Retail Store Manager - Temporary Contract (Maternity Cover) in Colchester

32 hour contract

Why The Works?

We don’t just sell products. We inspire reading, learning, creativity and play. The Works literally means everything. And whatever your story or background, we’re all about unlocking imagination and making creativity accessible to everyone. Whether you’re engaging with customers on the frontline or supporting our colleagues behind the scenes, your impact can be profound and far-reaching.

This is more than toys and books and art supplies. This is about inspiring people to read, learn, create and play. So, with the right passion, it all starts with you.

Become a Retail Store Manager

As a Store Manager, you are responsible for leading your store to success. You’ll inspire and develop your team, drive commercial performance, and ensure every customer enjoys a welcoming, well-run, and engaging shopping experience. You’ll take ownership of all aspects of store operations, from people and performance to standards and service.

Your mission is to deliver exceptional service, spark brilliant conversations, and help customers with their shopping missions - whether it’s discovering new products they'll love, or finding the perfect gifts for someone else. By getting to know their interests or shopping mission, you’ll be ready to recommend things that surprise, delight, and inspire them. You’ll also play a key role in keeping the store well-stocked, tidy, safe, and welcoming. You help create an environment where everything runs smoothly and everyone feels supported, included and developed in the team.

Being a Brand Ambassador

Being a brand ambassador at The Works isn’t your job title. It’s the way you bring our brand to life every day through the moments you create. It’s the smile that puts someone at ease, the warm welcome into the store, the way you support your colleagues with kindness and teamwork, the conversation that helps a child discover their new favourite toy, or the encouragement that inspires someone to reconnect with their creativity or their love of reading. These small interactions - the ones that feel ordinary to you, often become extraordinary memories for the people who walk through our doors.

Whether you’re on the shop floor, in our distribution centre, or at our support centre, you’ll always be representing our products, services, values and behaviours in a positive and authentic way. You help build trust, awareness and loyalty simply through how you show up. At The Works, we are all Brand Ambassadors.

Your Mission

• Lead, coach, and develop your team to deliver excellent customer service and achieve store targets.
• Lead by example as a brand ambassador representing The Works to inspire your team to follow.
• Take full ownership of store performance, using data and insights to drive results.
• Ensure high standards of visual merchandising, stock availability, and store presentation.
• Recruit, onboard, and train new team members, building a high performing, engaged team.
• Manage rotas, payroll, and operational tasks to ensure efficient day-to-day running.
• Maintain compliance with health & safety, cash handling, and loss prevention policies.
• Foster a positive, inclusive, and supportive team culture where people feel developed, and genuinely cared for.
• Collaborate with your Area Manager, stores in your area and central teams to implement business initiatives and share feedback from the shop floor.

Skills / Behaviours That Will Set You Apart

• Proven experience in a retail management role.
• Strong leadership and people development skills.
• Commercially focused with a track record of delivering results.
• Excellent communication, planning, and organisational abilities.
• Confident using data to inform decisions and improve performance.
• Flexible, resilient, and able to adapt to changing priorities.
• Experience in a high-volume or value retail environment.
• Familiarity with retail systems and reporting tools.
• Experience managing recruitment, training, and performance processes.
• Tech savvy with using back-office systems, EPoS Tills, emails and video calls.

Being a Great Leader

As a great leader with wonderful people skills, you'll create an environment that's more inclusive than just co-workers - it's a team. Inspire and motivate your team in line with our employer brand, values, behaviours and purpose. Lead your team to reach their potential and steer your store to break records and get in the spotlight. Work collaboratively with support departments and peers. If something's not quite right, speak up so we can work together to get it right or make it better! - Nobody is too proud for constructive feedback so we all win together!

But let's not forget about the most important part… your team's well-being and aspirations. You'll be their biggest supporter, cheering them on. You'll have amazing everyday conversations with your team, discussing everything from performance to career aspirations and helping them get there.

Our PERKS really are ‘The Works’

• 25% Colleague Discount! - Plus, exclusive Double Discount days!
• MyWorks - Access exclusive online discounts across hundreds of retailers, holidays, utilities deals, tech and more!
• Family Friendly Leave - Enjoy some time well spent with enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay.
• Holiday – 33 days, including bank holidays
• Stream - Claim early access to 50% of your wages as you earn them – for when ‘life’ happens!
• Can-Do Academy - Grow your skills and career with instant access to further training and development in areas that interest you.
• Share Scheme - Unleash your inner Monopoly mogul and own a piece of The Works!
• 24/7 support for you and your family - Through our partnership with the Retail Trust who provide an Employee Assistance Programme and so much more!
• Healthcare Cash Plan – To support your everyday healthcare costs.
• And loads more! – Long service awards, pension, life assurance, Cycle to Work scheme and optional charity giving.

Our Purpose

To inspire reading, learning, creativity and play.

Our Values

• We are Crafty 🎨 | Smart with what we've got.
• We are Caring 💛 | Heart in every action.
• We are Can-do 🚀| Energy that gets it done.

We Listen. We Care

Each year, we run an anonymous colleague engagement survey. This is so important for us to hear your feedback and suggestions. We want to know what’s going great, and what needs a couple of tweaks to help make The Works the best place you’ve ever worked! You’ll have opportunity to help give us that direction.

Promoting Diversity, Inclusion, and Applying Reasonable Adjustments.

At The Works, we are proud to have an inclusive culture where everyone truly feels able to be themselves. Our roles are open to all, including under-represented groups such as ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, carers & members of the LGBTQ+ community (including those who identify as lesbian, gay, bi, trans, non-binary, or use another term). We are open to discussions around working hours and flexible working. And, where possible, we'll try to support this. If you need reasonable adjustments for an interview you might attend with us, let us know in your application and we’ll be happy to help!