Specialty Store Manager – Miami Beach, FL

If you get excited by an international flavor, high end clients, and a bit of panache – look no further.  Balloon Expresso is seeking a professional  Store Manager for our flagship boutique in the heart of South Beach.  This is an opportunity to utilize your management and business skills with a ground floor opportunity.  Owned by a 21 year old Italian company with US management, this is your chance to join our family of 46 boutiques in Italy as the first in the US.  We are not talking your regular balloon store– we are talking the kind that hire us for Vogue Fashion shoots in Italy, we are talking about the world’s largest 3D balloon sculpture that used 59,000 balloons to earn us a place in the Guinness Book of World Records!  We are talking about customers who ask “where did you get that?”   Your future could hold becoming a corporate manager as we add more boutiques or a corporate role selling franchises.  Excited?  Good, read on.

Key accountabilities:

Management:

  • Create stability with great staff who can meet our company’s high standards
  • Hire, train, motivate,  promote and manage a minimum team of 6 to increase sales and ensure efficiency
  • Ensure staff is fully versed on daily targets

 Operations:

  • Ensure the boutique is stocked and merchandized to company’s standards
  • Respond to our customers needs, complaints and comments in a timely and professional manner
  • Organize displays and events
  • Maintain a presence on the floor and engage colleagues and customers
  • Initiate changes to improve the business such as revising hours to ensure we compete effectively in the local market

 Profitability:

  • Manage the boutique to meet the company’s sales goals while minimizing costs
  • Analyze sales figures  and forecast future sales to maximize profit
  • Develop and cost décor job proposals and products to ensure profitability

 Marketing:

  • Analyze and interpret trends to facilitate planning
  • Promote the boutique and its products and services by liaising with the Chambers of Commerce and other community groups
  • Maintain awareness of market trends in the retail industry and monitor what local competitors are doing

 Traits required for success:

  • A can do “failure is not an option” attitude
  • Connects with people quickly in an outgoing and friendly manner
  • Persuasive communicator with customers
  • Strong trainer and motivator
  • Extreme sense of urgency combined with getting the work done completely and accurately
  • Thorough follow up of delegated work
  • Careful decision making within the guidelines of established company policy
  • Hands on and not afraid to get down and dirty when required

 Skills/Experience/Knowledge:

  • Minimum 5 years management experience including ability to spot and hire good talent
  • Experience with P&L, budgets and pricing
  • Retail experience is preferred
  • 4 year degree highly preferred
  • Willing to work 50+hours a week including rotating weekends (initially)
  • Excellent presentation and demeanor with all client dealings
  • Computer literate – Basic MS Office and ability to learn our POS system and the use of Skype
  • Bilingual is a big plus