Garden Centre Department Manager
Our Hillier Garden Centre at Weyhill is a well‑established and popular destination for gardening enthusiasts, offering a wide range of plants, gifts, outdoor living products and expert advice. We are now seeking an experienced Garden Centre Shop Manager to lead the day‑to‑day retail operation within the garden centre shop. This is a key role within the centre, responsible for delivering exceptional customer service, maintaining high retail standards, driving commercial performance and ensuring the smooth running of the shop.
We are particularly looking for someone with strong multi‑category retail experience and a real flair for visual merchandising, especially across Fashion, Gift and Seasonal ranges. While the role leads the overall shop operation, it has a significant focus on elevating our Gifts \& Leisure departments — ensuring these categories are commercially optimised, beautifully presented and aligned with Hillier’s brand standards throughout the year. You will take ownership of how these ranges look and perform, creating inspiring displays, responding to trends and maintaining a high‑quality customer experience within your areas.
Alongside managing the shop team and delivering strong retail standards, you will also deputise for the Garden Centre Manager when required, supporting the wider centre and ensuring continuity of leadership in their absence. There may also be occasions where you support other Hillier centres, including travel to other locations as needed. This is a hands‑on, fast‑paced role that requires confidence, strong merchandising capability and the ability to lead a diverse team in a highly seasonal environment.
This is a full‑time, permanent position working 37\.5 hours per week on a rota basis, averaged over a two‑week pattern.
About you:
- Previous experience in retail management within a multi‑category retail environment, ideally including Fashion, Gift, Home and Seasonal ranges
- Strong visual merchandising skills, with the ability to deliver high retail standards, impactful displays and effective space utilisation
- Demonstrable experience in leading and developing a team, promoting a positive, supportive and high‑performance working environment
- Commercially confident, with experience managing budgets, sales targets, cost control and improving profitability
- Able to deputise for the Garden Centre Manager when required and support wider centre operations with professionalism and calm
- Willingness to travel occasionally to support other Hillier Garden Centres
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, ensuring customers receive a consistently positive shopping experience
- Strong delegation skills, able to organise and distribute tasks effectively across the team
- A proactive, solutions‑focused mindset with the ability to address operational challenges swiftly and effectively
- Confident managing customer feedback and complaints in a professional, balanced and proactive manner
- Passionate about delivering exceptional customer service and creating a welcoming, well‑presented shop environment
- Highly organised with strong multitasking abilities, able to manage stock, operations and staffing demands across a busy, seasonal retail setting
- High attention to detail, ensuring the shop environment is consistently well‑presented and commercially optimised
- Adaptable and resilient, able to respond to seasonal changes and shifting customer preferences
- Willing to work flexible hours, including weekends and Bank Holidays, in line with business needs
- Enthusiastic about sustainability and environmentally responsible retail practices
- Calm under pressure, particularly during peak trading periods, with the initiative to take ownership and make decisions that benefit the business
- Lead the day‑to‑day retail operation within the garden centre shop
- Maintain high standards of presentation, stock management and customer service
- Shape and elevate the Gifts \& Leisure departments through strong visual merchandising
- Create engaging, commercially effective displays across Fashion, Gift and Seasonal ranges
- Monitor sales performance, stock levels and space utilisation to support commercial results
- Guide, support and develop the shop team through seasonal changes and new ranges
- Ensure the shop environment remains welcoming, cohesive and aligned with Hillier brand standards
- Deputise for the Garden Centre Manager when required, supporting the wider centre
- Provide occasional support to other Hillier locations, including travel when needed
- Salary of up to £35,000 per annum (depending on experience)
- Life assurance at 4 x annual salary
- Option to join enhanced group pension plan
- Sociable hours
- Full training
- Online Learning Hub
- Employee discount of 20%
- Discount of 50% on restaurant menu whilst on shift
- 31 days annual leave
- Free on\-site parking
- Enhanced Employee Assistance Programme for both you and your immediate family, including free counselling on health, financial, legal and personal/family matters
- Company Christmas gifts (eligibility based on start date with Company)
- Free access to exclusive retail discounts, deals and coupons, plus extra cashback on your Amazon and food shop
- Free solo entry to the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, Romsey and deals at other gardens nationally
Please note that we will only consider candidates who are already located in the UK and have right to work status.
We are an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, or age.
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