Showroom Manager

About Ernesta:

Ernesta is on a mission to bring gorgeous, designer-quality custom rugs to homes and places of gathering through an enjoyable, frictionless, and affordable experience. At the same price as a store-bought standard-sized rug, a custom-cut rug from Ernesta will not only be a better fit, but also a better buying experience. We believe that high-quality custom design shouldn't be out of reach for consumers and aim to address this need in the multi-billion dollar global rug industry.

Driven by our collective mission, our team is hungry, hardworking, and highly ambitious. We’re problem solvers, innovators, design enthusiasts, and executors. We are relentlessly focused on creating and delivering beautiful and delightfully simple solutions and experiences for our customers. Together, we are excited and humbled by the opportunity to expand the market for custom rugs and allow more people to live in elevated design settings. Put simply, we believe more soft surfaces mean happier homes.

About the Role:

Ernesta is looking for an experienced Showroom Manager (who we call a Showroom Leader) to lead our soon to be opened showroom on Montana Avenue. You will join Ernesta's foundational Customer Experience and Sales Team.You will be a key hire as we build our retail footprint at Ernesta while helping to create an enjoyable, frictionless, and industry-defining rug buying experience. This is an opportunity to join a small but visionary team - a high impact role pioneering a new age of sales and customer experience.

As a Showroom Leader, you will be responsible for managing a team of retail Design Assistants, driving sales and customer experience at the showroom level. You will educate and advise customers on rug selection and sizing and act as a customer champion – delighting customers and assisting with their projects. In each interaction, you will take pride in building strong relationships with consumers and the Trade community, ensuring their happiness and loyalty at every touchpoint. As a strong leader, you will empower your team to be a best-in-class sales organization responsible for driving sales results and brand awareness.

What You’ll Do:

• Team Management:

○ Lead, motivate, and inspire while developing a high-performing showroom team

○ Set the industry standard for customer experience and sales through follow up and outreach

○ Implement performance management strategies, set clear expectations, provide regular coaching and feedback, and conduct performance evaluations

○ Deliver exceptional design and product expertise to customers

○ Provide consumer and Trade customers a high touch and personalized experience through multiple channels - in person, chat, text, email, video, phone

• Sales and Customer Engagement

○ Meet and exceed sales targets by actively engaging with customers, understanding their needs, and recommending suitable custom-sized rugs

○ Coach the sales team to implement effective strategies for driving revenue and customer loyalty

○ Actively grow the Trade business through proactive outreach, networking events and opportunities as well as pre and post order support

○ Manage customer inquiries, concerns, and feedback with professionalism and a solution-oriented approach

○ Surprise and delight customers - exceed their expectations - create memorable experiences

• Showroom Operations

○ Warmly welcome and assist customers, providing expert guidance on custom-sized rug options and design choices

○ Cultivate a positive and inviting atmosphere to enhance the overall customer experience

○ Contribute to recruitment efforts by participating in the selection process, conducting interviews, and onboarding new team members

○ Be the voice of the customer through collaboration and communication with cross functional teams

○ Utilize innovative technologies to help customers bring their projects to life

○ Oversee day-to-day operations of the showroom, ensuring it is well-maintained, organized, and visually appealing

○ Effectively manage team’s schedule

Qualifications Include:

• 5+ years of experience in a consumer-facing role. 4+ years of direct consumer sales and/or account management experience is required
• Demonstrated experience with sales coaching and understanding of sales lifecycle
• Sales-driven mindset with a track record of meeting or exceeding targets
• Passionate about interior design and home décor
• Proven experience in retail management
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including weekends and holidays as necessary
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to build rapport with customers and team members
• Detail-oriented and organized, with the ability to manage multiple tasks simultaneously
• Solutions oriented with sound judgment, business sense, and high integrity
• Willingness to provide creative solutions and wear many hats
• High level of proficiency working across multiple software tools including Salesforce, Google Suite, Shopify, Zoom, etc.
• Great time management and organizational skills with high level of accountability
• Ability to establish and improve processes

Salary/Benefits:

This role offers a base salary, equity, pto as well as medical, dental and vision insurance and 401(k). The anticipated starting base pay for this role is between $90,000 and $120,000. This range represents the low and high end of the anticipated pay range for this role. The actual base pay is dependent upon many factors, such as: experience, education, and skills.

Ernesta is committed to inclusion. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.