General Manager
About B Street Deli
B Street Deli is an established independent deli, café and wine bar in the heart of Bermondsey Street.
We are known for high\-quality food, excellent coffee, fine wines and a warm, welcoming atmosphere, with a strong focus on good produce and knowledgeable, friendly service.
Our offer runs throughout the day: from breakfast, coffee and pastries in the morning, through premium sandwiches, salads, hot dishes and deli products at lunch, to wine, charcuterie, cheese, antipasti and sharing platters in the evening.
Alongside the restaurant and deli, the business also operates takeaway, catering, hampers, private orders and local office delivery, as well as an off\-licence offering wines, spirits and other drinks.
We are looking for an experienced, hands\-on General Manager to take ownership of the day\-to\-day operation and help us continue to develop the business.
THE ROLE
As General Manager, you will have overall responsibility for the daily operation, team, customer experience, commercial performance and standards of B Street Deli.
This is a hands\-on role for someone who enjoys being on the floor, leading a team, solving problems and making things happen.
You will be responsible for ensuring that the deli operates smoothly from the early morning through to the evening, while maintaining the quality, personality and standards that make B Street Deli special.
You will work closely with the Directors/Operations team to deliver the commercial and operational objectives of the business.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
1\. Leadership \& Team Management
- Lead, motivate and develop the B Street Deli team.
- Set clear expectations around service, behaviour, appearance and performance.
- Ensure the right people are in the right place at the right time.
- Manage rotas, staffing levels, holidays and absence.
- Conduct inductions, probation reviews, performance reviews and training.
- Address performance and conduct issues promptly and fairly.
- Build a positive, professional and collaborative team culture.
- Ensure excellent communication between the deli, kitchen, bar and management.
- Identify recruitment needs and support recruitment of new team members.
- Develop team members and identify future supervisors/managers.
- Take ownership of the smooth running of the site from opening through to close.
- Ensure opening and closing procedures are completed correctly.
- Maintain excellent standards across the deli counter, customer area, kitchen, bar, storage and back\-of\-house.
- Ensure the business is adequately staffed during breakfast, lunch and evening peaks.
- Manage service during busy periods and step onto the floor when required.
- Resolve operational problems quickly and effectively.
- Ensure equipment, facilities and maintenance issues are reported and dealt with promptly.
- Maintain excellent organisation across the entire site.
B Street Deli has a strong local customer base, so the GM should be highly visible and genuinely interested in the customer experience.
You will:
- Lead by example in delivering warm, knowledgeable and professional service.
- Build relationships with regular customers and the local community.
- Deal confidently with complaints and difficult situations.
- Monitor customer feedback and identify opportunities for improvement.
- Ensure the team understands the products being sold and can confidently talk to customers about food, wine and coffee.
- Maintain the welcoming, relaxed personality of the business.
B Street Deli is built around quality produce, including artisan cheeses, charcuterie, antipasti, breads, pastries, sandwiches, salads, coffee and wines.
The GM will:
- Maintain consistently high product and presentation standards.
- Work closely with the kitchen/deli team to maintain consistency.
- Monitor quality, freshness, presentation and availability.
- Ensure correct stock rotation and storage.
- Monitor wastage and identify opportunities to reduce it.
- Ensure the deli counter and displays are consistently well presented.
- Ensure food safety procedures are followed at all times.
- Take overall responsibility for ensuring site standards are maintained.
- Ensure all food safety procedures and due diligence are completed correctly.
- Ensure staff are appropriately trained.
- Maintain high standards of cleanliness and hygiene.
- Ensure health \& safety procedures are followed.
- Report and manage maintenance, accident and safety issues appropriately.
- Ensure licensing requirements are followed.
- Work with the Operations/HR team on compliance and audits.
6\. Commercial Management
The GM will take ownership of the site's commercial performance.
Responsibilities include:
- Monitor daily and weekly sales.
- Understand sales patterns and identify opportunities to increase revenue.
- Monitor labour costs and ensure staffing is appropriate to trade.
- Monitor food, beverage and operating costs.
- Control wastage.
- Monitor margins and profitability.
- Identify opportunities to increase average spend.
- Drive sales across dine\-in, takeaway, deli retail, wine, catering and hampers.
- Review performance with Directors/Operations and agree actions where required.
- Manage stock levels and ordering.
- Ensure the business has the correct products available for service.
- Maintain good relationships with suppliers.
- Monitor deliveries and product quality.
- Manage stock rotation and minimise waste.
- Identify slow\-moving or underperforming products.
- Ensure purchasing remains commercially responsible while protecting quality.
B Street Deli has an established catering and bespoke\-order operation, including breakfast, lunch and dinner platters, charcuterie/cheese/antipasti platters, hampers and orders for local businesses and private events.
The GM will:
- Oversee catering orders from enquiry through to delivery/collection.
- Ensure orders are accurately prepared and presented.
- Ensure the team understands deadlines and responsibilities.
- Develop relationships with local offices and businesses.
- Look for opportunities to grow the catering and corporate\-order side of the business.
The successful candidate will actively look for ways to grow the business.
This could include:
- Increasing local office catering.
- Developing the takeaway offer.
- Increasing evening trade.
- Growing wine and deli retail sales.
- Developing events and private bookings.
- Increasing repeat business from local customers.
- Supporting social media and local marketing activity.
- Developing partnerships with local businesses.
We are looking for someone who is:
- An experienced General Manager / Restaurant Manager / Café Manager / Hospitality Manager.
- Confident managing a busy, multi\-faceted hospitality operation.
- Commercially aware and comfortable working with sales, labour and costs.
- A natural leader who knows how to get the best from a team.
- Hands\-on and happy to work alongside the team.
- Passionate about food, wine and hospitality.
- Highly organised and able to manage multiple priorities.
- Calm under pressure.
- Naturally warm and personable with customers.
- Confident dealing with suppliers and external partners.
- Strong on food safety, health \& safety and operational standards.
- Comfortable managing performance and having difficult conversations when required.
- Able to work independently and take ownership.
- Someone who genuinely cares about the details.
- Experience in an independent restaurant, deli, café, wine bar or food\-led hospitality business.
- Experience managing a team of approximately 10–15 people.
- Experience with catering and corporate orders.
- Strong knowledge of food and wine.
- Experience managing an all\-day operation.
- Experience with stock, purchasing and cost control.
- Personal Licence: desirable.
Within the first 3 months, the successful GM will have:
- A well\-organised and motivated team.
- Clear staffing and rota structures.
- Consistent service standards.
- Strong food safety and H\&S compliance.
- Excellent stock control and reduced unnecessary waste.
- Clear understanding of site sales, labour and profitability.
- Strong relationships with regular customers.
- Improved communication across the team.
Pay: From £39,950\.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company pension
- Employee discount
- Sick pay
- Store discount
This listing is from Indeed. View original listing ↗