Cafe Manager / Retail Lead

Corvus Coffee Roasters | Denver Metro

Full-time, salary-exempt position

Specialty Coffee Leadership Opportunity

About Corvus Coffee Roasters

Corvus Coffee Roasters is a specialty coffee company committed to pushing coffee forward while representing the work of producers with care, quality, and hospitality. Across our cafes, we aim to create memorable customer experiences, serve excellent drinks, and build teams that are curious, engaged, and proud of the coffee they share.

About the Role

The Cafe Manager / Retail Lead is the organizing force behind a successful Corvus cafe. This person leads the team, protects drink quality, manages daily operations, supports hiring and training, and creates a positive, accountable cafe culture.

This is a hands-on leadership role. A strong candidate will be comfortable working on the floor, coaching in real time, managing systems behind the scenes, and holding high standards in a way that keeps the team engaged and growing.

The ideal candidate loves coffee, enjoys leading people, communicates clearly, and brings both structure and energy to a busy cafe environment.

Key Responsibilities

Lead cafe operations

• Oversee day-to-day cafe execution, including service flow, cleanliness, cash handling, opening and closing standards, and customer experience.
• Set shifts up for success through clear communication, planning, delegation, and follow-through.
• Maintain consistent standards for hospitality, drink quality, food safety, and operational procedures.
• Use tools, checklists, and written systems to keep the cafe organized and accountable.

Protect and improve drink quality

• Lead by example in preparing and serving excellent coffee.
• Coach baristas through direct, timely, and constructive feedback.
• Build a culture of tasting drinks, using training resources, and pursuing consistent quality.
• Partner with training and operations leadership to improve procedures, standards, and ongoing education.

Hire, train, and develop the team

• Support recruiting, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, and retention.
• Develop baristas and shift leaders through regular coaching and clear expectations.
• Create a cafe culture that is positive, honest, accountable, and growth-oriented.
• Address performance concerns directly and professionally.

Manage scheduling and labor

⁃ Build effective schedules that balance coverage, workflow, staff strengths, and labor cost.

• Maintain appropriate staffing levels through proactive hiring and retention.
• Communicate schedule needs clearly and plan ahead for seasonal or operational changes.

Drive business performance

• Understand the cafe sales, labor, margins, and controllable costs.
• Look for opportunities to improve revenue, reduce unnecessary expenses, and strengthen the guest experience.
• Work with the Director of Operations or ownership to set goals, track progress, and implement improvements.

Support projects and communication

• Lead implementation of menu changes, retail updates, operational improvements, and team initiatives.
• Create clear communication systems for staff updates, coffee arrivals, training notes, and expectations.
• Keep projects organized and moving forward through planning, delegation, and follow-up.

What We Are Looking For

• Specialty coffee experience preferred.
• 2+ years of cafe management experience preferred, or progressive leadership experience in hospitality, food service, retail, or a related field.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent organization, planning, and time management.
• Ability to lead a team while staying approachable, positive, and grounded.
• Strong problem-solving and people-management skills.
• Comfort giving and receiving constructive feedback.
• A genuine love of coffee and desire to keep learning.
• Integrity, honesty, and care in how you lead people and represent the company.

Schedule Expectations

This is a full-time, salary-exempt leadership role. The Cafe Manager / Retail Lead should expect to work approximately 40-45 hours per week, with significant time spent working alongside the team on the floor and dedicated time for scheduling, hiring, staff communication, training follow-up, inventory oversight, administrative work, and meetings with operations leadership.

Benefits

• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with 3% match after 1 year.
• 3 weeks of PTO, increasing with tenure.
• 6 paid holidays.
• Employee coffee benefits.

Compensation

Compensation is commensurate with experience.

How to Apply:

Please send your resume and a brief note about your coffee, hospitality, or leadership experience to hiring@corvuscoffee.com. We would love to hear what kind of team culture you enjoy building and what excites you about leading in specialty coffee.