General Manager

Role Summary:

The General Manager will be responsible for launching and leading the first German restaurant for a well-established UK hospitality brand. This position combines hands-on operational leadership with strategic organization, planning, and a drive to build a new market presence in Germany. The GM will lead all pre-opening activities, collaborate closely with the UK team, and critically build a capable German management team to ensure a successful launch and a thriving restaurant from day one.

Key Responsibilities:

Team Recruitment & Development

Recruit, train, and lead the full site management team in Germany, including chefs, servers, and a Head Chef.Foster a unique and distinctive culture that reflects the brand’s UK success while adapting to the German market.Support employee contract setup, onboarding procedures, and HR policies in line with German labor law; liaise with UK HR to ensure cultural alignment.

Operations & Service Delivery

Lead the team to deliver excellent service across multiple shifts, creating an exceptional workplace and destination for the local community.Ensure every customer leaves happy through consistent delivery of food, drink, and service that meet brand expectations each shift.Implement and monitor health, safety, and hygiene standards (HACCP and German law compliance).Oversee scheduling, inventory, cash handling, and operational controls to meet both brand and German regulations.Provide frequent feedback to the UK team concerning opportunities and challenges via KPIs, staff, and customer feedback.

Financial & Commercial

Take ownership for achieving revenue, profit, and cost targets.Support accurate budget planning—factoring in labor and variable costs.Provide monthly, weekly, and daily forecasts; adjust ordering and staffing as needed based on business trends.

Pre-Opening & Setup

Act as the key contact for all pre-opening activities—partnering with the UK HQ team from planning through opening.Work with UK commercial, finance, food, people, and property teams to translate operational requirements to the German market or develop new solutions when required.Manage licensing, compliance, supplier setup, payroll registration, and other regulatory requirements as needed, with the support of HQ and local partners.Own a structured timeline for pre-opening tasks, ensuring launch readiness—from recruitment advertising to logistics coordination.

Skills & Experience

Proven success as a General Manager or senior operator in hospitality (restaurant, bar, or café); thrives hands-on in busy service environments.Experience in hospitality business set-up: pre-opening, new site launches, or entrepreneurial restaurant ownership in Germany.Strong organizational and planning ability; capable of structuring tasks and driving projects to completion with excellent communication.Comfortable balancing autonomy with collaboration—working closely with UK-based colleagues.Fluent in German and English, both written and spoken.