General Manager - Penny

Venue Leadership | Full-time | Reporting to the Head of Operations |£60k + tronc + bonus scheme
Big Penny Ltd, London, E17

A you a natural leader who thrives in a big, fast-paced venue where no two days are the same?
Passionate about food, drink and delivering a genuinely great guest experience?
Ready to take the reins at one of East London’s most-loved community venues?

Big Penny Social is unlike any other venue in London. Part pub, part arts centre, part town square - it’s a huge, independent community space in Walthamstow built around great food, great drink and the belief that hospitality can bring people together.

From everyday dining and private hire events to live music, comedy nights and large-scale community gatherings, no two shifts look the same.

We’re looking for a General Manager to lead Big Penny Social - owning the day-to-day operation, developing the team and ensuring every guest leaves having had a brilliant time. This is a role for someone who leads from the front, sets high standard sand genuinely loves what they do.

If you thrive in high-volume, community-rooted hospitality and want a venue that reflects your ambition - this is for you.

We’re an independent, community-rooted space built for connection, celebration and everyday moments. We do relaxed dining,private hires, live events, sports screenings and large-scale gatherings all happening under one roof - sometimes all ur core, we exist to bring people together, and our team creates the welcoming, energetic atmosphere that has made us amuch-loved venue locally and for wider London.

Big Penny Social sits within the wider Big Penny group, which also includes Flukes - our old-school games hall, upstairs in thesame building - and Big Penny Brews at London City Airport. The General Manager of Big Penny Social reports to the Head Of Operations  and plays a key role in the wider group’s success.

As General Manager of Big Penny Social, you’ll be fully accountable for the day-to-day running of the venue - leading from thefront, owning the guest experience, managing and developing your team and hitting your commercial targets.

You’ll directly line manage the AGM, Bar Manager and Food Service Manager, as well as the 40+ team that work in the venue.

You’ll also working closely with the Head of Operations and the wider Big Penny team.

This is a hands-on leadership role - you’ll need to be visible on the floor, energise your team, solve problems quickly and keep standards high across a venue that never sits still.

• Managing Big Penny Social all year round
• Leading our venue team: running daily briefings, regular 1-2-1s, six-monthly reviews and ensuring the venue is always correctly staffed
• Team Training & Development:
  Helping create and implement training programmes across all staff levels, overseeing onboarding and ensuring the team consistently delivers the Big Penny guest experience
• Guest
  
  Experience:
  
  ensuring speedy, friendly and consistently high-quality service - maintaining the right atmosphere, being present on the floor during peak times, and resolving any elevated complaints swiftly and well
• P&L Ownership: responsible for the venue’s financial performance - ensuring the team hits targets around sales, GP, labour percentage and wastage, understanding the drivers behind each metric and acting quickly when things drift off track
• Events: overseeing the operational delivery of private hire events and public programming - working with the sales and creative teams to ensure events run smoothly, are well staffed and deliver a great experience
• Seasonal Menu Changes: working with the Head of Operations, Head Chef and the Food Service Manager to support therollout of seasonal F&B menu changes twice a year -…