Café Manager

About this role:

The Gritstone is the café at the heart of Substation Brixton, our climbing and fitness centre. It is where climbers refuel between sessions, where friends and families hang out, where people work and linger, and where our community comes together.

Over the past eight months the café has grown strongly. We are now looking for a commercially driven Café Manager to lead that next phase.

As the Café Manager your mission is clear: grow café revenue by 50% over the next six months. You will do that by raising service and cleanliness standards, expanding and elevating the food and drink offer, transforming the café environment, and raising the hospitality standards.

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Key Responsibilities:

Drive the numbers

• Take full ownership of the café’s sales and profitability.
• Grow the revenue by 50% over the first six months.
• Managing gross profit margins, set and review pricing, and control food and beverage costs without cutting quality.
• Build and execute a clear growth plan covering footfall, average spend and trading hours.
• Track performance daily, weekly and monthly against targets, and report clearly to the management team on what is working and what needs to change.

Raise the offer

• Expand and elevate the food and drink range
• Identify and test new revenue streams - grab-and-go, retail, pre-orders, loyalty partnerships and seasonal ranges.
• Develop a coffee programme the café can be known for - from bean and supplier through to extraction standards and consistency in the cup.
• Build a food offer that is healthy, tasty and vegetarian, strong vegan and gluten-free options throughout and crowd-pleasers alongside.
• Refresh the menu seasonally and run specials.
• Source and negotiate with suppliers to secure quality, reliability and the right margins.
• Drive speed and consistency at the counter, especially during peak times.
• Handle feedback and complaints smoothly

Set the standard and lead the team

• Keep the café immaculate and organised, front of house and back of house
• Achieve and protect a 5-star Food Hygiene Rating, with full food safety, HACCP and allergen compliance.
• Own cleaning rotas, opening and closing standards, and equipment hygiene and maintenance and staff training
• Recruit, train, develop and inspire a café team that delivers on both standards and growth.
• Build and manage rotas and keep wage costs under control.
• Set clear expectations, give regular feedback, and manage performance fairly and directly.
• Manage stock control, ordering, deliveries, waste, EPOS and daily reconciliation.

Support corporate offerings and events

• Play a central role in delivering Substation’s new corporate package - providing food, drink and hospitality for corporate climbing days, team events and group bookings.
• Plan and cost catering packages, manage pre-orders, and deliver a polished, reliable experience for corporate clients.
• Plan the food, drink, staffing and opening hours around the events calendar, with the right offer for each type of event.

What we are looking for

• Proven experience managing a café, coffee shop or food and beverage operation.
• A track record of growing sales and improving profitability - you can point to numbers you have moved.
• A strong commercial head: comfortable with targets, margins, labour costs and KPIs.
• High personal standards for service, cleanliness and presentation, and the drive to hold a team to them.
• Level 2 Food Hygiene certificate as a minimum (Level 3 desirable), with sound knowledge of food safety, HACCP and allergens.
• Experience leading, training and scheduling a team.

Desirable

• Experience in a high-volume, leisure, fitness or destination venue.
• Experience delivering events, group bookings or corporate catering.
• Menu development and supplier negotiation experience.
• Barista training or a coffee qualification (e.g. SCA).
• An interest in climbing, fitness or the active lifestyle our customers live.

What we offer

• Salary: £35,000–£40,000 depending on experience, plus a performance bonus linked to the growth you deliver (OTE £40,000–£48,000).
• Free climbing membership at Substation.
• Staff discounts on food, drink and retail.
• A vibrant, friendly working environment at the heart of Brixton’s climbing community.
• Workplace pension, plus 28 days’ holiday

How to apply

Send your CV and a short note telling us how you would approach growing The Gritstone by 50% in six months to simon@substation.co.uk with the subject line “Café Manager — The Gritstone”.

Substation is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from everyone and are committed to building a diverse and inclusive team.

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