Job Introduction
Location: Sainsburys Crawley
Contract: Full-time
Employer: Compass Group UK & Ireland
Job Description
Café Manager – Crawley
£34,000 per annum • 5 out of 7 days • 40 hours per week
A brand-new café. A blank canvas. An opportunity to build something special from day one.
Simple moments, made special.
Great coffee. Freshly baked pastries. Proper food done well.
Taste Café is about creating the small, everyday moments people genuinely look forward to — a quick coffee that turns into a catch-up, a bite to eat that hits the spot, and a space that feels easy, comfortable, and just right.
This is a new café opening within a busy retail environment — fast-paced, full of energy, and with huge potential. From day one, it’s a place designed to feel local, welcoming, and worth coming back to.
The Role
This is a start-up opportunity within an established business.
As Café Manager, you’ll play a key role in bringing a brand-new site to life — setting standards, building a team, and shaping how the café looks, feels, and operates from the very beginning.
If you’ve managed a café, retail unit, or fast-paced food operation before, this is your chance to truly make it your own.
You’ll lead from the front, set the tone, and turn a brand-new café into a space people love — from the first morning coffee rush to the final close-down of the day.
What You’ll Be Doing
•Leading the day-to-day running of a newly opened café, keeping everything smooth, organised and on point
•Recruiting, training and developing a strong team that delivers great service (and enjoys doing it)
•Setting and maintaining high standards across food, coffee and presentation
•Managing stock, performance and operational processes
•Creating a space that feels warm, relaxed and welcoming from day one
•Embedding consistency — because the little details matter
•Ensuring Health & Safety standards are always met and maintained
About You
If you’ve run a café, retail unit, or fast-paced food environment, you’re well-suited to this role — especially if you enjoy building teams and shaping operations.
You’ll also be:
•A hands-on leader who sets the pace and leads by example
•People-focused — great with both your team and your customers
•Organised, proactive and calm under pressure
•Passionate about good food, great coffee and doing things properly
•Comfortable taking ownership and continuously improving performance
About Us
As part of Compass you'll help to feed people, fuel progress and forge connections in around 6,000 venues. Join us to grow your career with the industry leader, and get competitive pay, great perks and unrivalled opportunities for learning and development, at one of the UK's biggest businesses.
Job Reference: com/2705/43833001/52810259/SU #One Retail
Compass Group UK&I is committed to fostering an environment where every individual can truly be themselves at work and has equal opportunities to advance in their careers. We strive to build a culture that respects and celebrates the unique talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and abilities of all our team members. We want our colleagues to feel valued, empowered to reach their full potential, and to thrive - because diversity is our strength!