Shop Manager

1. PURPOSE OF THE JOB • To maximize sales, productivity, revenue opportunities and customer satisfaction levels through the efficient management of the St Vincent de Paul Charity shop by ensuring compliance with the Society’s retail standards, current relevant legislation and SVP policy and ethos. • You will manage, lead, develop and motivate a team comprising of volunteers, scheme workers and employees where applicable to maintain the standards of the shop and achieve and paid employees where applicable to maintain the standards of the shop and achieve target for business growth. • As a Shop Manager you’ll be vital to the ongoing success of Vincent’s Retail, focusing on maximizing sales, productivity,revenue opportunities and providing customerservice that meets and exceeds our customer’s expectations. You’ll take ownership of your shop ensuring compliance with the Society’s retail standards, health and safety and legislation to create a shopping experience that caters to our wide range of customers and promotes the ethos of the Society.

2. ENVIRONMENT OF THE JOB The SVP is a large, national, voluntary organisation with extensive experience of working with a diverse range of people who experience poverty and exclusion. Through its network of volunteers and staff, it is strongly committed to working for social justice and advocates the creation of a more just and caring society. SVP employs people to support volunteers in a variety of settings including housing and hostels, community care, shops, administration and other specialist areas. SVP retail is the third largest retailer in Ireland with 230 shops. When you work in an SVP shop your dedication, initiative and passion are helping to make an important contribution to the work SVP does and to change the lives of people in need across the country. The Society is a Christian based organisation with a strong sense of Gospel values. The founder of the Society, Blessed Frederic Ozanam, was a devout Christian and his legacy of spirituality remains a key element of the make-up of every Conference within the Society. It is normal practice within the Society that prayers are said at the beginning and end of Conference meetings or at other meetings where members are in attendance as this underpins the ethos of the Society. You are not required to actively participate. Whilst we ask that staff have sympathy with the Christian values, religion is not taken into account in recruitment as we value people of all faiths or none. The job holder will report directly to the Regional Retail Manager. The nature of matters referred upwards are those listed below and as per the structure chart outlined in section 9 of this job description. • Where significant resistance is experienced in the development of good practice and implementation of policy. • Where practice or proposed practice placesstakeholdersin a position of risk e.g. a child, a vulnerable adult, members, employees, the reputation of the Society. • Where decision will have a significant impact on the workload of others. 3. GUIDANCE AND AUTHORITY 4. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES ACCOUNTABILITIES HOW ACHIEVED Business Development: 1. Implement effective re-sourcing of stock to anticipate customer demands - Develop and sustain a strong working relationship with the shop team. Participate in SVP retail initiatives as directed. 2. Review day to day operations and offerings of the shop in conjunction with recognised guidelines on core issuesincluding customer care,retailstandards, financial control, health and safety and security and recommend changes in working practices and staff levels where appropriate. - Source new opportunities for the development of the current product range where possible. - Maintain and encourage a recycling business to the shop from the community. - Encourage the involvement of existing volunteers actively recruit new volunteers from all sectors of the community - Implement effective resourcing of stock to anticipate customer demands 3. Maximise the financial contribution of the Vincent’s Retail by delivering like for like growth in line with agreed targets by encouraging all members of your team to do likewise. - Work in a collaborative and developmental way with volunteers, management and staff in the shop. 4. Achieve financial objectives - Deliver a yearly growth on threshold and stretch – -Shop Manager to be mindful of costs such as light/heat. 5. Keep Regional Retail Manager/Area/Shop Conference informed - Submit a monthly report to the Regional Retail Manager, Area/Shop Conference on performance, Health and Safety and compliance issues within the shop (a report template will be provided) - Attend Regional and National Meetings/training as requested.

Customer Service: 6. Develop a “Sales through service” culture with the specific aims of retaining existing customers, attracting new customers and expanding customer activity in-store to include, buying, donating and volunteering. - “Relationship manage” existing valued customers by opening two-way communications with them. Encourage customer feedback through questionnaires, focus groups and customer events as appropriate. -Establish and promote clear guidelines for all forms of customer interaction, encourage volunteers and staff to exceed customer expectations at every opportunity thus creating a culture of sales through service -Actively use thank you cards and loyalty cards. -Ensure that all shops operate a meet and greet policy on the shop floor. - Ensure that the customer has full access to the shop products and services during advertised opening hours. 7. Develop a culture of regular self- assessment in the shop. - By using the Vincent’s Retail check list for all areas of the shop. Areas should include shop atmosphere, window display, stock display and rotation and after sales service. -Maintain cleanliness and order in the shop. - Maintains professional boundaries with customers at all times. 8. Investigate and resolve all legitimate customer complaints where possible and aim to recover the customer where practicable. - Log all complaints and respond within agreed timeframes. - Escalate where necessary - Ensure complaint and accommodation ratio isrecorded on a monthly basis in the monthly report. Team Satisfaction Recruit and maintain volunteers: 9. Recruitment of new volunteersfor the shop and management of existing volunteers. - Continually recruit new volunteers by advertising in store, externally and online, job and volunteer centres, word of mouth and converting existing customers - Liaise with National Volunteer Coordinatorto organise recruitment events -Use existing volunteerrecruitment application programme including the induction period for all new volunteers. 10. Create and sustain an environment in which allstaff and volunteers are motivated and are given suitable work to ensure that their individual motivations and abilities are being recognised and met. - Ensure that all staff and volunteers are working in an environment free from intimidation, harassment and discrimination. - Ensure that all existing and new volunteers and staff receive training and induction into the ethos and policies and procedures of the organisation - Ensure that all team members receive regular updates on their progress. Ensure professional boundaries with staff and volunteers at all times. - Ensure that all retail staff/volunteers have specific, realistic and measurable objectives and receive regular updates on their progress. Adhere to the induction programme for staff and volunteers and provide regular feedback on progress. - Assess the training needs of all staff and identify opportunities for staff to acquire new skills - Introduce a comprehensive and sustainable two-way communication process. - Keep staff updated through daily team briefs, use of noticeboard and quarterly team meetings. Disseminate information from meetings to your team. - Develop relationships with scheme supervisors/leaders/partners

Compliance: 11. Familiarise all team members with SVP guidelines and best practice on issues including financial control and staff purchases. Compliance issues or concerns should be raised to the Line Manager.

Comply with the Health & Safety Manual - Monitor working arrangements of all personnel ensuring compliance with policy and best practice. - - Performance issuesshould be addressed underthe - terms of the relevant SVP policy. - Promote best practice around Health and Safety and ensure that all staff comply with SVP guidelines and appropriate legislation in this area. - Comply with the Health and Safety manual. - Ensure risk assessments are carried out once a week - Ensure up to date records are kept of training and H&S - Ensure fire drills are completed regularly.

12. Promote and maintain a satisfactory level of control in the area handling cash and stock control and ensure compliance to recognised staff purchase and Emergency Assistance controls. - Where non-compliance occurs implement an action plan to agreed timescales. - Report non –compliance to the Line Manager at the earliest opportunity. - Ensure there is adequate cover on the roster to prevent lone working. 13. Continually reassess the operational risks inherent in the business, taking account of changing economic or market conditions, legal and regulatory requirements, operating procedures and practices and any impact of management restructures / new technology. - By addressing any areas of concern in conjunction with line management and or the appropriate department /function. In addition to the duties and responsibilities listed above, the job holder may be required from time to time to perform other duties as deemed reasonable and necessary by the employer. The job holder may also be required from time to time to work or attend training/meetings at another location. As much notice as is reasonably practicable will be given of any such change. 5. CHALLENGES There are a number of challenges in this role, largely determined by the scale, complexity, voluntary nature and high levels of local autonomy with the Society. • Acceptance of the dynamic of a complex, national, membership organisation and an understanding of how this both contributes to and constrains the work. • Resilience and persistence in the face of barriers and organisational roadblocks encountered. • Management of ambiguity and complexity. • Influencing others not under direct authority. • Influencing stakeholders to recognise and to act upon, the need for accelerated change. 6. OTHER INFORMATION Whilst the job holder has been initially appointed to one specific location, shop managers are required to be flexible and may be asked to re-locate to alternative locations within the region(s) (within reason) to serve the changing requirements of the business. The job holder must be available for evening work/weekend as required. The job holder will be expected to use initiative and be highly motivated. The post holder will liaise with relevant personnel / departments. 7. EDUCATION, KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS TO UNDERTAKE THE ROLE AT A FULLY ACCEPTABLE LEVEL Education • Job holdershould have 5 GCSEs at C or above, including Maths and English or equivalent. Education • Job holder to be educated to third level in a business-related field or equivalent.

Experience • At least 3 yearsin a customer facing retail environment. • Experience of managing / working with a diverse team of people. • Experience of working with sales and meeting targets.

• Experience of independent working and also working as part of a team. • Experience of providing and analysing sales reports. • Ideally some experience gained in the community or voluntary sector. • Be an accomplished retail manager and be able to demonstrate an impressive record of store standards and customer service through your team. • Experience of managing and organising events.

Skills • Excellent communication and interpersonalskills, both written and verbal, in individual and group situations. • An ability to establish and foster. excellent working relationships with many different people across different functions and locations. • Excellent organisation skills. • Competent in IT packages – Excel, Word, EPOS, Microsoft 365. • A positive outlook with resilience and persistence in the face of barriers and setbacks. • An ability to display empathy, patience and a well-developed sense of humour. • Awareness and understanding ofsocial media.

Knowledge • Commercially aware.

• Awareness/understanding of the Society and of its mission and values. • Knowledge of the needs of issues of the poor and disadvantaged.

The person must also demonstrate the following personal attributes: • Ability to work on own initiative or as part of team.

Contract Type: Permanent Full Time Hours: 37.5 hours per week Pension: 5% employer contribution 5% employee contribution Salary: £25,740 per year