Majestic Wine 2024 graduate opportunities}

Company Company Profile

Like to run your own business one day?

We've got just the job for you

At Majestic we're on the lookout for talented graduates and entrepreneurs who'd like to become retail business tycoons. How does running your own business in five years or less sound, for starters?

5 corking reasons to start your career with Majestic
• You'll get some of the best management training and development this side of Mars.
• The chance to be a ‘Business Partner', running and sharing in the profits of your own Majestic Store.
• A competitive salary, attractive bonus package, Long Term Incentive Plan and Free Shares.
• Opportunities to travel and work around the UK, and at our Calais store.
• Fun stuff like trips around the world, vineyard visits, wine tastings and discounts on all our juicy wines…

What makes Majestic so different to other retailers?

We sell wine, but we get our biggest buzz turning today's entrepreneurs into the business leaders of tomorrow.

We do it by giving responsibility to talented people, setting you free to run your store like your own business, then watching you rise to the challenge and thrive.

Our programme will take you from Trainee Manager through Assistant Manager to full Store Manager in under four years. If you really smash it, in two. The hungrier you are for success, the quicker it happens.

How fast and how far you go is up to you. If you start knocking the numbers out the park, expect rapid promotion.

Best of all, you learn it all on the job, surrounded by lots of supportive people and tools. We think it's the best training scheme you can have.

Much of the programme is delivered by our Directors, (even our CEO, who was once head-hunted by Richard Branson) so you'll be learning from the horse's mouth what it takes to build and run a great business.

Is it mostly standing around drinking champers with my pinkie stuck out?

Ha ha, you wish. Anyone who's worked in retail will tell you, it's hard graft. Talent and commercial acumen will only get you so far. To succeed you'll need to roll up your sleeves and get stuck in.

That means stock takes, shifting boxes and making deliveries to customers. Working unsociable hours in busy periods. Keeping the shelves spick and span and the service 5 star. And when the going gets tough, going the extra mile without even thinking about it.

It's a huge challenge, keeping a business running like a Rolls Royce all year round. But we give you all the operational, commercial and leadership skills you need to succeed.

You'll learn how a store works from top to bottom. How to smash your sales targets and grow year-on-year. How to recruit, lead, and inspire a super-committed team of people.

If all that sounds daunting, don't worry, you'll be supported every step of the way by a well-structured, intense training programme, in-store, online, and at our training centre in Watford.

We think our on-the-job management training is the best retail academy in the world.

Now for the fun stuff
We make Majestic a great place to work because we know a happy, motivated team makes for happy customers. So we build in lots of fun and incentives. You also get to work with an amazing product every day. Who doesn't love a bottle of wine?

In fact, at Majestic you'll become a bit of a wine guru. You'll pass wine exams and build your knowledge through some amazing tastings, meeting winemakers and growers, learning their stories.

In a few months you'll be able to tell what a wine is and where it comes from just by looking at, smelling and tasting it. Not a bad party trick!

There are also educational opportunities to jet off to Europe, California, New Zealand, Australia, Chile and Argentina to experience the magic of vineyards first hand.

Anyone else teaching this stuff on an MBA might charge you a bomb. At Majestic, we pay you a salary instead.

And that's just for starters
Our Business Partner programme gives our best performing managers even more autonomy in the running of their stores. And the more profit you make, the bigger the share you'll get.

From there you can step up to a Regional Manager role, and eventually a Directorship. Or you could take your Majestic career in a whole new direction, taking on a role in our Marketing, Commercial, IT, HR or Finance areas if it's something you enjoy.

One day (if we've done our job properly) you'll tell us you're leaving to set up your own company, and change the world.

Case Studies

Name: Fran
Role: Store Manager, Sonning
Joined: 2007

When asked what my favourite wine is, I have to say Champagne as it is associated with exciting times.

A typical Majestic day for me begins by opening up the store, putting the fresh wines on the tasting counter, and checking each region is tidy, ready for when the customers arrive. The team and I always have a coffee to get us energised and we ensure we have a chat about the plan for the day. Not long after, if we have a delivery from the distribution centre we will check the pallets that have arrived are all correct. I like my team to merchandise in pairs as this proves to be efficient and helpful in getting the task done quicker. As soon as customers come through the door, someone is there to greet them and start assisting with their needs, whether that is a dinner party, wedding gift, or recommendation for the perfect match to accompany a dish. If the customer would rather the order be delivered, we arrange a delivery that is suitable for them.

What I enjoy most about working for Majestic is the fact no two days are the same and there is a great sense of teamwork, with all members of the team working towards getting our goals done. Every day I get the opportunity to meet lots of customers and it is quite a special feeling knowing you have played a part in helping someone for their important social occasion, especially a wedding. In Sonning, we have a hugely varied customer base including many young professionals and young families. That is what’s great about Majestic; you are constantly meeting people from all walks of life!

The advantages of moving around the company is that it allows you to experience a variety of different stores; some more residential and some more commercial based. Working in different stores ensures you are exposed to working under different Managers, each with their own unique management style, all of which you learn from and gain skills to assist you when eventually managing your own store and team.

The training that Majestic provides is fantastic, and throughout my experience I have continually received support from my Regional Managers and the Retail Support Centre. The courses you attend help your individual development and give you the confidence in all aspects of your role. Something I have thoroughly enjoyed being given the responsibility of is the opportunity to do interviews for new Trainee Managers and run Manual Handling courses for new joiners.

To be successful at Majestic I think the key qualities someone should have is a friendly and approachable nature, flexibility and reliability and an eagerness and willingness to learn. An interest in wine also helps!

Name: Jake
Role: Assistant Manager, Milton Keynes
Joined: 2015

"I cannot wait to find out what my future with Majestic could hold."

Back in June 2015 I began my Placement year with Majestic Wine whilst studying a Business Studies Degree at Leeds Beckett University.

Starting in the Peterborough store I was able to quickly learn the retail basics, including: store operations, merchandising, use of the EPOS (till), customer experience & product training (I tasted a lot too!).

Introduction days at the Support Centre helped me settle in, learn about the culture of Majestic and enabled me to meet various members of staff - I was also given a “Wine and Spirits Educational Trust” (WSET) Level 3 learning pack. The WSET is an industry recognised qualification which Majestic Wine fund and use to educate their staff. I was eager to learn about the magic of wine and could not wait to get stuck in to my training days and textbook. It was important for me to balance the learning of my WSET, whilst running the store and completing university assignments. The support of my Store Manager enabled me to complete these successfully.

In December 2015, I was given the opportunity to move to the Milton Keynes Store, a move which I could not resist and knew would help my career at Majestic. December turned out to be one of the hardest but most rewarding months of my placement year. Surpassing target by 30% enabled me to gain my first retail bonus. This theme followed suit in the forthcoming months, as we regularly met KPI’s such as offering a 5* service. Working in a dynamic team which was sales and customer focussed meant that I learnt key sales & management skills.

I continued to work hard on my WSET. Having regular tastings enabled me to identify various components of the tasting exam – which is one of the best perks of the job! I even attended external tastings with suppliers including a Moet Champagne Experience and the London Wine Fair, which were fantastic. I took my WSET exam in June 2016 and received my results whilst I was travelling in Thailand with my University friends after finishing my placement. I was delighted to have received a Merit in both the tasting and written components and felt all my hard work had finally paid off.

It didn’t stop there…

When returning to University I was given the opportunity to work in the Leeds North Store on the run up to Christmas where I became an integral part of the tam on the busy run up to peak. After finishing my degree, I continued to work part time in Leeds whilst awaiting an appropriate Trainee Role back with Majestic.

On hearing the news that the Milton Keynes Assistant Manager role had become available I instantly spoke with my colleagues and Regional Manager on the possibility of applying. I was granted the opportunity to apply and was asked to interview for the role. I was delighted and surprised to be offered the job.

A lot of people put faith in me, this goes to show that Majestic Wine are willing to support their staff in their search for career progression and development - I cannot wait to find out what my future with Majestic could hold.

Application Procedure

So what happens next?
If you're excited by how we do things at Majestic and you're up for the journey, take the first step here

FAQs

Q. I'm not a graduate. Can I still apply?
A. Yes. You don't need to have a degree to apply. If you've got relevant experience and you think that you'd be a great fit with the Majestic team then we'd absolutely love to hear from you

Q. Do I need to know about wine in order to work for Majestic?
A. You will need to have a genuine enthusiasm and passion for wine but you don't need to be an expert. Our training and your team will take care of that.

Q. What's the salary at Trainee Manager level?
A. Trainee Manager starting salaries are between £20,248 - £23,290, depending on location. And there's a store performance related bonus on top as well.

Q. Is there a closing date for applications?
A. We recruit year round, whenever we have openings in our stores. You can either apply for a specific vacancy if there's one local to you, or if you register for email job alerts then we will contact you the next suitable role comes up – we're always on the lookout for great people so we shouldn't keep you waiting too long.

Q. Do I have to relocate in order to work for Majestic?
A. As part of our retail programme you'll need to gain experience in more than one store. You'll normally spend a year or so as a Trainee Manager in either one store or two different stores, before moving on to another one or two during your time as an Assistant Manager. It all depends on where you're based, but you may need to be willing to move, to be able to find the right opportunities to progress up the ladder more quickly.

Q. What happens if I don't have a driving licence?
A. Unfortunately we won't be able to accept your application for a Trainee Manager position as all our team need to be able to drive. From time to time we may recruit Sales Assistants or Stock Operatives that do not need to drive so look out for these positions.

Q. What happens if I have a driving licence but haven't held it for a year?
A. Don't fret, you can still apply once you hit 10 months, and if you're successful you can start in store as soon as you've passed the one year mark.

Q. I've held my driving licence for over a year but it isn't a UK licence. Can I still apply?
A. Yes. Holding a foreign licence is absolutely fine, as long as it's valid in the UK too. All you need to do is convert it to a UK license within 3 months of joining the team. The DVLA can help you with how.

Q. I graduated over 5 years ago. Can I still apply?
A. Absolutely. The fact that you will have gained extra work and life experiences since graduating is something we see as a bonus.