Front of House Manager (Café & Shop)
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Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens Trust
Job Description: Front of House, Cafe & Shop Manager
Organisation: Castle Bromwich Hall and Gardens Trust
Location: Birmingham
Employment Type: Full-Time, Fixed Term (12 months), with permanent potential
Salary: Between £25,123 to £29,621 (dependent on experience)
Reports to: CEO/General Manager
The Opportunity: Leading a Vibrant Visitor Experience
Are you a hospitality leader who knows how to balance a warm welcome with a sharp eye for the bottom line? Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens is seeking a dynamic Front of House (FOH) Manager to spearhead our commercial operations. We are looking for someone who can drive profitability, mentor a diverse team and ensure every visitor leaves with a lasting memory of our historic site.
As a small charity, we are custodians of the past, but we are focused on a thriving future. You will oversee our cafe, shop and visitor services, ensuring operational excellence, high standards, and a “green-conscious” approach that respects our heritage.
Key Responsibilities
1. Profitability & Commercial Growth
Revenue Generation: Drive sales in the cafe and shop through proactive upselling, seasonal promotions, and attractive merchandising.
Cost Control: Manage margins, reduce waste, and monitor stock levels to ensure the commercial viability of all FOH departments.
Strategic Sourcing: Build strong relationships with local suppliers to balance high-quality, ethical produce with competitive pricing.
2. Team Leadership & Building
Staff Development: Recruit, train, and inspire a blend of paid staff and volunteers, fostering a culture of mutual respect and high performance.
Internal Communication: Act as the vital link between the FOH team and senior management, ensuring clear information flow regarding events, targets, and daily priorities.
Collaboration: Work closely with the wider Trust team to ensure the cafe and shop offerings complement the Gardens’ seasonal calendar.
3. The Visitor Experience & Atmosphere
Atmosphere Management: Ensure the cafe and shop are welcoming, clean, and vibrant spaces that reflect the beauty of our historic setting.
Customer Excellence: Lead by example in delivering a “Gold Standard” welcome, ensuring visitors feel valued from the moment they arrive at admissions.
Standards & Aesthetics: Maintain impeccable presentation standards across all visitor-facing areas, ensuring the physical environment is consistently high-quality.
4. Operational Excellence & Safety
Compliance: Maintain rigorous HCAAP records, allergen files, and COSHH documentation. Ensure all Risk Assessments for the cafe and shop are up to date.
Logistics: Manage staff and volunteer rotas efficiently to ensure smooth operations during peak seasonal periods.
Sustainability: Implement sensible, “green-first” initiatives such as composting and plastic reduction where they align with operational efficiency.
About You (Person Specification)
Commercial Acumen: A proven track record of running a profitable cafe or retail outlet, ideally within the charity, heritage, or leisure sector.
Exceptional Communicator: Ability to engage with everyone from first-time visitors to long-standing volunteers with warmth and clarity.
Team Builder: Experience in managing and motivating a diverse team, with a genuine understanding of the unique dynamics of working with volunteers.
Standard-Driven: An eye for detail—you notice the small things that make a big difference to the visitor experience.
Problem Solver: Ability to think on your feet in a fast-paced, seasonal environment, finding cost-effective solutions to daily challenges.
Flexibility: Willingness to work weekends and bank holidays as required by the seasonal nature of the Gardens.
Our Commitment
By joining Castle Bromwich Historic Gardens, you are joining a team dedicated to:
Excellence: Providing a high-quality sanctuary for our local community.
Heritage: Protecting and celebrating a unique piece of Birmingham’s history.
Sustainability: Working towards a greener future through sensible, impactful choices.
About our Cafe and Shop
Our cafe and shop are at the start of an exciting long term development. Currently we operate out of two connected wooden cabins in the atmospheric walled courtyard. The space offers a mixture of both challenges and benefits which require creative thinking and innovation to ensure success. We are currently at the start of a development project which will begin with the addition of a woodfire heated Yurt towards the end of 2026 and will see the development and building of a fully functioning indoor cafe and visitor centre over the next five years. This is an exciting time to begin involvement at our Trust as you will help take a leading role in seeing elements of these projects through.
Our current opening times are seasonal and vary. But an example of these would-
Spring and Summer
Term Time- Open Wednesday to Sunday- 10.30-16.30
Half Terms & Holidays – Monday to Sunday – 10.30-16.30
Autumn and Winter
Term Times – Open Wednesday to Sunday- 10.30-15.30
Half Terms (Up to the end of October) – Monday to Sunday 10.30-15.30
We are currently closed to the public over the month of January and run a reduced opening schedule over November and December. However we have intentions of increasing our opening once the Yurt side of our project is in place.
How to Apply
Please send your CV and a brief cover letter outlining your experience in small site hospitality management and sustainability to castlebromparklandteam@gmail.com .
Closing Date: 20th February 2026
NB We will be in direct contact with those who we wish to call to interview soon after the closing date.
Interviews likely W/C 23rd February