Mark Edwards - The Retail Guy

Experience – 

•    35 year’s experience within the retail sector –
•    7 years’ experience as a business owner proven record of delivering growth and profit 
•    15 year’s experience as a multi-site regional manager
•    Experienced line manager, manging teams of up to 70 direct reports and wider teams of over 300
•    Experienced at delivering change programmes
•    International experience across Australia and New Zealand

Assisted over 300 partnerships across Wales and England in developing business and financial plans to deliver exceptional service levels and profits.

I am a successful Business Manager/Consultant with 30 years’ experience of all aspects of managing a business and delivering sales budgets. I am highly organised and people-focused with experience in HR and general people management including the line management of colleagues. I am a strong communicator with excellent interpersonal skills who is confident in collaborating with various stakeholders within the business to achieve common goals. I can deliver high levels of customer service with outside agencies and professional bodies to ensure compliance across business operations. I am confident in my ability to provide strategic leadership and development of the business and resources functions of the school and its estate.

At the end of March 2022, I sold my business interests to concentrate on project managing the building of our new home. Since then, I have been running my own consultancy business on a part time basis, providing services to retail stores across all areas of business management. A large part of my work is developing relationships with both new and existing clients and providing project management oversight. Prior to this, I was a Retail Director/Store Owner at Specsavers where I introduced new working methods across functions within the business to improve customer journey and reduce costs. 

I am able to provide expertise surrounding leadership and management of the office, premises and staff to enhance their effectiveness in order to achieve improved standards of learning within the school. I am familiar with leading a team and being able to drive positive change within a business and am comfortable utilising the relevant resources in support of the school’s learning objectives. 

I am proficient in data modelling to communicate complex ideas in easy-to-understand verbal, written or graph forms. I am extremely computer literate with experience using a multitude of Microsoft applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams and Outlook, in addition to bespoke, in-house applications.

Skills/Strengths · 
Communication skills, strategic thinking, strong analysis skills, people skills, strong influencer, interpersonal skills, leadership, change management, customer focussed, able to turn a complex plan into a keep it simple plan.

Qualifications/ Accreditations · 
Mentoring course 2019. 
BTEC Distinction in Retail management and Leadership 1992 – Managing change, Marketing, Finance and costs, Recruitment and Selection, Employment Law.
Various Employment Law courses to advanced level.