple of tweaks to help make The Works the best place you’ve ever worked! You’ll have opportunity to help give us that direction.

Promoting Diversity, Inclusion, and Applying Reasonable Adjustments

At The Works, we are proud to have an inclusive culture where everyone truly feels able to be themselves. Our roles are open to all, including under-represented groups such as ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, carers & members of the LGBTQ+ community (including those who identify as lesbian, gay, bi, trans, non-binary, or use another term).

We are open to discussions around working hours and flexible working. And, where possible, we'll try to support this. If you need reasonable adjustments for an interview you might attend with us, let us know in your application and we’ll be happy to help!

About The Works

The Works is the UK's leading specialist retailer of affordable, screen-free activities for the whole family, providing customers with fantastic value across four product categories: arts and crafts, stationery, toys and games, and books.

We don’t just sell products. We inspire reading, learning, creativity and play.

Because when people spend time doing what they love, it’s Time Well Spent.

And with the right passion - It All Starts With You.