Department Manager - Cardiff

At SEPHORA UK, beauty isn’t just what we sell - it’s who we are. It’s the freedom to express yourself, the thrill of discovering something new, and the power of belonging to a community that celebrates every identity. Today, with nearly 500 iconic brands and our own SEPHORA Collection, we’re redefining the future of prestige beauty as we continue our bold expansion across the UK.

We are seeking a Department Manager to shape an exceptional customer experience while leading and inspiring a team of passionate Beauty Advisors.

The Opportunity

With your expertise, energy, and love for people and product, you’ll elevate daily store activities - from service, sales, and artistry to cash and stock excellence - ensuring every moment reflects SEPHORA’s creativity, inclusivity, and bold spirit.

What you’ll be doing

• Leading, coaching and inspiring your team to deliver exceptional service, personalised advice, and a seamless in‑store experience.
• Enabling ongoing training and development to build expertise in makeup, skincare, fragrance, selling skills, and SEPHORA service behaviours.
• Setting clear goals, supporting performance, and creating personalised development plans to help team members grow.
• Managing day‑to‑day employee relations needs, including attendance, performance, and conduct, with professionalism and care.
• Driving commercial performance - monitoring KPIs, analysing trends, and leading the team to meet and exceed sales targets.
• Leading Booxi and My Skin Diag operations, ensuring accurate scheduling, service excellence, and high standards across Beauty Hub activations.
• Overseeing stock and cash operations, including deliveries, replenishment, audits, loss prevention, cash handling and daily operational standards.
• Maintaining high operational standards across the stockroom, sales floor, cash area, and service zones to ensure smooth and efficient store performance.
• Supporting visual merchandising updates, seasonal moments, and brand activations that inspire discovery and engagement.
• Resolving customer queries and concerns promptly and professionally, ensuring a positive experience that builds loyalty.
• Assist with new store opening activities such as unboxing, organising and preparing stock (where applicable).

What you’ll bring

• Proven experience in a leadership role in retail, with oversight of floor, stock, or cash operations.
• A passion for beauty and the ability to coach others in product knowledge, application techniques and customer experience; beneficial but not essential.
• Strong leadership capability with the ability to inspire, motivate, and guide a diverse team.
• Exceptional customer service and communication skills, with a natural ability to build rapport and deliver personalised experiences.
• A commercial mindset with experience driving sales performance and achieving targets.
• Strong organisation and time‑management skills, with the ability to balance multiple priorities.
• Experience managing ER processes such as attendance, performance concerns and disciplinary steps.
• Comfort using in‑store technology to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency.
• Flexibility to work evenings, weekends and holiday periods as needed.

Beautiful Benefits at SEPHORA UK

• SEPHORA University – receive industry‑leading product, customer care and development training to help you grow your skills and your career.
• Allowances tailored to your role and location – including shoes, lunch and more.
• Competitive pay that grows with you – including annual salary reviews based on performance and company results.
• Performance‑based commission tied to collective store success.
• A generous employee discount across the world’s best beauty brands.
• A paid day off on your birthday.
• Access to a perks and wellbeing platform offering discounts, wellness support and more.
• Generous holiday allowance, plus the option to buy extra days.
• And more!

Start a beautiful career with us. Together, we belong to something beautiful. SEPHORA is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace for all. We do not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, advancement, or other employment practices. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating and fostering an inclusive environment for all employees.