Retail Director

As Audley Travel celebrates 30 years of creating extraordinary journeys, we’re opening a brand-new chapter as we expand into UK Retail stores. We’d love you to be part of this exciting journey, helping shape this milestone retail experience from the very beginning.

Your Journey Starts with Us
For over 30 years, we’ve been crafting tailor-made travel experiences that reflect each client’s unique perspective of the world, helping them create truly unforgettable memories. Behind every exceptional trip is a team of passionate experts, and this is your opportunity to be part of it.

When you join Audley Travel, you become part of a supportive, collaborative community that’s invested in your success. We empower our people to thrive through meaningful development opportunities, a culture that celebrates individuality, and an environment where your ideas are heard, valued, and make a real impact.

See more about life at Audley Travel!

The Opportunity
As a Retail Director, you’ll own and deliver the retail strategy for Audley Travel in the UK, positioning the retail channel as a core driver of growth within the business. You’ll be fully accountable for the performance and expansion of the retail business unit, ensuring it delivers exceptional client experiences alongside strong commercial outcomes.

You’ll lead a multi-site retail operation, translating Audley’s client-centric proposition into a premium, service-led store experience that differentiates us in the market. You’ll build the capability, structure, and culture required to scale the retail network, ensuring it is set up for sustainable growth.

Working closely with central teams, you’ll ensure retail is fully integrated into Audley’s broader commercial strategy, contributing to acquisition, conversion, repeat business, and long-term client loyalty.

Key responsibilities include:

• Retail Leadership & Commercial Performance
• Own the retail P&L with accountability for revenue, margin, cost control and return on investment
• Accountable for overall performance of the UK retail business unit
• Define and deliver the UK retail strategy aligned to business growth plan
• Lead trading performance across all stores improving conversion and profitability
• Ensure a consistently exceptional premium client experience
• Build and embed high-performance culture across all stores
• Partner with Finance on budgets and performance
• Work with Marketing to drive demand and local engagement
• Collaborate with People on recruitment, training and performance management to build capability
• Define and deliver expansion strategy including new openings
• Ensure strong operational standards and governance
• Act as senior retail leader within UK Leadership Team

Team Management

• Lead Store Managers and central support teams
• Responsible for the productivity and efficiency of the team through consistent management of performance, regular feedback and coaching
• Conduct 1-2-1s and performance reviews with individual team members to provide support and identify development/training needs
• Set and review objectives for team and create development plans
• Create a culture of engagement, collaboration and open communication within team

You’ll be expected to travel regularly across the UK as part of this role and a car allowance will be available.

What You’ll Bring to the Team
You’ll bring experience leading multi-site retail operations, with full P&L ownership, strong commercial acumen, and the ability to scale and grow operations.

Additional experience required:

• Strong leadership and stakeholder management
• Strategic and analytical mindset
• Good understanding of Office 365 including MS Word, Excel, SharePoint and Outlook
• Embodies the Audley values of being positive, being the difference, being one team and being passionate about travel

Why Audley Travel
Alongside competitive salaries and benefits that support your well-being, you’ll find a role that inspires you, challenges you, and connects you to something bigger. If you’re passionate about travel and seeking a career that excites, rewards, and grows with you, Audley Travel is where your journey begins.

There’s more:

• Holiday – 25 days rising to 30 days with length of service
• A day off for your birthday
• A day off for volunteering to support a charity, local support group or community work of your choice
• Private Medical Insurance
• Access to Healthshield health cash plan – money back for costs associated with everyday healthcare (including optical, dental, medical, prescriptions, physio), and access to medical and wellbeing resources such as a GP service, employee assistance programme and counselling
• Car Allowance
• Enhanced family leave & pension scheme
• Life insurance
• Discounted Audley trips (for you and your friends & family) and exclusive access to staff travel discount websites
• Wellhub – a wellbeing platform that gives you unlimited, discounted access to top gyms, studios, and wellbeing apps
• Benefits Platform – a reward scheme that gives you discounts and cashback with hundreds of retailers

We welcome you to speak to our recruitment team at any point during your hiring process, if you have any specific questions before this please contact us on [email protected].

We believe it’s our people that make the difference and who build Audley into the success it is today. We pride ourselves on enabling people to reach their full potential through promoting and celebrating a diverse and inclusive working environment and encourage you to let us know if there’s anything we can do to make your application process easier for you for any reason to help you shine!

Ready to turn your travel passion into a career? Apply now to start your journey at Audley Travel!