At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead retail operations and enhance customer experiences in a dynamic travel company.
- Company: Join Audley Travel, a supportive community celebrating 30 years of extraordinary journeys.
- Benefits: Enjoy competitive salary, hybrid working, generous holiday, and wellness perks.
- Other info: Embrace a culture of continuous improvement and career growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Shape the future of retail while making a real impact in the travel industry.
- Qualifications: Experience in retail operations and strong organisational skills required.
As Audley Travel celebrates 30 years of creating extraordinary journeys, we’re opening a brand-new chapter as we expand into UK Retail stores. We’d love you to be part of this exciting journey, helping shape this milestone retail experience from the very beginning!
When you join Audley Travel, you become part of a supportive, collaborative community that’s invested in your success. We empower our people to thrive through meaningful development opportunities, a culture that celebrates individuality, and an environment where your ideas are heard, valued, and make a real impact.
The Opportunity
As Retail Operations Manager, you will play a pivotal role in supporting the success and continued growth of Audley Travel’s retail estate. Acting as the operational link between our stores and wider business functions, you’ll ensure our retail teams have the tools, processes, communications and support they need to deliver outstanding experiences for both clients and colleagues. This is an exciting opportunity to shape the future of retail operations, driving continuous improvement, enhancing ways of working, and developing scalable solutions that support the evolution of our retail presence.
Key responsibilities include:
- Acting as the central operational contact for Audley Travel’s retail store network, ensuring stores are effectively supported in their day-to-day operations.
- Owning and continuously developing retail policies, procedures and operational standards across the estate.
- Coordinating and managing communications into the retail network, ensuring colleagues receive clear, consistent and timely information.
- Building strong relationships with key stakeholders across Marketing, Finance, People, IT, Facilities and Procurement to deliver operational excellence.
- Identifying opportunities to improve processes, increase efficiency and enhance both colleague and client experiences.
- Supporting the implementation of new initiatives, ensuring operational readiness and consistency across all stores.
- Monitoring operational performance and proactively addressing challenges to maintain high standards across the retail estate.
- Playing a key role in the ongoing development and growth of Audley’s retail presence, helping to create scalable and sustainable ways of working for the future.
We value our people’s wellbeing and understand the importance of flexibility. That’s why we offer hybrid working, with the opportunity to split your time between one of our offices and working remotely from anywhere in the UK.
What You’ll Bring to the Team
We're looking for an organised and proactive operations professional with experience within a retail operations, business operations, or multi-site support environment. You'll bring the ability to create structure, consistency and continuous improvement across a growing retail estate, while building strong relationships and delivering an exceptional experience for both colleagues and clients.
You’ll bring:
- Experience in retail operations, multi-site support or a similar operational role.
- Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and stakeholders.
- Experience developing and implementing policies, procedures and operational standards.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to coordinate clear and engaging communications across a network of stores.
- A collaborative approach and experience working cross-functionally with teams such as Marketing, Finance, People, IT and Facilities.
- Confidence building relationships, influencing stakeholders and resolving operational challenges.
- A continuous improvement mindset, with the ability to identify opportunities to enhance processes and ways of working.
- A focus on delivering exceptional colleague and client experiences.
- Strong problem-solving skills and a proactive, solutions-focused approach.
- The ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on operational execution.
Why Audley Travel
Alongside competitive salaries and benefits that support your well-being, you’ll find a role that inspires you, challenges you, and connects you to something bigger. If you’re passionate about travel and seeking a career that excites, rewards, and grows with you, Audley Travel is where your journey begins.
There’s more:
- Holiday - 25 days rising to 30 days with length of service
- A day off for your birthday
- A day off for volunteering to support a charity, local support group or community work of your choice
- Annual bonus plan
- Private Medical Insurance
- Access to Healthshield health cash plan - money back for costs associated with everyday healthcare (including optical, dental, medical, prescriptions, physio), and access to medical and wellbeing resources such as a GP service, employee assistance programme and counselling
- Enhanced family leave & pension scheme
- Life insurance
- Discounted Audley trips (for you and your friends & family) and exclusive access to staff travel discount websites
- Wellhub – a wellbeing platform that gives you unlimited, discounted access to top gyms, studios, and wellbeing apps
- Benefits Platform – a reward scheme that gives you discounts and cashback with hundreds of retailers
We welcome you to speak to our recruitment team at any point during your hiring process, if you have any specific questions before this please contact us on careers@audleytravel.com.
We believe it’s our people that make the difference and who build Audley into the success it is today. We pride ourselves on enabling people to reach their full potential through promoting and celebrating a diverse and inclusive working environment and encourage you to let us know if there's anything we can do to make your application process easier for you for any reason to help you shine!
Ready to turn your travel passion into a career? Apply now to start your journey at Audley Travel!
Country United Kingdom
Location Hybrid; London; Witney
Salary £45,000 to £49,000 (dependent on experience) + bonus
Central Retail Operations Manager employer: Audley
Audley Travel is an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and collaborative work culture in the heart of London. With a strong focus on employee growth, we offer numerous opportunities for professional development and career advancement, all while working on innovative multi-channel marketing campaigns that make a real impact. Join us to be part of a passionate team dedicated to delivering outstanding results and enhancing client experiences in the travel industry.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Central Retail Operations Manager
✨Get Your Retail Game On
Start by getting to know the local retail scene. Make a list of stores that align with your vibe and visit them. You'll be surprised at how many job openings come from chatting with staff or managers in-store. Plus, showing that you have a genuine interest in their brand can make you stand out when applying for that full-time role!
✨Join Retail Networks and Forums
Tap into retail-specific communities and forums, whether online or in-person. Platforms like Retail Week or local retail meetups can provide invaluable insights and connections. You never know who might drop a tip about an upcoming job at companies like Audley, so don’t miss out on building those relationships!
✨Be Ready for Busy Season Opportunities
Keep your eyes peeled for seasonal hiring windows, especially in the run-up to major shopping periods. Retailers often look for full-time staff to carry through busy times and may even keep you on after the season. Stay proactive by regularly checking in with your favourite retailers about their hiring plans.
✨Show Off Your Customer Service Skills
Retail’s all about customer interactions, so make sure you showcase any relevant experience in your conversations and interviews. Share specific examples of your customer service skills and how they’ve led to positive outcomes. This is your moment to shine when applying to roles at places like Audley!
We think you need these skills to ace Central Retail Operations Manager
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Customer Service Skills:In retail, customer service is key! Make sure your CV highlights any experience where you've dealt with customers, whether it’s resolving issues or enhancing the shopping experience. Use concrete examples to demonstrate your problem-solving skills and ability to handle difficult situations with ease.
Tailor Your CV for Retail:When applying for a full-time role like this one at Audley, customise your CV to reflect retail-specific buzzwords. Include any relevant skills such as inventory management or visual merchandising, and if you have experience with POS systems, shout about it! This will show you’re serious about joining the retail team.
Craft a Genuine Cover Letter:Don’t just repeat your CV in your cover letter! Use it as a chance to explain why you're excited about the opportunity at Audley and how your values align with their brand. Mention specific aspects of the company that resonate with you and let your enthusiasm shine through!
Highlight Your Adaptability:In retail, things can get busy and unpredictable, so demonstrate how adaptable and flexible you are. Share examples of times you've had to adjust your approach on the fly or take on new responsibilities. This will show Audley that you’re ready to jump in and contribute right away!
How to prepare for a job interview at Audley
✨Show Off Your Customer Service Skills
Retail is all about providing an exceptional customer experience, so be ready to discuss your past customer service stories. We should have examples on hand of how we've handled difficult situations or gone above and beyond to meet a customer's needs. These anecdotes will bring your application to life!
✨Familiarity with Point of Sale Systems
Many retail roles require us to work with Point of Sale (POS) systems, so it's a good idea to brush up on any relevant software you’ve used before. If you’re familiar with systems like Shopify or Square, don’t forget to mention this during the interview. Highlighting technical proficiency can set us apart from other candidates!
✨Understand Product Knowledge
Be prepared to discuss the products that the store sells and how we can contribute to their sales. Showing enthusiasm for the products and a willingness to learn can impress interviewers. We should research popular items or trends in the industry before the interview, so we can speak confidently about them.
✨Be Ready for Role-Playing Scenarios
Many retail interviews include role-playing scenarios where we might have to deal with a difficult customer or upsell a product. Practising these scenarios with a friend or family member can help us feel more comfortable. The key here is to showcase our problem-solving skills and ability to remain calm under pressure!
