Overview
Central Market is a specialty grocery that started in Austin, Texas in 1994, and has grown to multiple locations across the state. We offer a luxurious assortment of cheeses, wines, produce, and culinary products, aiming to unite families and communities through food. Each store is a marketplace where goods, services, and ideas are exchanged by those passionate about food.
Responsibilities
Director, Store Leadership is a high‑level role focused on leading exceptional teams, driving innovation, and maintaining unparalleled quality in flagship grocery retail. The position covers oversight of fresh and perishable operations, culinary and food service leadership, and specialty merchandising. Key areas include:
- Leading high‑volume fresh departments with an uncompromising commitment to quality.
- Driving innovation across Produce, Meat, Seafood, Bakery, Deli, Cheese, Floral, and Prepared Foods.
- Building food‑forward merchandising and seasonal strategies.
- Developing strong operational disciplines around shrink, labor, food safety, and execution.
- Elevating restaurant‑quality food experiences inside retail and managing culinary teams focused on innovation, hospitality, and scratch‑made quality.
- Overseeing prepared foods, catering, coffee, beverage, and experiential dining programs to create differentiated experiences that inspire loyalty.
- Curating compelling assortments across grocery, beverage, wellness, and specialty categories, identifying trends and evolving customer preferences.
- Balancing operational excellence with creativity and innovation to drive sales growth through storytelling, merchandising, and product discovery.
- Building and developing high‑performing teams and future leaders, creating environments where people feel inspired, challenged, and connected to the mission.
- Leading with authenticity, accountability, and a customer‑first mindset across operations, merchandising, culinary, and support functions.
Qualifications
- 7+ years of progressive leadership experience within specialty grocery, premium retail, hospitality, culinary, restaurant, or fresh food environments.
- Experience leading large teams and complex business operations.
- Strong financial, operational, and merchandising acumen.
- Passion for food, hospitality, and customer experience.
- Ability to influence across multiple functions and leadership levels.
- High emotional intelligence and strong people leadership capability.
- Proven ability to execute while continuously improving the customer experience.
Success Criteria
Teams are engaged, inspired, and performing at a high level. Customers experience something differentiated every time they walk into the market. Standards remain exceptionally high across quality, execution, and hospitality. Innovation and operational discipline coexist successfully. The business grows while preserving the unique culture and food‑first identity that defines Central Market.
Values
This is not a traditional grocery leadership environment. We expect leaders to think beyond transactions and operations, to be deeply curious about food, passionate about people, and energized by creating experiences customers cannot find elsewhere. If you see food as culture, retail as theater, and leadership as service, we would love to connect with you.
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