Senior Retail Engagement Manager - Kings Cross Estate,...

Purpose of the Role

King’s Cross is one of London’s most distinctive and successful mixed-use developments - an inspiring place to work, visit and live. The estate brings together a vibrant blend of culture, creativity, commerce, and community across 67 acres of beautifully designed public realm. Home to global businesses, world-class education institutions, independent retailers, award-winning restaurants, major cultural organisations and diverse residential neighbourhoods, King’s Cross is a destination that champions innovation and sustainability.

We work in partnership with The King’s Cross Group (KXG), who directly work for the owners of King’s Cross, to deliver operational excellence by putting our customer first. As part of the King’s Cross Estate Service Team, you will part of the team that contributes to maintaining a welcoming, safe, and high-quality environment that reflects the estate’s commitment to excellence. We work collaboratively with partners, occupiers, and the wider community to ensure the area continues to thrive, delivering exceptional experiences for everyone who spends time here, whether that be occupiers or the 19 million visitors who visit the Estate. Joining us means becoming part of a forward-thinking, people-centred estate that values creativity, integrity, and continuous improvement.

As part of the King’s Cross Estate Service Team, you will act as ambassadors for King’s Cross, bringing our team values to life daily (Love King’s Cross, In it Together, Protect the Planet, Truth and Honest and Keep it Real). You will contribute to maintaining a welcoming, safe, and high-quality environment that reflects the estate’s commitment to excellence. Working collaboratively with partners, occupiers, and the wider community to ensure the area continues to thrive and deliver exceptional experiences for everyone who spends time here. Joining us means becoming part of a forward-thinking, people-centred estate that values creativity, integrity, and continuous improvement.

In this pivotal position, you'll deliver outstanding retail operational expertise, planning and performance across the King’s Cross retail portfolio on the 67-acre mixed-use King's Cross estate.

The Senior Retail Engagement Manager is responsible for leading retail engagement, performance and day‑to‑day coordination across a significant proportion of the King’s Cross retail portfolio, including retail, food & beverage and leisure occupiers.

The role sits at the intersection of experience, operations and commercial performance. It balances relationship‑led engagement with robust operational oversight to ensure retailers are supported, challenged where necessary, and aligned with the wider estate vision.

Working closely with the Head of Experience, Retail Operations Property Management, Surveyors, KXG and the wider Experience Team, the role translates retail, customer experience, marketing, events and ESG strategies into practical, on‑the‑ground delivery that protects asset value and enhances the visitor experience.

Key Responsibilities

Retailer Engagement & Customer Experience

• Act as the primary day‑to‑day contact and first point of escalation for retailers across the estate.

• Build and maintain strong, professional relationships with retail, F&B and leisure occupiers, fostering trust, openness and performance‑focused dialogue.

• Develop and deliver a structured Retailer Engagement and Relations Plan aligned with the estate’s customer experience strategy and values.

• Ensure frequent, clear and consistent communication with retailers, working closely with CX, Marketing, Communications and Events teams to align messaging, tone and timing.

• Proactively manage and resolve retailer and customer issues or complaints, owning actions through to resolution and escalating where appropriate.

Retail Performance, Insight & Reporting

• Monitor and analyse retailer performance using turnover data, footfall information, observation and qualitative insight.

• Identify underperforming retailers early and work collaboratively with surveyors, asset managers, KXG and retailers to implement SMART improvement plans.

• Support strong‑performing retailers to maximise engagement, performance and participation in the place.

• Produce clear, concise performance reporting, trend analysis and insight for senior stakeholders and client forums.

• Carry out competitor benchmarking, mystery shopping and post‑event evaluation to inform future retail and experience strategies.

• Support the delivery of retailer communications, research and surveys to strengthen understanding of trading performance and customer behaviour.

Operations Coordination & Estate Delivery

• Support the Retail Operations Property Manager in overseeing day‑to‑day retail operations across the estate.

• Ensure retail destinations and buildings, including Coal Drops Yard and Fish & Coal, consistently meet estate standards for safety, presentation and customer experience.

• Coordinate retail fit‑outs, permits, access arrangements and logistics, ensuring full compliance with health & safety, estates procedures and programme requirements.

• Work closely with Security, Engineering, Cleaning, Health & Safety and other service partners to ensure issues are resolved quickly and operations run smoothly.

• Maintain on‑site visibility and presence to spot issues early and represent the estate professionally.

Stakeholder, Client & Cross-Team Working

• Work collaboratively with The King’s Cross Group, surveyors, asset managers and internal Savills teams to support retail and estate objectives.

• Represent retail as a senior contributor within the Experience Team, working alongside Events, Guest Services, Neighbourhood & Engagement, Marketing, Social Value and ESG colleagues.

• Support the mobilisation of new retail assets and the onboarding, induction and integration of new occupiers into the King’s Cross community.

• Contribute retail insight to estate‑wide initiatives, events planning and placemaking activity.

• Support retail marketing and engagement by collaborating on campaigns, events and collateral; using performance data and insight to inform strategy, drive continuous improvement and strengthen retailer participation across the estate.

Leadership, Team Support & Ways of Working

• Jointly lead and support members of the Experience Retail Team, providing guidance, coaching and day‑to‑day direction.

• Champion King’s Cross values, customer‑first behaviours and a collaborative, solutions‑led culture.

• Support performance management, development conversations and induction for team members where required.

• Manage workflows, priorities, reporting and action tracking to ensure clarity, accountability and consistency.

Financial & Service Charge Budget Management

• Owning the management the creation of, and ongoing management of the operational service charge retail budget having budgetary control for all retail related activities.

• Maintain the financial operations for retail by ensuring accurate payment of expenses and timely collection of revenue and service charge recoveries.

• Manage Capex budget development and tracking for projects.

• Management and control of spend, ensuring all quotes are sourced in line with the Savills procurement policy, purchase orders raised and authorised.

• Drive an operationally efficient and commercially competitive environment within the properties, always protecting the value and reputation of the owner’s assets.

Lease Adherence

• Ensure retailers operate in line with lease obligations, estate policies, statutory requirements and Savills procedures.

• Manage retail voids units as per the Savills Void Management process.

• Assist AM’s and surveyors with validation of units, remediation work quotations and delivery.

• Ensure all third-party suppliers are advised of any changes to tenancies including the utility providers, Camden Council and other operational agencies.

Health & Safety, Compliance & Risk Management

• Champion health, safety, risk management and compliance across retail activities, including fit‑outs and retailer events.

• Ensure that Health & Safety, Emergency Procedures and Safe Working Practices are established, maintained and conform to current legislation.

• Actively support and promote sustainability, ESG and social value initiatives across the retail portfolio, working with specialist teams and partners.

• Planning out the implementation of Martyn’s Law across all retail activations, alongside the Head of Security and Head of Estate

The above is not an exhaustive list of duties and you will be expected to perform additional tasks, which will be further outlined in more detail.

Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• Demonstrable experience in retail or mixed‑use estate management within a large, complex and high‑profile environment

• Strong background in retailer engagement, relationship management and performance improvement.

• Confidence working with senior stakeholders, occupiers, service partners and clients.

• Commercially aware, with the ability to analyse data, interpret trends and translate insight into action.

• Good understanding of retail operations, fit‑outs, health & safety, statutory compliance and estate procedures.

• Highly organised, resilient and comfortable operating in a fast‑paced, seven‑day estate environment.

• Clear, persuasive communicator with strong written and verbal skills.

• Genuine interest in customer experience, placemaking, sustainability and creating successful destinations.

• Degree qualified in a business or related discipline.

• Computer literacy - Microsoft Office - Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint; Apple - Keynote and Pages; Asana (preferred)

• IOSH or NEBOSH

Working Hours - 5 days a week, 9am - 5.30pm (with flexibility for event oversight, including out-of-hours and weekends; time off in lieu provided)

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Please see our Benefits Booklet for more information.