Operations Manager

Job Title: Multi-Unit Operations Manager

Location: New York City, NY

Company: Brown Bag Sandwich Co.

Brown Bag Sandwich Co. is a chopped sandwich concept born out of the Michelin-starred kitchen world and NYC's deli culture. We are reimagining classic NY deli sandwiches with house made meats, scratch sauces, and the highest quality ingredients possible.

With two locations in Manhattan, Brown Bag is a young, fast-growing brand with plans to scale to 10+ locations in the next 3-5 years. We're a startup in every sense - scrappy, constantly evolving, and looking for dedicated individuals who are excited about building something with us.

Brown Bag is looking for a Multi-Unit Operations Manager to take lead of day-to-day operations across both of our locations and assist in the development and implementation of the staffing model for the third location. This is a multi-unit leadership role for someone with a strong foundation in scaling QSR or fast-casual concepts — someone who knows how to hold the line on standards while a company grows, owns the systems that make consistency possible across locations, and is comfortable navigating the employee relations side of the business. Just as important, we want someone who contributes directly to our growth — providing input and implementing new systems and strategies, not just maintaining the ones we already have.

This is not a “wait to be told” role — it's for someone who sees what needs to be done and can work seamlessly and productively between the founder and the Kitchen Managers. We are seeking a hands-on operator who can hold the kitchen managers accountable to the systems and standards we have developed here at Brown Bag. They will be expected to contribute to our evolving and growing staffing, training, inventory management, catering, and menu development needs, including working alongside purveyors. You'll work directly alongside our founder and play a meaningful role in shaping a growing NYC restaurant brand as it scales.

Key Responsibilities:

1) People Leadership & Employee Relations

• Directly manage and support location-level managers across all Brown Bag shops, ensuring consistent leadership and accountability at every site
• Assist with the implementation of companywide standards regarding hiring, onboarding, and training so every new hire - regardless of location - is set up the same way for success
• Serve as the primary point of contact for employee relations, working alongside HR to address conflicts, complaints, disciplinary matters, and scheduling issues or employee matters that need a level head and sound judgement
• Build and maintain a bench of strong location-level talent to support future growth and new store openings 
• Foster Brown Bag culture consistently across every shop 

2) Systems, Standards & Quality Control

• Enforce consistent operational standards (food quality, cleanliness, DOH compliance) across all locations
• Help develop and implement our hospitality standard across locations – how staff greet guests, resolve issues, handle rush hours, and represent the brand overall
• Work directly with founder as catering scales, to optimize operational execution, including kitchen capacity planning, prep systems, delivery ops, and quality control. 
• Build, document, and refine the systems and SOPs that let Brown Bag scale without losing quality or consistency
• Establish regular quality and compliance audits across locations with founder, catching and correcting drift before it becomes a pattern
• Own DOH inspection readiness systems and response across all locations, including corrective action plans when needed
• Partner with ownership on new location openings, ensuring each new shop launches with the same standards as existing locations from day one

3) Operations, Cost Control & Reporting

• Manage labor and food cost performance across all locations, in partnership with kitchen managers.
• Manage vendor relationships and purchasing standards company-wide. Hold purveyors accountable.
• Identify inefficiencies and operational risk across locations, and proactively build solutions in partnership with the founder to minimize disruption to daily operations 

4) Growth & Strategy

• Partner directly with founder on strategic initiatives tied to new location growth, from site readiness, target staffing model, growing the catering business and sharing other observations that will fuel Brown Bag’s growth 
• Identify where current systems won't hold up as we scale toward 10+ locations, and proactively build what's needed before it becomes a bottleneck 
• Bring an outside perspective on what “good” looks like at scale, informed by experience at other QSR/fast-casual businesses

Required Qualifications:

• 4-6+ years of restaurant experience, including multi-unit management or direct oversight of multiple locations
• Proven experience building and enforcing operational standards across more than one location
• Hands-on experience with employee relations, working with HR on: conflict resolution, disciplinary processes, and fostering a healthy team culture across locations
• Track record of concepting and implementing new systems or processes that support a company's growth, not just maintaining existing ones
• Strong understanding of NYC DOH compliance requirements and hands-on experience managing inspections and corrective actions
• Experience managing to company-wide food & labor targets cost targets
• Track record of hiring, training, and developing strong location-level staff
• Highly organized, systems-oriented, and comfortable building process from scratch
• Strong communication skills - able to align multiple teams and locations around the same standards
• Comfortable operating in a hands-on, entrepreneurial, fast-growing environment
• Experience supporting new restaurant openings is a strong plus
• Comfortable with basic administrative and reporting tools (scheduling, POS reporting, spreadsheets) Brown Bag currently uses Toast and Sling

What Sets You Apart

• You take initiative - you see opportunity and what's inconsistent across locations before someone has to point it out to you 
• Excellent judgement, especially when weighing in on decisions that affect every shop, not just one
• You're adaptable and comfortable with change. We're a young, growing company. Things evolve fast and you're energized by that, not frustrated
• Strong experience in systems, training, and documentation as the foundation for scaling well
• Ambition to be part of a startup, growing environment
• You care about hospitality and the guest experience
• A genuine love of food 

What We Offer:

• Opportunity to be a part of a unique and innovative food concept in NYC, at a pivotal moment of growth
• $110-$125k, contingent on experience
• Performance-based bonus tied to company and location performance
• A chance to help shape the future of Brown Bag Sandwich Co. as we expand to 10+ locations
• Significant growth potential as the company scales - this role is expected to grow in scope and title as we do
• Employee discount
• PTO
• Medical & Dental Insurance