Customer and Trading Manager - Nightshift in Bedford

Leading in our stores

Our management teams don’t just run stores - they’re the driving force behind our business. With bold leadership, a passion for service and an eye for opportunity, they empower teams to raise the bar every single day for our customers. Whether it's product availability, safety standards, or delivering seamless daily operations, they’re hands‑on, sleeves‑rolled‑up changemakers. And the impact? Work becomes more rewarding for our colleagues, and shopping becomes a next‑level experience for every customer who walks through our doors. This is how we bring our purpose to life, one powerful action at a time.

What you’ll be doing

• Leading a team overnight to deliver all replenishment activities across the store while getting stuck in yourself to prioritise deliveries, organise the warehouse and replenish shelves.
• Often, you get to run a full store operation on your own overnight being responsible for the full shift and the safety and wellbeing of colleagues in store.
• Making sure that standards are brilliant come morning so we’re ready to serve our customers.
• People management is a big part of the role, managing performance and capability, conducting disciplinaries and ensuring scheduling and pay are accurate.

Our nightshift managers work full‑time hours over 4 nights, as well as receiving a £4,500 premium on top of your base salary (Our nightshifts typically run from 22:00 until 08:00).

What makes a great nightshift manager

• Someone who is comfortable with nightshift working and is adaptable to the physical and mental impact of these shift patterns and understands the importance of providing a safe and healthy environment for their team.
• Previous line management responsibilities in a fast‑paced, operational environment.
• Resilience to deal with both the mental and physical demands of working nights.
• Provides brilliant customer service and coaches a team to do the same.
• Has previous experience delivering and monitoring KPIs or other performance indicators.
• Can manage disciplinaries, performance issues or other similar employee relations issues.
• Leads operations and is comfortable doing this alone in the absence of more senior management.
• Puts inclusivity at the heart of everything they do.

Essential Criteria

• A track record of delivering brilliant customer service and coaching colleagues to do the same.
• Experience of leading a team in a fast‑paced, customer‑facing environment — you’ve motivated others, driven performance, and kept operations running smoothly.
• Operational leadership skills — you’ve taken responsibility for store operations in the absence of more senior managers.
• Demonstrated success in meeting or exceeding KPIs — whether it’s sales, availability, customer satisfaction or colleague engagement, you’ve made a measurable impact.
• Has managed employee relations issues, including performance and absence management.
• Desirable – Has worked night shifts in a high‑volume, operational environment — you’ve adapted to the physical and mental demands of overnight working and created a safe, supportive atmosphere for your team during out‑of‑hours trading.

Working for us has great rewards

Salary will be dependent upon your experience as well as the store size, complexity and location. Alongside this, we also offer a great range of benefits for our managers, including:

• Discount card – 10% discount off your shopping at Sainsbury’s, Argos, Tu and Habitat after four weeks. This increases to 15% discount off at Sainsbury’s every Friday and Saturday.
• An annual bonus scheme based on our, and your, performance.
• Free food and hot drinks provided for colleagues in all our stores.
• Generous holiday entitlement, maternity and paternity leave.
• Pension – we’ll match 4‑7.5% of your pension contributions.
• Sainsbury’s share scheme – build up an investment at discounted rates.
• Wellbeing support – access to emotional support, counselling, legal and financial advice.
• Colleague networks – link with like‑minded people to help fulfil your potential.
• Our cycle‑to‑work scheme gives you the opportunity to hire a new bike and cycling equipment, whilst saving on tax and NI.
• Special offers on gym memberships, restaurants, holidays, retail vouchers and more.

An inclusive place to work and shop

We are dedicated to being a truly inclusive retailer, where every colleague can achieve their full potential and every customer feels welcome when they shop with us. To support this commitment, our colleagues may be entitled to a range of enhanced discretionary leave for families, as well as support for carers. We provide our colleagues resources to help them understand and support their role and their team effectively. Our internal colleague networks seek to ensure true representation for everyone, helping us identify and remove barriers that our colleagues may face. We are proud to offer a range of development opportunities, including mentorship, training, and career progression pathways, to help our colleagues grow and succeed. We also celebrate diversity through various initiatives and events, fostering a culture of inclusion and respect.

Should you require any reasonable adjustments during the application or interview stages, please let us know, and we will endeavour to support you.