Retail

JOB PURPOSE
To maximise our visitors’ enjoyment of National Trust for Scotland managed sites by maintaining excellent standards of service, optimising opportunities to generate income and ensuring that the site and its assets are safe and secure. Specifically, to ensure the smooth and safe operations in retail and admission and making Threave Gardens & Nature Reserve the best possible place to visit and work.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES
To provide a consistently high standard of visitor care at all times
• Welcoming visitors to the site and processing their admission/retail purchase in a friendly, efficient and knowledgeable manner
• Providing information about the site, its history, contents, offers and merchandise
• Promoting National Trust for Scotland brand to include our Membership scheme, events, upselling other properties and any promotional campaigns, being proactive in the selling of Membership and Gift Aid.

To maintain excellent standards of site and personal presentation at all times
• Ensuring site is ready to open and welcome visitors by the set opening time
• Wearing correct uniform, name badges, or PPE as required.
• Reporting all instances of damage and wear and tear issues promptly to your line manager
• Working in harmony with other departments; food & beverage, housekeeping, gardening, estate and site repair employees/contractors.

Financial Responsibilities
• To adhere to all financial procedures to include till operation and banking and safeguarding of monies: to implement amendments to standard procedure as instructions may dictate.

Retail/Admission/Plant Sales and other duties
• To ensure good housekeeping of and back of house areas, including Plant Sales
• To ensure that retail merchandising is in accordance with NTS policy.
• To assist in achieving site targets and KPI’s.
• To actively upsell products and services to facilitate the visitor’s enjoyment.
• To actively feedback visitor comments to line managers to develop and improve offer, service, operations.
• To work flexibly across departments and sites as needed.

Health and Safety
• To ensure site meets with Health and Safety legislation in liaison with your department manager.
• To ensure that visitors vacate the site at close of business and that the site is secured at end of day.
• To use personal protection equipment as provided and directed by your line manager

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, EXPERIENCE & KNOWLEDGE
Qualifications
• No formal educational qualification required.

Skills, Experience & Knowledge
Essential
• Demonstrable experience in a customer-facing role, delivering high levels of customer care through excellent inter-personal skills,
• Experience and confidence undertaking till-work and cash handling/reconciliation.
• Excellent selling skills – adaptable to customer type and product.
• Flexible, helpful outlook to customers and colleagues.
• An understanding and commitment to the aims and objectives of the National Trust for Scotland.
• Living the values of the National Trust for Scotland and encourage colleagues to do the same
o The ability and willingness to understand others’ perspectives and to consider the impact of your actions on them and to adapt your actions as necessary.
o The ability and willingness to learn and try new things, to be flexible and step outside of your comfort zone.
o An open and honest way of communicating, ready to ask others for their ideas and to be open to hear and consider different points of view.
o A pro-active approach to taking initiative and to driving forward ideas and projects designed to improve daily operations and deliver an exceptional visitor experience.

Desirable
• Experience using an EPOS system

JOB PURPOSE
To maximise our visitors’ enjoyment of Newhailes House and Gardens by maintaining excellent standards of service, optimising opportunities to generate income and ensuring that the site and its assets are safe and secure. To ensure the smooth and safe running of operations primarily focusing on admissions, retail and Food and Beverage operations. To provide the highest degree of customer service: greet and welcome all visitors to the property; recruit new Trust members and promote fund-raising initiatives; deliver appropriate admissions procedures; and provide general visitor information.

Please note that the job involves some physical activity in the form of periods of standing, walking, etc. Some flexibility will be required as to when hours are worked and weekend working will be expected.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES
This role will assist the admissions, retail and catering teams in delivering a high-quality visitor experience at Newhailes House and Gardens (including but not limited to):

 Providing excellent customer service.
 Be responsible and proactive. Ensuring all day-to-day tasks are completed including responding to customer enquiries, answering the telephone, cleaning, recording statistics etc.
 Handling cash accurately and processing sales across all platforms.
 To ensure perpetually high levels of accuracy are maintained for all transactions and data recording.
 To actively drive-up selling opportunities through strong product knowledge and an excellent customer service to maximize sales of admission tickets, membership and donations.
 Working with the Guides and supporting with tours.
 Cash reconciliation duties including end of day and administration tasks.
 Be able to take responsibility for your own development and learning.
 Taking booking enquiries and process appropriately.
 To develop a working knowledge of the history of the site and being able to relate that to visitors in a friendly and engaging way.
 Adhering to the property’s quality standards including wearing of uniform.
 Ensuring health and welfare of property staff, volunteers and visitors by adhering to the Trust’s Health, Safety and Environment policies and guidelines. This includes working within the property’s “Safe System of Work” (the system for managing Health & Safety).

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, EXPERIENCE & KNOWLEDGE
No formal educational qualifications required – full training will be given.

Essential
 Excellent literacy and numeracy ability – preferably with previous cash-handling / form-filling work experience.
 Sound, demonstrable experience dealing with a wide range of people – preferably in a public situation.
 Excellent empathetic skills and be a very able communicator (especially through the spoken word).
 A genuine understanding of, and belief in, the work of the National Trust for Scotland.
 Enthusiasm for Scottish heritage.
 Demonstrable working experience dealing with a wide range of people – preferably in a public situation.
 Excellent communication skills (especially through the spoken word).
 Able to demonstrate a flexible approach to work.
 Demonstrable experience of working equally well on own initiative and within a team environment.

Desirable
 Previous cash handling experience.
 Foreign language skills.
 Historical knowledge of the site.

DIMENSIONS AND SCOPE OF JOB

People Management
 The Property team consists of a Visitor Services Manager and Visitor Services Supervisors. There are no line management responsibilities for this role, but this role works closely with volunteers and members of the wider site team.
 This role involves working with members of the public of all ages and abilities on a daily basis.

Finance Management
 This role will involve cash reconciliation duties as appointed by the Visitor Services Manager.

The Purpose, Context, Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities reflect the requirements of the job at the time of issue. The Trust reserves the right to amend these with appropriate consultation and/or request the post-holder to undertake any activities that it believes to be reasonable within the broad scope of the job or their general abilities.

Are you looking for a job that is both fun and unique? You’ll get an insight into Scotland’s rich history and gain valuable experience in the tourism industry and help bring Scotland’s dramatic history to life for our visitors from across the world. Explore the fascinating stories from Scotland’s past and share your passion with international and local visitors who come to Edinburgh Castle during the season.

You will be responsible for delivering the highest standard of visitor experience across all areas of Edinburgh Castle, working in one of the three retail gift shops. By engaging with visitors, you will proactively sell a wide range of retail products focusing on a strong message of ‘Made in Scotland’.