Retail and Reception Supervisor
| Posting date: | 16 February 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £25,500 to £29,000 per year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 09 March 2026 |
| Location: | Portsmouth, Hampshire |
| Remote working: | On-site only |
| Company: | University of Portsmouth Students' Union |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | UPSU25259 |
Summary
The Post
Portsmouth Students’ Union Trading Company Ltd (PSUT) is the social enterprise business arm for the University of Portsmouth Students’ Union. We are a flexible and responsive function that delivers class leading customer service to our students and partners. We seek to enhance the experience of our students in a variety of ways that will engage with our diverse student community both on campus and at distance, whilst contributing financially to the wider organisation by meeting sales targets and KPIs. Revenue generation is vital to supporting the Students’ Unions Strategy and continuous improvement approach through challenging times but times also full of opportunity.
The Person
We are looking to recruit a motivated and professional individual who is passionate about developing and delivering an excellent student centred service. They will have experience in stock and financial control within the retail premises. The post-holder will live and breathe class leading service standards in customer care delivering this throughout our retail, reception and partnership offerings. The post holder will maintain high standards of customer care and adhere to the Union’s policies and procedures.
The post-holder will have excellent communication and organisation skills, ideally a background in retail or sales and an outstanding approach to customer service and partner working. We are looking for someone who has a good understanding of risk management and the skills and ability to handle competing priorities in a fast paced environment.
The role is full-time, working 35 hours per week, and requires a consistent on-site presence to effectively lead and deliver the Retail and Reception service. The successful candidate will be flexible and able to work occasional weekends and outside of core hours where required to meet operational and commercial needs.
What we offer
• Strong team mentality, supportive and sociable workplace
• Regular training opportunities and team development days
• 38 days holiday (30 days annual leave + 8 bank holidays) and additional Christmas leave
• Flexible working (flexitime, career break, paid time off for volunteering)
• 35 hour week
• Enhanced sick pay, maternity, paternity or adoption leave
• Access to University staff benefits: discounted gym membership, free library membership, bike safe
• Employee Assistance Programme
The Organisation
The University of Portsmouth Students’ Union (The Union or UPSU for short) is a forward thinking, friendly organisation with a vision of “delivering a positive impact with every Portsmouth student”. As a charity led by its values and guided by its members, we offer a wide range of services and activities to support and enrich the lives of our students. UPSU employs approximately 30 career staff, a further 100 student staff and we work with over 1500 registered student volunteers and over 120 student groups.
Further Information
For more information on this opportunity and how to apply, please visit www.upsu.net/careers. For an informal conversation about this opportunity, please contact Ket Strang, Senior Business Manager - on ket.strang@upsu.net or 02392843859.
Closing date for applications: midday, 9th March 2026
Interviews will be held on date: 25th March 2026
We kindly ask that candidates do not send CVs or cover letters as these will not be considered. You can find an application form on our website.
Anonymous shortlisting will be carried out for this role to ensure a fair and consistent approach to recruitment. We will not disclose any personal details to the shortlisting panel. Any documents or links with identifying information will not be used during shortlisting, but can be submitted if you are selected for an interview.
We are strongly dedicated to embedding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) within our community and we are passionate about creating a welcoming and inclusive environment which supports everyone from recruitment through to appointment, regardless of your background. We welcome applications from all talented people and as part of this commitment, we are working to improve the diversity of our workforce to ensure that it is as relevant and representative of our student community as possible and are actively encouraging applications from underrepresented groups.
The Union is a MINDFUL EMPLOYER® and we are committed to creating a supportive and open culture and actively support the mental wellbeing of all staff.
Due to the high number of applicants, if you have not heard from UPSU by the interview date you should assume you have been unsuccessful in your application.
Portsmouth Students’ Union Trading Company Ltd (PSUT) is the social enterprise business arm for the University of Portsmouth Students’ Union. We are a flexible and responsive function that delivers class leading customer service to our students and partners. We seek to enhance the experience of our students in a variety of ways that will engage with our diverse student community both on campus and at distance, whilst contributing financially to the wider organisation by meeting sales targets and KPIs. Revenue generation is vital to supporting the Students’ Unions Strategy and continuous improvement approach through challenging times but times also full of opportunity.
The Person
We are looking to recruit a motivated and professional individual who is passionate about developing and delivering an excellent student centred service. They will have experience in stock and financial control within the retail premises. The post-holder will live and breathe class leading service standards in customer care delivering this throughout our retail, reception and partnership offerings. The post holder will maintain high standards of customer care and adhere to the Union’s policies and procedures.
The post-holder will have excellent communication and organisation skills, ideally a background in retail or sales and an outstanding approach to customer service and partner working. We are looking for someone who has a good understanding of risk management and the skills and ability to handle competing priorities in a fast paced environment.
The role is full-time, working 35 hours per week, and requires a consistent on-site presence to effectively lead and deliver the Retail and Reception service. The successful candidate will be flexible and able to work occasional weekends and outside of core hours where required to meet operational and commercial needs.
What we offer
• Strong team mentality, supportive and sociable workplace
• Regular training opportunities and team development days
• 38 days holiday (30 days annual leave + 8 bank holidays) and additional Christmas leave
• Flexible working (flexitime, career break, paid time off for volunteering)
• 35 hour week
• Enhanced sick pay, maternity, paternity or adoption leave
• Access to University staff benefits: discounted gym membership, free library membership, bike safe
• Employee Assistance Programme
The Organisation
The University of Portsmouth Students’ Union (The Union or UPSU for short) is a forward thinking, friendly organisation with a vision of “delivering a positive impact with every Portsmouth student”. As a charity led by its values and guided by its members, we offer a wide range of services and activities to support and enrich the lives of our students. UPSU employs approximately 30 career staff, a further 100 student staff and we work with over 1500 registered student volunteers and over 120 student groups.
Further Information
For more information on this opportunity and how to apply, please visit www.upsu.net/careers. For an informal conversation about this opportunity, please contact Ket Strang, Senior Business Manager - on ket.strang@upsu.net or 02392843859.
Closing date for applications: midday, 9th March 2026
Interviews will be held on date: 25th March 2026
We kindly ask that candidates do not send CVs or cover letters as these will not be considered. You can find an application form on our website.
Anonymous shortlisting will be carried out for this role to ensure a fair and consistent approach to recruitment. We will not disclose any personal details to the shortlisting panel. Any documents or links with identifying information will not be used during shortlisting, but can be submitted if you are selected for an interview.
We are strongly dedicated to embedding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) within our community and we are passionate about creating a welcoming and inclusive environment which supports everyone from recruitment through to appointment, regardless of your background. We welcome applications from all talented people and as part of this commitment, we are working to improve the diversity of our workforce to ensure that it is as relevant and representative of our student community as possible and are actively encouraging applications from underrepresented groups.
The Union is a MINDFUL EMPLOYER® and we are committed to creating a supportive and open culture and actively support the mental wellbeing of all staff.
Due to the high number of applicants, if you have not heard from UPSU by the interview date you should assume you have been unsuccessful in your application.
Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme
Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.