Imagine being told that you, or someone you love, is losing their sight. In that moment, two profound questions demand urgent answers:
• Can this be stopped?
• How will I live my life?
Currently, research into preventing and treating sight loss is chronically underfunded, receiving a mere 1.2% of publicly funded health research grants: people who are blind or vision impaired are three times more likely to experience loneliness and isolation than the general population.
We find and fund the brilliant minds and bright ideas that put change in sight. Our researchers are at the forefront, making breakthroughs and discoveries that will prevent, treat and cure eye disease. The partnerships we build and initiatives we support are changing life for blind and vision impaired people.
We are Fight for Sight: we won t stop until we: Save Sight. Change Lives.
We have a clear ambition, led by our CEO, Keith Valentine, who has valuable lived experience of sight loss. We ve secured well-respected and highly engaged ambassadors, such as Sir John Major and Frances Segelman.
We are now looking for experienced, committed, and creative individuals to join our dynamic team to help realise a new five-year growth strategy. You ll be part of something impactful, we d love to hear from you.
Job Description
We are seeking an experienced and dynamic Retail Commercial Manager to oversee the sales and profit performance of a collection of retail shops. This position plays a crucial role in driving the commercial success of our retail shops by developing effective sales strategies, managing stock, optimising merchandising, and leading a high-performing team to deliver exceptional customer service. The ideal candidate will have strong leadership skills, and success with Commercial Strategies & Performance Management:
Responsible to
Head of Retail- Trading
Direct reports
Circa. 14 Managers
Working hours and contract
Full time, permanent, 35 hours per week across a flexible seven-day rota
Salary
£30,000-£35,000 p.a. depending on experience, plus travel expenses
Location
Central & Greater London
Closing date for applications: 30th, April, 2025
Early applications are encouraged. We will be interviewing on a rolling basis; therefore, we will close the vacancy as soon as we have found the right candidate.
Role Responsibilities
Sales and Profit
• Support Shop Managers to maximise each shop s sales and profit potential.
• Oversee the delivery of Gift Aid targets throughout the area, driving Gift Aid signups and conversion rates, and ensuring shops are actively promoting the scheme.
• Conduct data analysis to review the commercial layout of each shop including department and category mix.
• Understand and implement commercial actions to deliver against strategic KPIs.
• Responsible for ensuring that all merchandise is clearly priced and monitor pricing levels to achieve maximum sales in accordance with pricing policies.
• Ensure shops have a high standard of display, cleanliness and tidiness, and that they project a quality retail image.
• Assist Shop Managers to deliver commercially successful visual merchandising displays, in line with the visual merchandising manual.
• Ensure each shop correctly implements agreed seasonal promotions, and shop layouts to achieve maximum income.
• Ensures shop teams are aware, understand and engaged in the financial performance of their shops.
• All best practices outlined within the commercial manual are delivered.
Stock Management
• Ensure compliance with efficient and commercially successful stock processing systems (such as pricing, quality standards, consumer safety, stock density, sizing, and culling stock).
• Ensure that all legal and internal regulations regarding donated stock are adhered to.
• Collaborate with warehouse team to ensure effective stock movement.
• Work closely with the warehouse and stock partnerships teams to ensure sufficient levels of warehouse, rotation and corporate donated stock.
• Work closely with the ecommerce team to ensure key products generate maximum income via the best channel, delivering P&L sales targets.
• To monitor stock management and fast-tracking on to shop floor.
Customer Service
• Lead and inspire the team to place a positive customer experience at the heart of our approach to attract new and loyal supporters and repeat donors.
• Ensure all processes detailed within the customer experience manual are delivered.
• Ensure that feedback, including complaints are escalated to the Head of Retail Income, within the agreed timeframes.
• Be accountable for the integration of each shop into the local community in collaboration with the shop teams.
Team Management
• Ensure that shops have correct level of cover throughout the year, ensuring cover when and where necessary for annual leave, sickness or vacancies.
• Coordinate and facilitate meetings with shop managers for the purpose of training, communication and planning.
• Role model and promote effective team communication, celebrating success and sharing best practice.
• Foster a creative environment where team members seek to maximise income in new and innovative ways through multiple channels including their shops and community events.
• Provide line management, leadership, development opportunities and performance management to the Shop Management team.
• Support with the annual appraisal and probation processes for all reports.
• Play a key role in enabling shops to represent the charity and increase awareness of our mission within the community.
Volunteer Team
• Support the volunteer coordinator and shop management teams to recruit, induct and retain an inclusive and diverse volunteer team, in line with recruitment targets.
• Ensure volunteers adhere to Fight for Sight policies and procedures.
Operations
• Ensure shops are compliant against operational procedures and processes within the Operations manual, providing timely reports and identifying areas of non-compliance.
• Ensure shop maintenance and repairs are reported, and resolved in a timely manner, and aligned to budgets.
• Provide a safe and healthy working environment and ensure that all team members are aware of and operate within our health and safety policies and procedures.
• Ensure technology-related issues are raised and resolved promptly.
• Work within our policies and procedures when dealing with problems at work.
• Adhere to and enforce our safeguarding policies. Ensure all risk assessments are conducted and appropriate action plans are developed and executed.
Other
• Required to adhere to our vision, mission and values.
• Understanding of and commitment to adhere to equality, diversity, and staff health and wellbeing principles.
Governance, Finance and Operations
• Conduct regular reviews of shop financial processes to ensure adherence to procedures and minimise financial risks
• Understand and mitigate risk in the context of charity retail and multi-suite working.
• Monitor and enforce adherence to local regulations, ensuring shops comply with relevant legislation.
• Ensure all retail income is raised lawfully, including data protection legislation, Charity Commission guidance and Fundraising Standards/ Charity Retail Association codes of practice.
• Ensure compliance with all relevant legislation including Trading standards, Health & Safety, fire and building regulations for the retail premises.
Impact
• Support public awareness and understanding about visual impairment and visually impaired people.
• Share with customers the impact of the funds raised through shopping with us through in store communications, staff training and social media.
Person specification
Desirable skills, knowledge & experience
• Experience in retail management delivering significant sales and profit growth across multiple sites, ideally in a charity retail context
• Experience of developing and managing budgets
• Experience of EPOS systems and Gift Aid
• Experience of setting and managing income and expenditure budgets
• Experience of leading and line managing others to develop and grow, building and maintaining a high performing team culture
Personal qualities
• The ability to work under pressure whilst remaining calm and organised
• To be receptive to change and to act as a change agent
• The ability to maintain excellent rapport with staff, volunteers, supporters, and donors
• To consistently demonstrate a dedicated approach to the quality of customer service and team working.
• Comfortable working in a small team both strategically and operationally
• Commitment to teamwork, business partnering and a collegiate approach with a can do attitude and a sense of humour.
• Able to provide positive, dynamic, tenacious and flexible leadership at all times.
• Results-driven, able to measure and quantify own outcomes.
• Adaptable to changing landscape and evolving organisation.
• Willing and able to operate at pace in an organisation going through rapid change. click apply for full job details