General Manager Job Durban area,South Africa,Management

This is a hands-on leadership role for an experienced operator who thrives on ownership and can build a business from the ground up. The ideal candidate will come from a high-volume, guest-facing environment such as a busy restaurant group, QSR, padel or entertainment venue, bar, or club, and will be equally comfortable setting up operating systems as running the floor once doors open.

Core

Criteria:

Proven experience as a GM or senior operator in a high-volume, guest-facing hospitality, leisure, or entertainment business
Strong P&L management, budgeting, cost control, and forecasting experience
Experience setting up SOPs, staffing structures, and operating systems (pre-opening experience highly advantageous)
Strong people management, recruitment, and training ability
Confident working with POS systems and using data to drive operational decisions
Sales and marketing experience, including promotions, events, and driving repeat business
Entrepreneurial, ownership-minded approach with the confidence to work independently
Comfortable with extended, seven-day operating hours, including opening and closing shifts

Core Responsibilities:

Take full ownership of pre-opening readiness: staffing structure, recruitment, rostering, SOPs, and operating systems
Coordinate with contractors, suppliers, and stakeholders to ensure the venue is operationally ready for launch
Manage procurement, stock planning, and opening stock
Set up POS and reporting systems ahead of opening
Train and onboard the full team before launch
Manage the full P&L, budgets, cost control, and forecasting once operational
Maintain high service standards and remain highly visible within the venue
Drive sales, marketing, promotions, and events to build traffic and repeat business
Develop corporate, group, league, and other revenue opportunities
Lead and manage the team, overseeing rosters and labour control
Report regularly to ownership on performance and operational matters

On

Offer:

Salary: R50,000 - R60,000 CTC per month, dependent on experience, with a performance incentive to be structured once budgets are finalised
This is a live-out position
The opportunity to build and shape a brand-new venue from the ground up, with genuine scope to grow the business