| Description: | Location: Onsite; Midwest
Compensation: Flexible; DOE
Position Summary The Food Service Director will lead the strategic development, operational execution, and financial performance of the food service program across a growing network of convenience stores for a highly successful Midwest regional chain. This individual will be responsible for building and evolving a scalable, profitable, and differentiated food service offering that reflects the varied store footprints, customer demographics, and regional flavor preferences across their expanding marketing region. This role will oversee food service strategy at a high level while working closely with the Retail Operations District Managers who retain day-to-day personnel and store P&L responsibility. The Food Service Director will therefore be highly collaborative, field-oriented, and effective at influencing operational performance through training, coaching, standards development, and cross-functional partnership. The position reports to senior leadership and will play a critical role in food service brand development, menu strategy, category management, margin improvement, training, vendor partnerships, and operational consistency.
Key Responsibilities Food Service Strategy & Program Development
- Lead the development and execution of the company’s food service vision, strategy, and growth plan across all convenience stores.
- Design a scalable food service program that accounts for varying store sizes ranging from approximately 2,000 to 5,500 square feet, with flexibility in offer, equipment, layout, and menu complexity based on available space.
- Build a food service platform that balances customer appeal, operational simplicity, brand consistency, and financial performance.
- Develop and refine food service brand identity in partnership with senior leadership and marketing.
Menu Development & Innovation
- Create and evolve menu offerings that reflect the region’s diverse customer base, communities, and regional flavor preferences.
- Develop tiered foodservice programs appropriate for different store formats, traffic patterns, and space limitations.
- Lead the creation and rollout of Limited Time Offers (LTOs) to drive traffic, trial, excitement, and incremental sales.
- Evaluate menu performance and make data-driven decisions regarding item additions, deletions, pricing, and promotional emphasis.
Category Management & Financial Performance
- Manage the food service category with full accountability for sales growth, gross margin, retail pricing strategy, and product mix optimization.
- Establish pricing models that support competitiveness, value perception, and margin goals.
- Develop and maintain portion-control standards to ensure consistency, food cost management, and profitability.
- Build sales projections, inventory build-to guidance, and food cost expectations to support store-level execution.
- Monitor performance metrics and identify opportunities to improve sales, waste control, labor efficiency, and category profitability.
Operational Standards & Execution
- Develop food service standard operating procedures related to food quality, food safety, temperature control, portioning, inventory handling, production routines, and execution consistency.
- Partner with District Managers and Store Managers to ensure food service programs are implemented effectively at store level.
- Establish practical, repeatable operating systems that can be executed consistently across a multi-unit convenience store environment.
- Drive high standards of food quality, freshness, presentation, cleanliness, and in-stock performance.
Training & Field Support
- Train and coach District Managers, who will in turn oversee food service execution within their stores and markets.
- Provide training and development for District Managers and Store Managers on:
- temperature control
- food safety practices
- portion control
- food service SOPs
- sales forecasting
- inventory build-to levels
- waste management
- merchandising and execution standards
- Serve as the subject matter expert for food service operations and help translate strategy into practical field execution.
- Maintain a strong field presence to observe operations firsthand, identify opportunities, reinforce standards, and support continuous improvement.
Vendor, Supplier & Equipment Management
- Lead vendor and supplier selection, negotiation, and ongoing relationship management for food, packaging, ingredients, and related food service needs.
- Negotiate pricing, service levels, product quality expectations, and supply arrangements to support both profitability and operational excellence.
- Evaluate and select food service equipment aligned with menu strategy, production needs, labor realities, and store size constraints.
- Determine equipment layout recommendations based on store footprint, production flow, and offer complexity.
- Work with internal stakeholders and external partners on equipment deployment, implementation, and continuous improvement.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner closely with marketing to support food service brand positioning, promotions, signage, merchandising, and customer messaging.
- Collaborate with operations leadership to ensure food service initiatives align with store execution realities and company objectives.
- Work with senior leadership on strategic planning, performance review, and long-term food service development priorities.
Qualifications
- 5+ years of experience in food service development and management within a convenience store environment, or experience directly relatable to food service within the convenience store industry.
- Demonstrated success developing, launching, and managing food service programs across multiple retail locations.
- ServSafe certification required.
- Strong background in menu development, category management, pricing, margin management, and operational execution.
- Proven experience training and developing multi-unit leaders and store-level operators.
- Strong understanding of food safety, temperature control, portion management, inventory controls, and standard operating procedures.
- Experience negotiating with vendors and suppliers and managing ongoing supplier relationships.
- Experience selecting food service equipment and designing layouts or recommendations based on operational and space requirements.
- Strong financial acumen with the ability to balance culinary creativity, customer appeal, and profitability.
- Field-oriented leadership style with the ability to influence results across a distributed store network.
- Strong communication, collaboration, and organizational skills.
- Ability to work effectively with senior leadership, operations, and marketing teams.
Preferred Attributes
- Creative and strategic thinker who can also drive disciplined execution.
- Comfortable building structure while remaining flexible to store-specific realities.
- Skilled at influencing through partnership rather than direct line authority.
- Analytical and data-driven, yet customer-focused and brand-minded.
- Hands-on leader who enjoys being in the field and working closely with operations teams.
Reporting Relationship This position reports to the company’s senior leadership team.
|
|---|
