Fixed term contract to cover Maternity Leave
33.75 – 37.5 hours per week
£32,527 - £40,000pa depending on weekly hours and experience
A fantastic opportunity has arisen to join the Eden Team to lead our Retail Team through a maternity cover period.
We are looking for someone with previous retail management experience who will be key in driving forward the success of our retail venues across site. You will be responsible for the leadership of the entire retail operation, from service and standards to budget performance.
Our successful candidate will have a passion for retail, customer service, people development and a drive to increase sales. They will act as a role model and maintain an enthusiastic, flexible and customer-focused approach at all times. The ability to be pragmatic and level headed during the busiest of days, whilst keeping an eye for detail is essential.
Eden offers a unique environment to develop your experience and skills in an innovative, world class visitor destination and educational charity. You will play an integral role in leading the teams that welcome our visitors to the project and to developing the retail experience and product stories that help people to understand that their wallet is a weapon. Come and join us
The closing date for applications is Sunday 12th October 2025
Job title: Retail Manager
Job family: Commercial & Development Job ref: C&D107
Job Family Definition
Roles within the Commercial Services job family are focused on increasing and generating income, through creativity, branding, innovative business development, and funded projects. In order to make Eden sustainable, successful and a leading, value-for-money visitor attraction.
Role Purpose
Manages and directs retail services within all of Eden's retail outlets, ensuring visitors are provided with an engaging and inspiring world class experience consistent with Eden's visitor engagement strategy and which reinforce Eden's educational aims.
Key Accountabilities
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Develops and implements policies, procedures and systems designed to improve service standards, maximizing sales and profits whilst delivering outstanding visitor experiences across Eden's retail outlets.
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Manages and directs the retail team, ensuring all employees develop the necessary training and skills to enable them to perform at the highest level within their respective roles.
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Leads and inspires the team to embrace and deliver the highest standards of customer service, providing them with the necessary knowledge and skills to be able to engage with visitors; to describe product stories and our buying criteria to explain how our products are responsibly sourced.
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Working closely with the Buying team to ensure the successful implementation of new product and seasonal ranges. Collaborating with the design and graphics teams to ensure retail presentation is engaging.
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Ensure that the team are trained in HASAW and basic food safety, and that the necessary legal compliance and risk assessments are in place to ensure the safety and welfare of the team and visitors in the retail environments.
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Manages and controls the retail budget ensuring the effective and efficient use of and financial resources, stock and equipment in accordance with Eden's policies and procedures.
Demands of the role
Education & qualification
Educated to A level or equivalent. A current CIEH Level 3 certificate in Health and Safety in the Workplace is desirable for this role. The jobholder will also be working towards an NVQ level 4 (or equivalent) in Retail Management.
Knowledge & skills
The job holder will have gained substantial retail management experience within a relevant environment, where they will have controlled a budget and also managed a large retailer or multi-site service team. Extensive knowledge and skills in the areas of customer service, workforce planning and performance management is critically important for the successful delivery of this role.
Decision- making
Manages the effective and efficient deployment of staff and resources to meet fluctuating demands, without compromising customer satisfaction. The majority of decisions are operational, requiring the jobholder to apply their technical knowledge and managerial skills to resolve a range of routine issues and problems. Critical situations and incidents would necessitate the involvement of the jobholder's line manager. Otherwise they update their line manager on a regular basis.
Resourcefulness
Develops and implements the annual plan for retail, collaborating with colleagues and senior staff to devise and then lead on innovative and creative ways to improve the visitor retail experience and increase revenue. Reactive problem-solving is a routine feature of the role where adaptive and creative solutions reply upon existing knowledge, skills and experience.
People & asset management
Full managerial responsibility 20 to 50 staff. The jobholder manages a substantial budget (currently £360K attributable to payroll costs) attributable to staff costs. They are responsible for the care and security of retail stock and equipment. There is no financial sign off in this role. Responsibility for cash management transactions that take place within the Retail team.
Communication & visitor experience
Interacts with a variety of people at different levels within Eden using a variety of oral and written communications. The jobholder's interactions will require a range of techniques for managing and motivating staff; liaising and consulting with officials and for resolving customer complaints.
Operational environment
This role includes office based work, but primarily the job holder will be required to be a visible presence across Eden retail venues. There will be a need to work late nights at certain times during the year to meet operational needs.
Additional features