Operations Manager

Oct 11, 2026 · @Ronak Patel

Aanya Vaishali Corporation | Hardeeville, SC | Full Time, In Person

Patels Liquor is a family-owned group of retail liquor stores based in Hardeeville, South Carolina, with locations in Bluffton and Hilton Head Island and a warehouse that delivers to business customers from Beaufort to Charleston. We are part of Aanya Vaishali Corporation, a founder-led company that opened its first business in downtown Hardeeville in 2006 and has grown steadily for 20 years across retail, real estate, and spirits. We work hard, move fast, and take care of our people. Several of our team members have been with us for more than a decade.

You run Patels Liquor day to day so the owner doesn't have to. That means the stores, the warehouse and delivery routes, the business accounts, and the people. You are the person every store manager, driver, and cashier can go to, and the person our restaurant, bar, and event customers know by name.

This is a leadership role, but it is not a desk job and it is not a title. You set the tone by doing the work. If a cooler needs stocking, you stock it. If a delivery is short a driver, you drive it. If a customer has a problem at 7:00 p.m. on a Saturday, you handle it. The people who work for you will do what they see you do.

Your measure of success is simple: the stores run better, the team is stronger, our customers are happier, and the owner is spending less time on Patels Liquor and more time on growth. As we open new locations across South Carolina, this seat grows with it.

The Stores and Warehouse

• Daily operations across all Patels Liquor locations and the Hardeeville warehouse: staffing, scheduling, inventory, ordering, pricing, and store appearance
• Delivery routes and drivers, so business customers get what they ordered when they expect it
• Shrink, margin, and labor. You know the numbers for every store and what you are doing about them
• Compliance: age verification, SC alcohol regulations, licensing, and inspections

Customers and Business Accounts

• Be the face of Patels Liquor to our restaurant, bar, hotel, and event customers. Know them, visit them, solve their problems, and grow the account
• Handle escalated customer issues at any store the same day
• Build relationships with distributor reps and use them to get better pricing, allocations, and support
• Run in-store tastings, promotions, and events that bring people in

People

• Hire, train, and develop store managers and staff. Catch people doing things right and tell them. Correct problems early and directly
• Be in the stores. Know every employee's name and what they are good at
• Make the hard, boring, or dirty jobs easier by doing them alongside the team when it counts
• Build the next layer of leaders so every store can run without you in it

Systems and Technology

• Live in the POS, inventory, and reporting systems. Pull your own numbers and know what they mean
• Keep pricing, product files, and inventory counts accurate across all locations
• Use spreadsheets, email, shared drives, and whatever tools the company adopts without needing to be walked through them
• Spot where a spreadsheet, a checklist, or a new tool would save the team time, and put it in place

Taking Work Off the Owner

• Be the first call for anything Patels Liquor, so the owner is the last call, not the first
• Bring the owner decisions with a recommendation, not problems with no plan
• Document how things get done so they run the same way at every store
• Notice what keeps landing on the owner's or a manager's desk, and fix the root cause

• Monday morning at the warehouse: check the week's delivery routes, confirm drivers, and walk the inventory
• Visit every store at least once. Walk the floor, check the coolers and shelves, talk to the staff, look at the numbers with the manager
• Call or stop in on three business accounts. Ask what they need, fix anything that's wrong, and find the next product to put in front of them
• Sit down with a distributor rep on pricing or an allocation
• Cover a shift or run a route when someone is out, instead of calling the owner
• Review sales, shrink, and labor by store and decide what changes this week
• Send the owner a short Friday update: what went well, what didn't, what you decided, and the one thing you need from him

• You have 3+ years managing a retail store, restaurant, or multi-location operation, ideally with responsibility for people, inventory, and a P&L
• You lead with humility. No task is beneath you, and your team knows it because they have seen you do it
• You are comfortable with technology. POS systems, inventory software, spreadsheets, and email are tools you use every day, and you pick up new ones fast
• You are good with people in both directions: customers and business owners trust you, and employees want to work for you
• You follow through. If you say it will be done, it is done, and you confirm it
• You stay calm under pressure and make decisions without waiting to be told
• You are honest and discreet with money, inventory, and confidential information
• You are not a clock watcher. You work until the job is done, and you expect the same from the people you lead
• You want to grow. This role will expand as we open new locations across South Carolina, and you see yourself growing with it
• You are 21 or older, have a valid driver's license and reliable transportation, and can lift 50 pounds
• Experience in liquor, beer, or wine retail is a plus. Spanish is a plus

• A founder who is direct, respectful, and open to listening
• Real ownership. We hire grown-ups and do not micromanage. You will have the authority to run the business
• A stable company with 20 years behind it and new locations ahead
• A clear path to a larger role as Patels Liquor grows across the state
• Compensation: $25 to $28.85 per year, based on experience, plus a performance bonus tied to store results
• Benefits: 1 to 2 weeks paid vacation; medical, dental, vision, short-term disability, and 401(k) available after 30 days

This is a full-time, in-person position based in Hardeeville, SC, with regular travel to our stores in Bluffton and Hilton Head Island and to business customers across the Lowcountry. Candidates must live within a 45-minute drive of Hardeeville. The schedule follows the business: expect some evenings, weekends, and holidays, especially in season.

Please follow these directions exactly. Applications that do not will not be considered.

1. Email your resume and two professional references to View email address on click.appcast.io
2. Use this subject line:  Operations Manager_[Your Full Name]
3. In the body of your email, answer these three questions in a few sentences each:

• Tell us about a time you did a job that was "below" your title, and what it did for your team.
• Describe a business customer or account you grew. What was it worth before, what was it worth after, and what did you do?
• It's 6:00 p.m. on a Friday. A driver called out, a Hilton Head store is short-staffed, and a restaurant account is waiting on a delivery for a Saturday event. The owner is unreachable. What do you do?

Qualified candidates will be invited to a first interview, followed by a working visit to one of our stores. Questions about the role may be directed to View phone number on click.appcast.io.

• Aanya Vaishali Corporation is an equal opportunity employer.