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Build a new Oxford Road venue from day one, with real commercial ownership, a strong employment package, and purpose behind every pound.
Manchester Students’ Union is looking for an experienced, commercially sharp General Manager to open and lead our new licensed restaurant and bar at University Green. This is our most significant commercial launch in a decade and a rare opportunity to shape a new venue from the ground up.
We support more than 48,000 students at the University of Manchester and run an established hospitality portfolio including Manchester Academy Venues, Bar 532 & Kitchen and Corridor Coffee. Our new venue is the next step, an all day food, drink and social space trading from morning coffee through to late night drinks, serving students, University staff, gig goers and the wider Oxford Road community.
This is not a steady state General Manager role. You will join as the venue comes to life, opening the site, setting the standards, building the team, shaping the offer and creating the culture from day one. We want this to feel like a proper Oxford Road destination, independent, energetic, welcoming and commercially strong, with great food, great drinks, strong events and a reason for people to keep coming back.
As General Manager, you will lead the site’s P&L across sales, gross profit, labour, stock, food and drink margins, controllable costs and contribution. You will build the weekly trading rhythm, keep the team focused on the right numbers and act quickly when standards or performance need attention. You will lead a newly recruited team including Assistant Managers, Head Chef, Sous Chef, kitchen colleagues and casual bar and floor staff. You will also act as Designated Premises Supervisor, leading safe and compliant trading across licensing, responsible alcohol retailing, health and safety, food safety, training and incident management.
We are looking for a General Manager with strong experience running a high volume licensed bar, restaurant, pub or venue. You will need proven P&L experience, strong wet led bar knowledge, confidence working with food operations, excellent people leadership skills and the ability to build a strong safety culture. A Personal Licence is essential.
The package is one of the things that makes this role different. Alongside a competitive salary and 40 hour contract, we offer 30 days’ annual leave, bank holidays and an additional paid Christmas closure period of around two weeks. For hospitality leaders used to intense festive trading, that is a real point of difference. Our student and event led rhythm also gives the year a different shape to many city centre hospitality businesses, with peak energy around term, Welcome, gigs and major student moments, and a less Christmas led trading pattern than many pubs, bars and restaurants.
You will also benefit from pension contributions, learning and development, staff discounts and wider Students’ Union venue benefits. Every pound this venue generates goes back into supporting students. So if you are a hands on hospitality leader who wants to build something new, and build something that matters, we would love to hear from you.
Please read the full role profile before applying, as well as our guide to recruitment.
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: £40,000.00-£50,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Cycle to work scheme
- Employee discount
Work Location: In person
