Responsible for driving the business of the Romanes & Paterson brand, part of the Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group, a premier visitor store, which includes a Whisky shop, made to measure Highland Dress floor & Restaurant as well as clothing, food, souvenirs/gifts, cashmere/textiles.Key responsibilities:Management of three floor store with a turnover of over £4.5m. Full P&L responsibility.Maximising sales by reviewing team and store regularly looking for opportunities to give better… Show more Responsible for driving the business of the Romanes & Paterson brand, part of the Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group, a premier visitor store, which includes a Whisky shop, made to measure Highland Dress floor & Restaurant as well as clothing, food, souvenirs/gifts, cashmere/textiles.Key responsibilities:Management of three floor store with a turnover of over £4.5m. Full P&L responsibility.Maximising sales by reviewing team and store regularly looking for opportunities to give better customer service.Training and coaching of management team across retail and catering. Leading a team of 50 staff through my management team, including recruitment, development and motivation. Talent feeder store for the area.Training store to develop & progress management team across the wider business (including Area Management tourist inductions).Promoting the store externally within the tourist industry through marketing strategy.Use of digital marketing for the brand & products, working with Marketing Edinburgh etc.Direct Order of around 60% of the products for the store including unique products.Looking for new products and direct feedback to buyers/merchandisers.Creating unique In-store & Window Visual Concepts.Stock-loss (consistently below 0.5% which is better than company, Area & wider city results).Achievements within role:Recruitment of high caliber team using various routes. Design & delivery of induction & ongoing training programme for team. Raising skill level of management team through regular training & review.Adapted EWM customer service training (CARE) for the tourist division of the group, trained managers & it was used across the division.Growing the business through initiatives such as: Christmas Market Hut, Ticket Centre, Worldwide Shipping/Tax Free Exports & other routes to market.Networking resulted in major article in National Geographic Traveller China Edition (7m circulation).Visit Scotland Thistle Award Best Shopping Experience 2012. Show less

Various temporary positions while searching for the right position: Duty Manager – Quality Hotel Glasgow, Sales – Balers Scotland Ltd (recycling/waste management) - References available for these

Responsible for driving the business of the Birthdays brand across 19 stores with a combined turnover of £9m.Key responsibilities:Driving sales across the area - regular store visits, clear communication & monthly strategyCoach and train managers to ensure all are operating to the best of their abilities. Facilitate area meetings and training days regularly.Identify opportunities to drive the business forward and increase sales.Give regular feedback on different aspects of… Show more Responsible for driving the business of the Birthdays brand across 19 stores with a combined turnover of £9m.Key responsibilities:Driving sales across the area - regular store visits, clear communication & monthly strategyCoach and train managers to ensure all are operating to the best of their abilities. Facilitate area meetings and training days regularly.Identify opportunities to drive the business forward and increase sales.Give regular feedback on different aspects of the business to HO and others.Area in top third of the businessAchievements within role:Designed and delivered Customer Service training session for the businessCreated clear succession planning to encourage internal promotion to fill vacancies.Took over the area at a challenging time of the year and adapted quickly to the new position.Supported another area, covering for ASM sicknessSupported store & team after a customer tragically passed away in store Show less

Responsible for the management of all aspects of Flagship Evans store in Newcastle (previously Glasgow & Edinburgh. Drive several KPIs across the area. Responsible for a cluster of stores in the area.Key responsibilities:Driving sales of £3.5m per annum in store and £22m across area. Controlling costs to ensure maximum profitabilityManaging a team of over 30 staff, and other managers across areaMaintaining consistently high visual merchandising standardsMember of the… Show more Responsible for the management of all aspects of Flagship Evans store in Newcastle (previously Glasgow & Edinburgh. Drive several KPIs across the area. Responsible for a cluster of stores in the area.Key responsibilities:Driving sales of £3.5m per annum in store and £22m across area. Controlling costs to ensure maximum profitabilityManaging a team of over 30 staff, and other managers across areaMaintaining consistently high visual merchandising standardsMember of the ‘Aspire’ Area Managers fast-track development programmeRegular trade feedback to Regional & Brand.Achievements within role:100% mystery shop resultStockloss result under planStore No 10 on sales in brandAchieved bonus regularlyDeputise for Area ManagerCover Area Manager holidays including store visitsSupport over seasonHosting Area meetingsWorking on national projects Show less

Responsible for the management of all aspects of stock for one of the premier independent designer retailers in the UK. Cruise is a top end retailer selling menswear, ladieswear, footwear, accessories and jewellery.Key responsibilities:Managing and driving buying budgets. Increasing proportion of re-order spends.Selection and buying of product areas. Negotiation with suppliers on areas relating to distribution, exclusivity, spends and in store promotions. Ensuring correct… Show more Responsible for the management of all aspects of stock for one of the premier independent designer retailers in the UK. Cruise is a top end retailer selling menswear, ladieswear, footwear, accessories and jewellery.Key responsibilities:Managing and driving buying budgets. Increasing proportion of re-order spends.Selection and buying of product areas. Negotiation with suppliers on areas relating to distribution, exclusivity, spends and in store promotions. Ensuring correct distribution of product within different formats over the course of a season. Creating solutions to manage previous season’s stock while maintaining margin on that stockAchievements within role:Increasing sell through season on season above industry normReducing cost of buying team expenses by 40%Profiling all stores to deal with new and increased competition. Continually building stronger relationships with suppliersReducing overall stock holding by £700k in one year. Organising clearance events, sale stores etc. to manage previous season’s stock Show less

General Manager/Retail Operations Manager responsible to the Managing Director for all aspects of retail, warehousing and stock control.Key responsibilities:Driving sales across wide Area and look for new business opportunities. Monitoring and improving standards of stores and performance of staffImplementing cost controls to ensure continued profitability.Working as part of the senior management team to implement corporate strategyCustomer Relationship Management -… Show more General Manager/Retail Operations Manager responsible to the Managing Director for all aspects of retail, warehousing and stock control.Key responsibilities:Driving sales across wide Area and look for new business opportunities. Monitoring and improving standards of stores and performance of staffImplementing cost controls to ensure continued profitability.Working as part of the senior management team to implement corporate strategyCustomer Relationship Management - including designing and launching the Cruise Loyalty Card rewardsAchievements within role:Managed company expansion and relocation of retail base in Glasgow which resulted in doubling turnover over a three year period Documented procedures for the first time in the company including issuing contracts to staff and a staff manual. Recruiting key staff, including area manager, store managers and marketing managerRationalised warehousing & distribution network & stock management systems Show less

Responsible for the management of the footwear store including selection of product. Key responsibilities:Management of the footwear store with a turnover of £700k including selection of product. Analysing sales trends and re-ordering best sellers.Stock layout system implemented. Team recruitment, motivation & training. Achievements within role:Increased week on week turnover by 50% in the first two months. Reduced staff costs. Improved team involvement & buy… Show more Responsible for the management of the footwear store including selection of product. Key responsibilities:Management of the footwear store with a turnover of £700k including selection of product. Analysing sales trends and re-ordering best sellers.Stock layout system implemented. Team recruitment, motivation & training. Achievements within role:Increased week on week turnover by 50% in the first two months. Reduced staff costs. Improved team involvement & buy in.Set up systems & processes to improve productivity Show less

Including Store Manager, Area Sales Executive, Bars Manager, Trainee Quantity Surveyor