Lead Barista - FT

Barnes & Noble•Ladue, MO

About The Position

A Barnes & Noble Lead Barista is an integral member of the café team who helps guide the team, maintain compelling product presentations, and oversee efficient café operations. The role combines hands-on barista work with leadership, coaching, and support. The Lead Barista fosters a welcoming environment where colleagues feel supported and can raise questions or concerns that are addressed promptly and effectively. The Lead Barista is expected to model dependable, positive, supportive, customer-focused behavior; help keep shifts on track; and serve as a resource for baristas and booksellers. The role requires mastery of café operational competencies, including drink making, food preparation, merchandising, register service, receiving and stocking deliveries, cleaning, inventory, ordering, and safety and sanitation. The position may also involve supporting other stores in the wider cluster when able and needed. The role offers opportunities to develop café expertise and advance along the career path.

Requirements

Enjoy being a barista and demonstrate the skills and knowledge needed to perform café operations.
Demonstrate reliable and punctual attendance for scheduled shifts.
Be flexible and responsive to store needs, including filling scheduling gaps when able; stores are open early mornings to late evenings every day, including weekends and most holidays.
Demonstrate a positive, proactive, dependable, and supportive approach to work.
Provide cheerful, helpful customer service.
Show willingness and aptitude to learn new skills and knowledge and apply them appropriately while guiding and supporting others.
Demonstrate curiosity, initiative, and ambition to develop a bookselling or café career.
Be able to perform physical activity including prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting, and extensive walking.
Comply with company policies and procedures.

Responsibilities

Model best practices in drink making, food preparation, and use of café tools and processes; coach baristas in effective execution.
Coach the café team in creating and maintaining a full, vibrant bake case and adjusting displays while meeting cleanliness and presentation standards.
Guide baristas in visual merchandising and maintaining counter and floor retail fixtures, keeping the café neat and tidy.
Coach baristas in customer conversations and improve register speed and accuracy.
Guide and support baristas in receiving and unpacking deliveries and accurately stocking products using First In First Out (FIFO) practices.
Support the team in completing daily and weekly café cleaning tasks and maintaining cleanliness.
Support the bookfloor team with presentation standards and maintenance.
Coach the team to follow loss-prevention procedures and help maintain a safe, secure bookstore, including spotting theft and de-escalating challenging situations and problematic behaviors.
Place food and beverage orders accurately and on time, using available tools and resources to keep the café in stock.
Complete and submit accurate monthly inventory and waste logs on time.
Coach the team in making effective food and beverage recommendations to customers.
Lead and support café sales priorities, including new limited-time offers, café promotions, and Membership, and share related knowledge with customers and colleagues.
Use café training tools and resources to help baristas broaden their experience.
Apply café safety, hygiene, and sanitation guidelines and procedures to maintain standards.
Provide support to baristas and booksellers by addressing and resolving concerns and raising issues to leadership.
Prioritize resources and barista support to keep shifts on track.
Maintain reliable and punctual attendance, fill scheduling gaps when able, and lead by example with a positive, proactive, supportive, and customer-focused approach.
Comply with company policies and procedures.
Support other stores in the wider cluster when able and needed.