Partnerships Manager in England

Surrey head office, with regular travel to venues across the UK. Onsite working – ad hoc working from home at Manager’s discretion.

Love doing deals as much as you love meeting people? Are you the person everyone is pleased to see walk into the room? Could you win over a new partner over coffee, hold your ground on commercial terms in the afternoon and still leave them looking forward to your next call? This is an exciting opportunity to build and grow national partnerships for a fast‑growing UK leisure and entertainment operator. Its family of brands spans outdoor pursuits, sport, competitive socialising, active family adventure and fitness, with venues designed to bring people of all ages together to play. The business has ambitious growth plans, and partnerships are a key part of how it will get there.

The opportunity

• You’ll develop and manage the national corporate, consumer, affiliate and commercial partnerships and sponsorships that drive new revenue and reach across every brand in the portfolio.
• You’ll work closely with brand, propositions and the wider marketing team as well as Sales and Venue GMs, in addition to the partners themselves.

In practice, that means:

• Winning new partners. You’ll identify, negotiate and secure new national corporate, commercial and sponsorship partnerships, from the first conversation through to signed terms.
• Putting the venues in front of more people. You’ll build relationships with the experience‑gifting and days‑out platforms where customers go looking for something memorable to do or give, as well as with affiliate and corporate partners, to drive volume, awareness and market share.
• Doing deals that work. You’ll negotiate commercial terms, including pricing, commission, revenue share, exclusivity and contract length, and build a compelling business case for every partnership.
• Growing what’s already there. You’ll manage existing national partners, making sure contract commitments and revenue targets are met, and spot opportunities to do more together.
• Bringing partnerships to life. You’ll work with venues to activate partner benefits locally, and with the marketing, PR and content teams to announce and promote partnerships, keeping everything on‑brand.
• Keeping score. You’ll track and report partnership revenue and pipeline against target. You’ll also spend plenty of time out at the venues, so you know first‑hand what you’re selling and how partnerships land with guests.

Who will thrive here?

Above all, this role needs a big, warm personality. You’ll be someone people genuinely enjoy dealing with, from partners to venue teams and colleagues, and you’ll combine that with the commercial backbone to negotiate a deal that works for the business. You may come from partnerships, corporate sales or business development in leisure, hospitality, entertainment, experiences or travel. Equally, you could be a strong commercial dealmaker from another consumer sector who is ready to bring that energy to a leisure business.

You must have:

• Experience in partnerships, corporate sales, sponsorship or business development.
• A proven track record of negotiating and closing commercial agreements, including agreeing commercial terms.
• Experience managing relationships with corporate or national accounts.
• Strong commercial instincts and the ability to build a compelling partnership business case.
• The organisation to manage multiple partner relationships and keep pipeline reporting accurate.
• Good Excel skills and excellent communication skills.
• Willingness to travel regularly to venues across the portfolio.

Sponsorship or licensing experience, an existing network of corporate, affiliate or leisure‑sector contacts, or a background in sport, hospitality or leisure would all be a bonus, but none of these is essential. You’ll be enthusiastic, organized and resilient under pressure, with a “can do” attitude. Most importantly, you’ll be a natural relationship‑builder whom people warm to straight away.

Why consider this role?

This is a chance to shape the national partnerships programme for a portfolio of much‑loved leisure brands at a time of real growth. You’ll have a visible commercial role with a direct impact on revenue and footfall, and the freedom to bring new partners to the table. If you love building relationships and doing deals that everyone is happy with, we’d love to hear from you.