Head of Retail and Visitor Operations - Telford, United Kingdom - The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust

Description

Job Title:
Head of Retail and Visitor Operations


Reports to:
Chief Operating Officer


Hours:36.5 hours per week, 5/7 days


Salary:
£40,000 per annum


Closing Date for Applications: 9am Friday 22 March 2024


Background:

The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust is an industrial heritage organisation which operates ten museums and manages multiple historic sites within the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site in Shropshire, England, widely considered to be the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.

The Trust also operates on-site retail gift shops at all museum locations as well as the retail offer within the exhibits at Blists Hill.

The commercial trading operations of the Museum Trust are important parts of our business supporting our charitable aims of conservation and education.

Location:

Office location would be in the Ironbridge Gorge, Telford, Shropshire. The role is mobile, managing teams and sites across six square miles of the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site.


Function:

This is an excellent opportunity to enhance your senior management career in a prestigious environment.

As Head of Retail and Visitor Operations you will have commercial and strategic responsibility for retail and visitor operations including front of house teams, head office reception and the tourist information centre for an independent Charitable Trust.

This position will suit an innovative operator who is passionate about the visitor experience, driving high standards of presentation and delivering a commercial return, transforming the retail offer as well as developing new commercial opportunities.

Duties Include:

• Maximising income from ticket sales, gift aid, donations, retail sales and profit across all Front of House and Retail teams
• Taking a leading role in delivering an outstanding customer journey from arrival through to post visit purchases, promoting customer service excellence for all Front of House team members. Monitor, investigate, and resolve complaints or issues of poor customer care, in a timely and efficient manner
• Take responsibility for the strategic direction of retail and visitor welcome through management and development of the retail strategy and annual business plans
• Develop new & existing product ranges for the Museum's retail brands, managing external relationships with suppliers to ensure suitable buying and merchandising of retail products with competitive pricing
• Ensure that high standards of presentation and merchandising are achieved across all visitor reception areas, gift shops and retail exhibits. Seek continuous improvement in these areas, developing the Trust's visitor experience while advancing team experience, awareness and expertise
• Maintain, seek, utilise and analyse management information to direct relevant commercial operations performance. Use data and insight to seize opportunities and make informed management decisions, taking appropriate remedial action as required to reach targets to develop and drive the business
• Maintain oversight of all delegated budgets on admissions and retail management including revenue, cost of sales, labour and profit objectives, monitoring effectively to ensure that the targets are met for each financial year
• Support and develop beneficial working relationships with other departments to further the Museum's objectives, including appropriate attendance at Management Team meetings
• Implement retail plans and policies, guiding price changes, gift shop development, merchandising and stock control
• Ensure the effective leadership of all Retail and Visitor Reception teams to ensure staffing levels are maintained throughout the business. Make certain that all performance & development issues within the team are addressed in an appropriate and timely manner
• Ensure adherence to, and compliance with all Health & Safety and legal requirements
• Provide relevant updates as necessary for the Board of Trustees and Museum Trust Directors
• Any other duties commensurate with the role.

Person Specification / Skills & Experience:

Essential

• Previous experience in retail / visitor operations management role, with high expectation of service standards
• Excellent organisational, interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to develop and maintain productive working relationships with colleagues and external contacts
• Proven ability to work to and deliver results against set targets and of leading teams to deliver targets
• Experience of managing a large team and operation
• Able to demonstrate an understanding of running a busy team from recruitment, selection, performance management and reviews
• Proficient IT skills ideally demonstrating competence with Microsoft software and EPOS
• High levels of enthusiasm, resourcefulness and flexibility.

Staff Reporting Directly:

• Front of House and Retail Team Leaders
• Head Office Receptionist
• Tourist Information Team.

**Staff reporting i