Established in 1963, Dunsters Farm is a family-owned, third-generation foodservice wholesaler delivering chilled, ambient and non-food products to catering customers across the North, Wales and the Midlands. We operate from depots in Bury, Preston and Oswestry, running a multi-temperature HGV fleet of 100 vehicles across 80+ daily routes through our own temperature-controlled operation.
We’re proud of what we do and ambitious about where we’re going. Proud winners of the Family Business of the Year Awards 2024 and the Good Employment Charter’s Flexible Working Award 2022, we hold ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certification and are committed members of the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter and the Real Living Wage. Our vision is simple: Feed the North, for good.
This is a newly created senior role, reflecting our ambition to run Bury, Preston and Oswestry as one connected operation rather than three separate depots. Between them, our three sites deliver well over 1,000 orders every day. Each has its own product profile - fresh, frozen and ambient - and its own way of doing things. Your job is to bring them together: one standard, one culture, one team, while respecting what makes each site's operation work.
Location: Based at Bury (Head Office), with substantial and regular time split across Preston and Oswestry, deployed flexibly according to operational need
Contract: Full-time, permanent
Direct reports: Approximately 5 (Operations Managers and Shift Managers across Bury, Preston and Oswestry)
Job Role
As Senior Operations Manager, you will own warehouse operations performance across all three of our depots - Bury, Preston and Oswestry - deploying your time and attention to wherever it's needed most. You will lead a team of circa 5 direct reports, Operations Managers and Shift Managers, building one high-performing operation out of three historically separate sites. You will work closely with our Senior Transport Manager to ensure customers are given industry-leading service, and with our buying teams to ensure fresh, frozen and ambient standards are exceptional everywhere.
You will inherit three sites with real potential and the remit to bring them together. Your first priority is to understand what's working and what isn't at each depot, then to build one consistent standard: aligned processes, shared KPIs, and a genuine One Team culture that replaces any sense of three separate operations. You will report to the Operations Director and be expected to act as a true business partner at the top table, not just an operational executor.
This is a senior, high-visibility role for someone who is a genuine top operator: someone who has run multi-site operations before, who commands credibility from day one, and who is energised by building something rather than just running it. You will need gravitas without ego - the ability to earn the trust of three site teams, each with their own history and identity, and unite them behind a shared standard.
Key Responsibilities
Multi-Site Operational Leadership
- Own warehouse operations performance across Bury, Preston and Oswestry - goods-in, pick, dispatch, stock management and cold chain integrity at every site.
- Deploy your time and presence across all three depots according to where it's needed most, not on a fixed rota.
- Set and maintain one consistent operating standard across all three sites: shift structures, daily KPIs, standards walkthroughs and team briefings, adapted to each site's product profile.
- Deliver fulfilment performance consistently at or above the company target of 98.5% across every site.
- Ensure BRCGS, HACCP and FSA food safety standards are embedded in daily practice at every depot, not just audited compliance.
Bringing the Three Sites Together
- Build a single, shared operational culture and identity across Bury, Preston and Oswestry - break down site silos and embed genuine One Team thinking.
- Standardise processes, systems and ways of working across sites, while respecting the different operational demands of fresh, frozen and ambient product.
- Create consistent development and career paths for warehouse teams across all three sites.
- Act as the credible, visible leader who unites three site teams behind one shared standard and purpose.
Commercial & Financial Accountability
- Own the warehouse operations P&L across all three sites - cost per case picked, labour productivity, waste, stock accuracy and shrinkage.
- Bring commercial discipline and cross-site benchmarking to operational decision-making, identifying and closing performance gaps between depots.
- Partner with each Site Manager and Finance on budgets and forecasts for every depot.
People & Culture
- Lead, coach and performance-manage your direct reports - Operations Managers and Shift Managers - across all three sites, building succession depth in each.
- Recruit, onboard, develop and retain team members in line with Dunsters' values and the ACAS Code.
- Handle complex or escalated people issues fairly, promptly and in line with the Employee Handbook - escalate to the People team where appropriate.
- Foster a One Team mentality that spans Bury, Preston and Oswestry, not just within each site.
Stock Management
- Oversee stock rotation, replenishment accuracy and goods-in processes across all three sites to maintain stock integrity.
- Drive waste reduction and monitor shrinkage across every depot, reporting trends and taking corrective action.
Systems, Reporting & Compliance
- Drive consistent, optimal use of ERP/WMS systems for picking, invoicing and stock management across all three sites.
- Ensure all records - goods-in, picking, temperature logs, defect reports - are completed accurately and on time at every depot.
- Report on cross-site KPIs, benchmarking performance and sharing best practice between depots.
- Work closely with our Senior Transport Manager to maintain full compliance with Traffic Commissioner expectations, Working Time Directive and O-licence undertakings as they relate to depot operations.
- Ensure ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 standards are upheld across all three sites and decisions hold up to audit.
Customer Service & Problem Resolution
- Work with Customer Services and our Senior Transport Manager to resolve issues quickly and prevent recurrence, across all three sites.
- Take ownership of complex, cross-site customer or supply issues that require senior operational judgement.
Skills and Experience required
Essential Experience & Skills
- Proven track record as a Senior, Regional or Multi-Site Operations Manager in a fast-paced, temperature-controlled foodservice, food manufacturing or FMCG warehouse environment.
- Experience leading through other managers — managing a team of Operations Managers and/or Shift Managers, not just individual contributors.
- A track record of unifying or integrating operations across multiple sites, ideally following growth, acquisition or restructure.
- Strong commercial acumen: you understand cost per drop, margin, labour productivity and multi-site P&L.
- Deep working knowledge of food safety legislation, HACCP, BRCGS and cold chain management across fresh, frozen and ambient categories.
- A credible, confident senior leader - equally at home on the depot floor at any of the three sites and presenting to the board.
- High ownership mindset and comfortable with significant travel between sites.
Desirable
- Experience integrating operations following an acquisition or major restructure.
- IOSH or NEBOSH qualified.
- Experience operating in a business transitioning from single-site to multi-site scale.
What kind of person are we looking for?
We're a small but driven leadership team, and this role calls for a genuine top operator - someone who is hungry, humble, forward-thinking and accountable, who takes ownership, challenges the status quo constructively, and is energised by the scale of what we're building. You'll need to win the trust of three different site teams, each with their own history, and unite them behind one standard - gravitas without ego. Culture fit matters here as much as technical competence. With considerable development potential in this role, we want someone who has the skills and attitude to progress in line with business growth.
Our Core Values
Our values are the foundation of everything we do at Dunsters Farm:
- Get Results - we strive for excellence, driving efficiency and delivering outstanding outcomes.
- One Team - we work together, united by a common goal, supporting and empowering each other.
- Give Back - we make a positive impact on our community and our environment through responsible business.
- Legendary Customer Service - we go above and beyond to exceed our customers' expectations, every time.
- Own It - we take ownership of our actions, responsibilities and results, always striving to improve.
- World-Leading Standards - we set the highest standards in safety, quality and excellence at every step.
When will I work?
- Full-time, permanent, on a 5-day Monday to Friday pattern with weekend work sometimes required, contracted to 40 hrs per week. The role requires regular travel and flexibility to be present across all three sites as operational need dictates.
- Salary: competitive, reflecting the seniority of a multi-site leadership role. Company car, pension, 32 days annual leave incl. bank holidays, and performance related bonus.
Job Type: Permanent
Benefits:
- Company car
- Company pension
- Employee discount
- Free parking
- Health & wellbeing programme
- On-site parking
- Referral programme
- Sick pay
Work Location: In person
