About Savona
Savona is a leading independent foodservice wholesaler with over 50 years of experience supplying chefs, caterers, and hospitality professionals across the South of England. What truly sets us apart isn’t just our products – it’s our people, our culture, and our customer-first mindset.
We’re a business built on relationships. Every order, every delivery, every conversation is driven by one simple value: put the customer at the heart of everything we do. Our team takes pride in going the extra mile – anticipating needs, solving problems, and delivering a service experience that is personal, reliable, and refreshingly genuine.
We work fast, stay flexible, and think differently. As an independent company, we have the freedom to innovate, to act quickly, and to put doing the right thing above all else. Collaboration and integrity guide how we work – with our customers, our partners, and each other.
At Savona, you’ll join a team that values initiative, celebrates fresh ideas, and supports each other to grow. We’re passionate about food, serious about service, and proud of the reputation we’ve built.
The Role
This role is responsible for leading all operational functions across the organisation, ensuring safe, efficient, cost effective, and customer focused delivery of service. This includes multitemperature warehousing, transport, fleet, stock integrity, health & safety, and depot performance. The role ensures consistent operational standards, develops high performing teams and superior service levels to support sales growth.
In addition to the traditional operational departments, you will also assume responsibility for customer service and compliance/sustainability to ensure excellent customer service whilst operating to the appropriate standards.
A key member of the board, you will challenge the Managing Director and other board members to help develop future business strategies, which you will deliver through your team, working hand-in-glove with the Commercial Director.
This is a hands-on role and you will be expected to maintain firsthand knowledge of our people and processes.
Key Accountabilities (and corresponding typical key measures/indicators)
1. Health & Safety (personal & vehicle accidents)
2. People management & development (Staff Churn & Absence)
3. Operational Plan (clear and aligned objectives)
4. Quality (business standards)
5. Network Profitability (management accounts)
6. Customer Service (scorecard and service KPIs)
Key Responsibilities
1. Develop and execute the operations strategy aligned with the business’s commercial goals and service proposition.
2. Lead day-to-day operations across all depots, fleet, transport, and warehouse functions.
3. Ensure operational infrastructure, systems, and processes are fit for purpose and scalable for future growth.
4. Maintain high stock integrity, including picking accuracy, stock rotation, auditing, and waste reduction.
5. Ensure the highest standards of health and safety and other regulatory standards across all operational sites.
6. Oversee food safety practices including HACCP, hygiene, and temperature control.
7. Own operational KPIs such as picking accuracy, delivery performance, and customer satisfaction.
8. Collaborate with the commercial team to ensure operational readiness for promotions, seasonal peaks, and large customer rollouts.
9. Resolve customer service issues through root cause analysis and implement sustainable improvements.
10. Manage operational budgets, including labour, fleet, MHE, PPE, utilities, and waste.
11. Lead a culture of continuous improvement, including efficiency through automation, process redesign, operational optimisation and making the best use of technology
12. Improve labour planning and workforce productivity across depots.
13. Ensure efficient use of WMS, ERP and other operational technology.
Experience & Qualifications
Essential
1. Experience within UK foodservice, wholesale, or distribution
2. Full clean driving license
3. Minimum 3 years’ experience managing a multi-site, multi-temperature, operation in a high-volume, fast-paced environment
4. Prior direct operational management of logistics/transport / warehouse / stock functions of a similar scale
5. Demonstrable understanding of emotional intelligence and its application to company culture to deliver business improvement
Desirable
6. Degree or equivalent experience; commercial or leadership qualifications desirable.
7. Commercially aware with a strong financial understanding
8. Problem solving skills accustomed to continuous improvement
9. IT literate (MS Office, ERP & Business Intelligence systems)
10. Understanding of AI applications in an operational context
Our Values and Your Contribution
Savona operates on a set of core behaviours that we expect our leaders to embody:
- Invest in People: Create a culture of learning and continuous improvement, acting as a visible role model who identifies and develops future talent.
- Innovation: Be a catalyst for change, thinking creatively about industry challenges and developing strategies that transform Savona’s future, leveraging technologies like AI.
- Service First: Build and demonstrate a customer-focused culture, removing barriers and proactively using feedback to drive innovation and superior service delivery.
- Accountable: Communicate vision clearly, lead from the front, make difficult decisions decisively, and foster a culture of ownership and responsibility across operations.
- Get Involved: Build strong relationships with stakeholders, apply emotional intelligence effectively, and represent Savona with gravitas in the wider business community.
- Safeguard the Future: Integrate sustainability into business goals, understanding that doing the right thing matters – leading by example in ethical practices and environmental stewardship.
Why Join Savona?
- Be part of a truly independent business with the freedom to innovate and care about our customers.
- Lead transformational operational change with cutting-edge technology.
- Work with a team that has genuine longevity and passion for what they do.
- Influence business strategy at board level and shape the future of UK foodservice.
- Make a real difference to our customers.
Location: South of England (1 hour commute to either Kidlington or Barking)
Reports to: Managing Director
Direct Reports: Site General Managers, Head of Compliance & Sustainability and Customer Service Manager
Package: Commensurate with the role, including company car/allowance, private medical insurance and bonus scheme
Ready to lead the operations team that delivers FOODSERVICE THAT JUST WORKS?
To apply, please submit your CV and a covering letter below.
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: £70,000.00-£100,000.00 per year
Work Location: In person
