Retail Area Manager

The Guitar Center Company•Hanover, MD

7d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Area Manager is responsible for leading the performance of between 2 and 5 retail stores within a defined district. This new leadership position is fully focused on management — building teams of sales associates and teachers that achieve results. The Area Manager will drive sales, rentals, and lessons performance, develop store-level leaders and associates, and ensure operational standards are met across their cluster. Reporting to the District Manager, the Area Manager has multi-unit P&L responsibility for sales, margin, and EBITDA.

Requirements

High School Diploma or Equivalent
3+ years of retail store leadership or equivalent experience.
Proven success managing P&L and delivering strong sales performance.
Demonstrated ability to recruit, coach, and retain high-performing teams.
Strong operational execution and organizational skills.
Excellent communicator and collaborator across field and corporate teams.
Ability to travel regularly between assigned stores (50–70%).

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Own P&L results for their assigned store cluster of 2-5 locations.
Deliver sales, margin, and EBITDA targets across product sales, rentals, and lessons.
Analyze KPIs at store and associate level; develop action plans, set clear expectations for individual contributors, and hold teams accountable.
Ensure execution of promotions, seasonal campaigns, and upsell initiatives.
Directly manage part-time and full-time retail associates and teachers across multiple stores.
Recruit, hire, onboard and train strong talent.
Provide ongoing coaching, feedback, and performance management.
Foster an inclusive, engaged, performance-driven culture aligned with Music & Arts values.
Ensure rental season readiness across all assigned stores.
Drive compliance, task completion, and execution to operational and merchandising standards.
Ensure adoption of enterprise tools and systems to improve store efficiency and reporting.
Maintain physical store standards, facilities, and safety compliance.
Champion a customer- and educator-first culture across stores.
Ensure stores deliver seamless experiences for rentals, lessons, and product purchases.
Coach associates to improve customer experience and handle escalations from the team to resolve issues directly and quickly.
Partner with local Ed Reps to improve Educator relationships and improve rental experience.