Customer Service Manager - Furniture and Lighting

Company Overview

With an uncompromising commitment to British manufacturing, Soane Britain’s mission is to design and make enduring and life-enhancing furniture, lighting, fabrics and wallpapers through collaborations with a network of the finest craftspeople in Britain. Soane combines responsibly sourced, high-quality materials and superb workmanship to ensure our designs endure for generations.

Our talented team is based in offices and workshops in Leicester and the West Country and showrooms in London and New York.

This role is responsible for the day-to-day leadership, performance and operational delivery of the Furniture & Lighting Client Services team.

Reporting to the Client Services & Operations Manager, you will ensure the efficient management of workflow across quoting, order processing, aftercare and client support activities, maintaining the high standards of service expected by Soane clients. You will be responsible for the day-to-day management of Zendesk, ensuring workloads are prioritised effectively, service levels are maintained and operational performance is monitored across the team.

You will lead and develop the Furniture & Lighting Client Services team, supporting Client Services Associates and Advisors through effective workload management, coaching, training and operational guidance.

Working closely with Client Services Specialists, Client Development, Manufacturing, Product, Logistics and Finance, you will support the team in resolving challenges, removing obstacles and ensuring clients receive timely and accurate information throughout their journey.

A key focus of the role will be balancing team capacity, priorities and operational demands, proactively identifying risks, bottlenecks and opportunities for improvement. Through strong leadership and operational oversight, you will help create a consistent, efficient and scalable Client Services function capable of supporting future business growth.

• Lead, coach and support the Furniture & Lighting Client Services team.
• Conduct regular 1:1s and support individual development plans.
• Manage onboarding and training for new team members.
• Identify skills gaps and training requirements across the team.
• Create and maintain training materials, process documentation and team resources.
• Support recruitment activities and team succession planning.

• Own the day-to-day management of Zendesk.
• Monitor ticket volumes, response times and workload allocation.
• Prioritise and redistribute work to ensure service levels are maintained.
• Manage escalations and support resolution of complex client and operational issues.
• Maintain Zendesk reporting and provide regular updates on team performance and operational activity.

• Ensure the efficient processing of quotes, proformas, orders, aftercare requests and operational enquiries.
• Support the team in obtaining information from Manufacturing, Product, Logistics and Finance.
• Coordinate activity across departments to ensure timely and accurate responses.
• Provide regular operational updates to Client Development teams.
• Maintain high standards of accuracy, efficiency and service across all operational activities.

• Lead the day-to-day management of aftercare activity.
• Support the resolution of client issues, complaints and service challenges.
• Identify recurring issues and recommend improvements to processes and ways of working.
• Maintain a proactive approach to client communication and issue resolution.

• Identify opportunities to improve processes, reduce friction and increase operational efficiency.
• Support projects and initiatives led by the Client Services & Operations Manager.
• Contribute to operational reporting, analysis and performance reviews.
• Maintain process documentation, manuals and operational best practice guides.
• Provide recommendations to improve team performance, service levels and operational effectiveness.