Description
Job Pack: Gallery & Retail Manager
Cockpit 40 Leadenhall
Applications due by midnight, Tuesday 17th November 2026
This year Cockpit celebrates its 40th anniversary, marking four decades as one of the UK’s most influential charities for contemporary craft and making. To celebrate this milestone, we will be bringing Cockpit to new audiences, to share the extraordinary skill and creativity of our makers through the opening of an exciting new gallery and retail space in the City of London — a public-facing home for Cockpit's makers, showcasing exceptional contemporary craft through rotating exhibitions, a curated retail offer, and a programme of workshops, talks and private views.
Our vision for 40 Leadenhall is as an active, energised, welcoming space, presenting work from emerging makers and leading figures within craft. The space will give visitors the chance to meet the makers, view and buy work, watch makers in action, and explore their own creativity with expert guidance. 
We're looking for a seasoned, ambitious Gallery & Retail Manager to lead this new space from launch.
Reporting to the CEO & COO, this role is key in the launch, delivery, and management of Cockpit’s new City of London location, cementing Cockpit as a leading voice within contemporary craft. The role will lead Cockpit's new vibrant cultural destination within the Square Mile — a space designed to connect thousands of people who work in the city looking to engage with world-leading creative talent, whilst also encouraging a new type of visitor into the Square Mile.
About Cockpit
Cockpit is a centre of excellence in contemporary craft and home to more than 180 makers united by their extraordinary skill and creativity. A charity recognised as a UK top 100 social enterprise, we give makers the tools to build their businesses so they can focus on what they do best: making. We provide funded studio space, in-house business training and coaching, and exhibition opportunities for makers working across 25 different disciplines.
Cockpit aims to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity and is the UK’s only business incubator for makers. We are a destination for talent, having launched the careers of some of the major names in craft.
About the role  
We're looking for an experienced, entrepreneurial Gallery & Retail Manager to spearhead this new space from day one. You'll take full responsibility for its day-to-day running and long-term success — curating and delivering a rotating exhibition programme alongside Cockpit’s CEO, building a commercially successful retail offer of maker-made work, and hosting a lively events programme of workshops, talks, and private views. You'll manage a small team, including a Gallery & Retail Assistant, and act as the face of Cockpit in the City.
This is a senior hands-on role is suited to someone who combines a genuine passion for contemporary craft with strong commercial, operational, and people management instincts.
Below is an indicative 2 year programme:
- Rotating retail display
- c.12 gallery exhibitions
- Up to 24 private views, talks, and demonstrations
- 15-20 distinctive workshops
- Quarterly youth & community outreach activities
About you  
You bring proven experience managing a gallery or retail space, with a commercial mindset and a track record of building profitable retail offers. You'll have a curatorial eye and the confidence to help shape an exhibition programme, alongside experience planning and delivering events from workshops to private views. Operationally strong, you're comfortable managing stock, deliveries, packing, shipping, and the logistics of moving artwork and retail goods safely in and out of the space, as well as the day-to-day running of the space.
You know how to lead and support a small team, ensuring they deliver operational excellence and seamless customer service. You're entrepreneurial, resilient, and comfortable working autonomously — equally at home managing a budget, hosting an opening night, or pitching in on the shop floor. You communicate with confidence and warmth, and can represent Cockpit and its makers to customers, collectors, and other stakeholders. You share our mission of connecting exceptional creative talent with real opportunity.
Diversity drives creativity 
Cockpit is committed to inclusion, diversity, and equity in all our activities. We know that creativity and innovation are fuelled by diversity. Recognising that equity is a matter of social justice, we foster an inclusive culture where all aspects of diversity are celebrated and seen as key to success and flourishing.  
We are committed to building a more diverse community and creating an environment where anyone, from any background, can develop their talents, do their best work, and realise their full potential. This extends to our community of makers, staff team, and Board of Trustees. We especially welcome applications from candidates with backgrounds currently under-represented in craft, including people from the Global Majority and D/deaf and disabled people. 
As part of our commitment to increasing the diversity in our staff team and better reflect the communities we serve, we offer a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates who meet all the essential criteria in the person specification and identify as being from a Global Majority background and/or as D/deaf and/or disabled.
If you identify as having one or more of these protected characteristics and meet the essential criteria for the job, please state in your application that you would like to be considered under our guaranteed interview scheme. 
To ensure accessibility for all candidates, everyone who is invited to interview will be asked in advance to let us know of any access needs. 
 
  
How to apply 
To apply, send a CV and covering letter outlining how you fulfil the brief to
fabienne@cockpitstudios.org with the subject line GALLERY & RETAIL MANAGER APPLICATION. Your cover letter should outline your interest in the post and working with Cockpit, and how your skills and experience fulfil the job brief.  
As champions of the handmade and human creativity, we do not use AI or computer screening for recruitment. Our team reviews every application we receive, and hiring decisions are always made by humans.
In this spirit, we ask that you do not submit an AI generated CV or cover letter. We want to hear from you – in your own words! – why you are interested in joining Cockpit. As part of our commitment to inclusion and accessibility, we are happy to accept both written and video applications.
Thank you to everyone who applied previously. We still have your application on file, so there’s no need to reapply.
 
Interviews
First-round interviews will be held via Microsoft Teams on Monday 23 November and Tuesday 24 November.
Second-round interviews will be held in person at Cockpit Bloomsbury on Tuesday 1 December.
We will contact shortlisted applicants by Thursday 19 November if you have been invited to interview. We are sorry that we won’t be able to contact every applicant. If you haven’t heard from us by that date, please assume that you haven’t been shortlisted for the role. Unfortunately, we will not be able to provide any further feedback.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Title: Gallery & Retail Manager
Contract type: 24-month Fixed Term Contract
Hours: 10.30am–6.30pm, Tuesday–Saturday
Salary: £38,000
Start date: 4 January 2027
Reports to: CEO and COO
Works with: Head of Marketing, Head of Development, Youth & Community Producer
MAIN DUTIES:
Gallery Programme
- Working closely with the CEO and COO to plan and deliver a rotating programme of exhibitions showcasing Cockpit makers, in collaboration with the wider Cockpit team and participating makers
- Manage exhibition install and de-install to a white glove service level, including shipping, unpacking and packing, display, lighting, and presentation, all to a professional standard
- Develop relationships with makers, curators, the Cockpit team, and the wider craft and design community to shape an ambitious, varied programme
Retail
- Curate and manage a retail offer of work by Cockpit makers, balancing commercial performance with creative integrity
- Own sales targets, stock management, merchandising, packaging, and pricing, working closely with the wider Cockpit team and makers
- Monitor and report on retail performance, identifying opportunities to grow revenue
Events & Programming
- Work with the CEO and COO to plan a regular programme of workshops, talks, and private views, and take responsibility for the delivery and hosting of all programme strands
- Manage bookings, ticketing, supplier and maker liaison, and on-the-night delivery of events, including all necessary security measures for special events
- Build relationships with local businesses, cultural organisations, and audiences in the building and in the City of London to grow footfall and engagement
Team, Marketing & Operations
- Manage and develop the Gallery & Retail Assistant and any casual/freelance event staff
- Working closely with the central marketing and communications team, implement strategies to drive new audiences to view exhibitions and attend private views, workshops, talks, and demonstrations
- Lead on content planning for the promotion of the space, working closely with the Gallery & Retail Assistant and Head of Marketing, to ensure it aligns with the wider Cockpit strategy. Secure and share relevant assets to promote the space and programme
- Oversee day-to-day operations of the space, including health & safety, security, opening hours, and supplier and service provider relationships
- Manage the space's budget, working closely with Cockpit's finance tea
- Manage all shipping, unpacking, and installing of stock and artworks for the retail space and rotational exhibition
- Manage all packing and shipping of gallery purchases to the end client
- Ensure a high level, luxury feel to the packaging and presentation of purchased pieces to clients
- Represent Cockpit's mission and values to visitors, press, partners, and the public
PERSON SPECIFICATION:
Essential knowledge, skills, and experience
- Proven experience managing a gallery, retail space, or similar public-facing cultural/commercial venue (min. 2 years' experience)
- A strong network in, or knowledge of, contemporary craft, design, or applied arts
- Commercially minded, with a track record in retail sales, stock, and merchandising
- Experience planning and delivering events or public programmes
- Experience planning and executing marketing campaigns and content planning to promote exhibitions and programmes
- Experience working closely and collaboratively with marketing teams
- Confident line management experience
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills — equally comfortable with a maker, a corporate visitor, a funder, or the press
- Highly organised, self-motivated, and comfortable running a space with a high degree of autonomy
- Ability to provide occasional out-of-hours support for private views and events where necessary
- A genuine enthusiasm for craft and supporting independent makers
- Proficient in M365 suite of programmes
Desirable knowledge, skills, and experience
- Proficiency with standard office and retail/EPOS tools; experience with gallery or CRM software
- Proficient in Photoshop
- Proficient in social media scheduling tools (e.g. Later, Hootsuite)
- Knowledge of project management software (e.g. Monday.com)
Applications due by midnight, Tuesday 17 November
Ref: 77d7