At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead multiple stores, drive growth, and ensure a world-class customer experience.
- Company: Join WHSmith, a leading brand enhancing journeys across the UK.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, 33 days holiday, employee discounts, and wellbeing support.
- Other info: Inclusive workplace with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on customer experiences while developing your leadership skills.
- Qualifications: Experience in retail management and a passion for customer service.
The predicted salary is between 29250 - 35750 £ per year.
At WHSmith, our mission is simple: to enhance every journey through exceptional service, and at the heart of this are our people, customers, and partners. As a Multi-Site Store Manager, you’ll lead the performance of multiple stores across various formats, including InMotion and hospitality, driving growth and ensuring a world-class customer experience.
What being a Multi-Site Store Manager is all about:
- People: Fostering a positive, unified multi-store culture where teams work together to achieve business goals.
- Tailoring development and training plans for each store, nurturing strengths and potential within teams.
- Creating an environment of openness, engagement, and communication, acting as an advocate for the colleague voice.
- Cultivating talent and maintaining a flexible succession plan for key roles, ensuring top talent development.
- Overseeing HR processes, ensuring all policies and procedures are followed with support from the ER team.
- Ensuring stores are safe and compliant with all legal requirements, including HMRC standards.
- Completing mandatory training on time and ensuring new starters experience a welcoming induction.
- Managing staffing profiles effectively, ensuring productivity is maximised while adhering to payroll budgets.
- Promoting diversity and prioritising the wellbeing of your teams while keeping them updated on business communications.
- Plan: Conducting purposeful store visits with a focus on people, planning, and customer satisfaction.
- Using data to drive results, setting clear SMART actions and consistently monitoring progress.
- Ensuring store activities are completed on time and in line with brand guidelines and supplier requirements.
- Maintaining high standards for stock availability, shrink controls, and productivity across all stores.
- Coaching teams on key processes and ensuring a consistent customer journey through efficient execution.
- Managing the commercial business scorecard, focusing on sales, shrink, payroll, and legal compliance, closing performance gaps across stores.
- Ensuring the right colleagues are in the right place at the right time, effectively managing peaks and maintaining budgeted hours.
- Proactively managing shrinkage and food waste, particularly in high-risk areas like InMotion and hospitality.
- Customer: Ensuring consistently high store standards across all locations by coaching and validating the execution of brilliant behaviours.
- Motivating InMotion teams to meet sales targets and drive a performance-driven culture.
- Role-modelling exceptional customer service, coaching teams to sell, manage queues, and deliver delightful customer experiences.
- Focusing on growing sales by educating teams on key commercial levers like spend per passenger, ATV, and transaction volumes.
- Conducting weekly one-on-one meetings to set objectives and measure contribution to sales goals.
- Ensuring all colleagues are passionate about customer-first culture and knowledgeable about products to drive add-on sales.
- Contributing to strategic projects that influence the UK Travel Business, becoming a recognised expert in your area.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with landlords, ensuring any issues are dealt with promptly.
How we reward our teams:
- Competitive salary, pension scheme, and 33 days holiday (including bank holidays).
- Employee discounts (up to 50%) and deals from retail partners for savings on dining, entertainment, and more.
- Employee Assistance Programme to support physical, mental, and financial wellbeing.
About WHSmith: With a rich heritage, WHSmith continues to grow, particularly in airports, hospitals, rail stations, and motorway services. Our InMotion brand is leading the way in digital accessories, offering an exceptional customer experience. We have established strong partnerships with brands like M&S and Costa Coffee to broaden our customer offerings across the UK. As we grow, our mission remains simple: to make every journey better. We are proud to be an inclusive employer, where our colleagues are welcome and free to be themselves.
Derby Railway Station - Multi Site Store Manager employer: WH Smith
WHSmith is an excellent employer that values exceptional customer service and teamwork, providing a supportive work culture where employees can thrive. With benefits like a pension scheme, paid annual leave, and employee discounts, along with a commitment to wellbeing through our Employee Assistance Programme, we ensure our team members feel valued and rewarded. Located in dynamic environments such as airports and rail stations, our employees enjoy unique opportunities for growth and development while contributing to making every journey better for our customers.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Derby Railway Station - Multi Site Store 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 WH Smith, 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 WH Smith!
We think you need these skills to ace Derby Railway Station - Multi Site Store 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 WH Smith, 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 WH Smith 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 WH Smith that you’re ready to jump in and contribute right away!
How to prepare for a job interview at WH Smith
✨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!
