Cluster Manager

THIS ROLE IN INTERNAL ONLY! NO EXTERNAL APPLICATIONS ACCEPTED!
The Cluster Manager is a multi-site, leadership role responsible for driving operational performance, standards, compliance and people development across a defined group of stores within a region. While continuing to manage your own “home” store, the Cluster Manager supports, coaches and holds accountable the Store Managers of other stores, ensuring consistency, high performance, and delivery against sales, profit, service, and operational targets across the cluster.

This role ensures alignment with business strategy, fosters a unified culture across the cluster, supports new store openings, and acts as a key link between SSC, Regional Management and on-the-ground store teams.

This role will cover our Stores in Livingston, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Gretna, Braehead, Fleetwood and the Cluster Manager will be expected to be travelling to these stores 3 days/week .

Multi-Store Leadership & Performance Management

• Own the commercial performance of the entire cluster of 4-5 stores (sales, margin, costs, shrinkage, labour, P&L contribution).
• Support and coach Store Managers (and deputies) to meet and exceed KPIs; hold regular 1-2-1s, performance reviews, and cluster-wide reviews.
• Identify underperforming stores or issues (sales, service, standards, people, compliance) and implement corrective actions, monitor improvement plans, or provide hands‑on support if needed.
• Ensure consistent retail standards across the cluster including, but not limited to: store presentation, merchandising, stock control, planogram compliance, pricing, stock replenishment and product availability.
• Oversee rota planning across stores (where applicable) to ensure appropriate staffing, including holiday/absence cover.

People Leadership & Development

• Act as the first point of contact and key support for Store Managers and provide coaching, guidance, mentoring and leadership development.
• Drive succession planning, identify high‑potential individuals (store deputies / supervisors / sales advisors), and provide this to Recruitment & L&D to put in place plans for succession/promotion
• Lead recruitment, onboarding, training, and standardisation of staff practices across the cluster (in conjunction with Recruitment and HR/People Team).
• Promote a consistent company culture, values, and service standards across stores; ensure communication flow between stores, region and SSC.

Operational Governance & Compliance

• Ensure all stores within the cluster adhere to company policies, health & safety regulations, security procedures, and other statutory or regulatory requirements.
• Conduct regular visits / audits to stores: compliance, presentation, housekeeping, stock control, maintenance, and risk‑management.
• Provide support during store openings, refits or major transitions, ensuring consistent execution across the cluster (merchandising, stock set‑up, staffing, launch standards).

Strategy, Planning & Growth Support

• Collaborate with your Regional Manager and SSC to deliver regional and cluster‑level trading plans, budgets, forecasts and growth initiatives.
• Analyse trading data, cluster‑wide KPIs, store performance metrics to identify trends, share best practice and drive continuous improvement across the cluster.
• Support roll‑out of new stores, ensuring operational readiness, staffing, and compliance with brand standards.

Deputising & Escalations

• Act as interim store manager for stores in the cluster when needed (e.g. absence, crisis, peak periods), ensuring continuity and standards.
• Be point of escalation for store‑level issues such as people, compliance, operations, customer complaints, or other incidents.
• Represent the cluster at regional meetings, communicate corporate strategy and feedback from stores to senior management.

Core Competencies & Skills

• Proven retail management experience (Store Manager or equivalent), ideally with multi‑store or multi‑site exposure.
• Strong leadership, coaching, and people‑development skills; ability to motivate, influence and inspire store teams and managers.
• Commercially astute: confident in P&L responsibility, KPI management, budgeting, forecasting, cost control and driving…