Lead Barista

Barnes & Noble • Woodmere, OH

13d

About The Position

The Lead Barista is an integral member of the Barnes & Noble café team, providing hands-on leadership and helping oversee efficient café operations. The role guides baristas, maintains compelling product presentations, and fosters a welcoming environment where colleagues feel supported and can raise questions or concerns. The Lead Barista models reliable, positive, customer-focused behavior; helps keep shifts on track; and acts as a resource for baristas and booksellers, escalating concerns to leadership when appropriate.

The position requires proficiency in barista operations, including drink making, food preparation, merchandising, register service, delivery handling and stocking, cleaning, and safety and loss-prevention practices. The Lead Barista coaches colleagues in these areas and supports bookstore presentation standards. Responsibilities also include ordering café food and beverages, completing inventory and waste records, supporting sales objectives, and helping colleagues use café training resources. The role involves physical activity and may include work at other stores within the wider Cluster when needed and when the employee is able. The position offers opportunities to develop café skills and progress along the career path.

Requirements

• Demonstrated aptitude and willingness to learn new skills and knowledge and apply them appropriately while guiding and supporting others.
• Positive, proactive, reliable, and energetic approach to work; willingness to lead by example.
• Supportive and considerate attitude toward colleagues and a consistent willingness to help the team.
• Customer-focused and cheerful demeanor, with a willingness to go out of the way to help customers.
• Ability to serve as a resource for baristas and booksellers, address and resolve concerns, and raise issues to leadership.
• Ability to prioritize resources and barista support appropriately during a shift.
• Physical ability to perform prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting, and substantial walking.
• Willingness to work scheduled shifts in a store open from early mornings to late evenings every day, including weekends and most holidays; willingness to fill scheduling gaps when able.

Nice To Haves

• Curiosity, initiative, and ambition to develop a bookselling or café career.

Responsibilities

• Model best practices in drink making, food preparation, and café tools and processes; coach baristas in effective execution.
• Coach the café team in merchandising, maintaining a full and vibrant bake case, adjusting displays, and 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 to improve customer conversations, register speed, and accuracy.
• Support baristas with receiving and unpacking deliveries, accurate stocking, and First In First Out (FIFO) practices.
• Support execution of daily and weekly café cleaning tasks.
• Support the bookfloor team in maintaining presentation standards.
• Coach the team in loss-prevention procedures, theft awareness, de-escalation, and maintaining a safe and secure bookstore.
• Prioritize resources and barista support to keep shifts on track; act as a resource for baristas and booksellers and raise concerns to leadership.
• Place food and beverage orders accurately and on time 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 objectives, including new limited-time offers, café promotions, and Membership, and share relevant information 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.
• Maintain reliable and punctual attendance, fill scheduling gaps when able, and provide support to other stores in the Cluster when able and needed.
• Comply with company policies and procedures.

Benefits

• Employee discount, EAP, and sick pay for employees scheduled under 20 hours per week.
• For employees scheduled 20–29.99 hours per week: employee discount, EAP, sick pay, paid time off including paid maternity and parental leave, company-paid holidays, transit benefits, and 401(k) with company match.
• For employees scheduled 30 or more hours per week: employee discount, EAP, sick pay, paid time off including paid maternity and parental leave, company-paid holidays, 401(k) with company match, medical, dental and vision coverage, healthcare and dependent care spending accounts, disability benefits, life insurance, transit benefits, and tuition reimbursement.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed