I got contacted by a recruiter from Costa on Indeed and decided it was time to rejoin the company. I joined a busy drive thru store in Carlisle which was a new and exciting challenge for me and meant I had to learn new ways of working and deploying my team. Daily responsibilities include running shift, focusing on sales campaigns accordingly, complying with food safety regulations, drive thru speed times, serving brand standard drinks and food, coaching and developing my team. I also have other responsibilities in my area such as deputising for my area manager when he’s on holiday, and being a part of the operational excellence team for the area which involves conducting audits on stores in my area with the aim to coach and develop the teams. As of right now I am also dual managing my usual store with Kendal.

I decided to try something different, and through a connection id made with a customer I applied to be Assistant Manager at Bella Italia in Centre Parcs Whinfell Forest. This role was hugely beneficial for me, I learned a completely new field with restaurant management, I managed a team of 15+ every shift with 35+ on the books. I learned how to make table plans with the goal of maximising every available space in the restaurant to achieve as much footfall as possible, how to support a busy team of waiters and chefs so the shifts ran as smoothly as possible with no customer complaints, and new roles such as deputising as a Chef, Kitchen Porter or Barman when required.

I was offered the chance to be a store manager in our Keswick branch and decided this would be the natural next step in my career. Keswick is a tourist themed town so it’s very seasonal, which presented many challenges, the store was in disarray when I started with barely any staff, I made recruitment a priority and we soon made real progress. Covid-19 presented many challenges due to the closure of the store and the constantly changing restrictions. In January 2021 I was asked to temporarily dual manage the Keswick and the Penrith branches due to the store manager in Penriths furlough. This really helped develop my operational planning skills due to being split between two sites and made me really focus on time management.

I was promoted to assistant manager which was my first real management position. I learned and developed my leadership abilities, I learned how to do scheduling and forecasting, monthly P&L reviews and how to deputise being store manager in my managers absence, all while running shifts and training and coaching my team.

Was promoted to a Barista Maestro(supervisor) due to excelling in my previous role. The main responsibility for this role was to train and develop new members of the team, and open and close the store. I had to follow the brand standard procedures but also use my own initiative when faced with new situations. I had to learn all about stocktakes, KPIs and ordering

Started my working career as a Barista at Costa Coffee. Originally part time due to studies, became full time after exams. Responsibilities include making coffee to brand standard, delivering high levels of customer service and working as a team in a fast paced environment