Floor Manager / Operations Lead

Floor Manager / Ops Lead

Company: Foster Sundry
Location: 215 Knickerbocker Avenue, Brooklyn, NY (Bushwick)
Employment: Full time, salaried, exempt
Compensation : $66K to $70K per year, commensurate with experience
Schedule: Manager on duty three shifts per week, including at least one weekend
day. Shifts are mostly mid-day, when the store is busiest.

Foster Sundry is a whole animal butcher, artisan cheese counter, specialty grocer, & cafe in Bushwick, Brooklyn. We’ve been open for over 10 years, and currently have a team of 25.

We’re the neighborhood destination for great food, where you can drink a beer while buying a pasture-raised steak and a hunk of clothbound cheddar; grab a coffee and ask questions about biodynamic farming; or stop in to sample some gouda and leave with a plan for dinner.

The Floor Manager / Ops Lead runs the store as manager on duty at least three shifts per week and takes primary responsibility for the operations side of the business: the space itself (merchandising, cleanliness, & safety), major equipment upkeep and maintenance (refrigeration, coffee-making, etc), managing repair and maintenance service providers, receiving orders, and inspection readiness. The role reports to the owner and works alongside the Purchasing & FOH Lead. This position directs staff and takes first-line corrective action, but does not hire, review, or discipline staff beyond issuing a written warning. In essence, this position’s job is to make the trains run on time.

• Serve as manager on duty at least three shifts per week, running service, staffing, and problem resolution on those shifts
• Manage breaks, attendance, and customer escalations for FOH while on duty
• Take first-line corrective action, including documentation and written warnings, and pass the record to the FOH Lead / ownership for anything further
• Approve shift swaps and arrange coverage for call-outs
• Set and maintain the front of house opening/closing standards and checklists
• Oversee the retail environment (facing, signage, displays, cleanliness, restrooms, exterior, and sidewalk)
• Build and maintain the facilities maintenance calendar covering refrigeration, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, lighting, cafe equipment, and hood and fire suppression records
• Manage service and repair vendors, including scope, scheduling, cost, renewals, and post-visit documentation
• Respond to refrigeration alarms and oversee cafe equipment upkeep, including espresso and grinder service, water filtration, and the ice machines
• Oversee product receiving according to FS policies and procedures: check deliveries against invoices, verify temperatures, and catch shorts and damage at the door so they are credited rather than absorbed
• Maintain retail walk-in and dry storage organization
• Purchase supplies, including paper and disposables, cleaning and chemical, cafe supplies, uniforms and linen, and small equipment and repair parts
• Keep the store ready for unannounced NYSAM inspection on any given day
• Maintain labor law postings, first aid supplies, and extinguisher inspection records
• Handle drawer counts, over and short reporting, and deposit prep on assigned shifts
• Report incidents and lead emergency response while on duty
• Provide backup coverage on purchasing and secondary duties for FOH Purchasing Lead during their absences and PTO
• Provide extra support around the major retail holidays (Thanksgiving, Xmas, and New Years), including register coverage, labor scheduling input, order staging, etc.
• Support the year-end physical inventory count

• Several years running a floor in food retail, grocery, or restaurants, including responsibility for equipment or facilities and for staff on a shift
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain a schedule or calendar that other people depend on
• Comfortable working in spreadsheets and a point of sale system
• Organized, reliable, and able to keep documentation and systems current
• Sound judgment and maturity, especially with regard to determining how and when to handle a problem, and when to escalate it
• Gifted at providing warm and seamless customer service, without bias or prejudice

• Available to work weekends; at least one weekend day per week is part of the job
• Able to work a retail floor: standing for long periods, lifting, working in walk-in coolers, and working in a cold room in winter
• NYC Food Protection Certificate, or similar credential; sufficient knowledge of NYSAM / NYDOH food safety requirements and regulations

This role does not include HACCP or food safety compliance for the meat department or kitchen at Foster Sundry. Nor does it include retail pricing, primary grocery purchasing; hiring, reviews, or discipline beyond a written warning for any staff; or payroll and banking.

Applicants should send a resume and a short note about a system they built or fixed that was still working a year later.

Foster Sundry is an equal opportunity employer.