Nightlife General Manager - (Premium Lifestyle Hospitality Group)

A Premium Lifestyle Hospitality Group is seeking an experienced General Manager to lead the operations of two distinctive hospitality venues in Umdloti, KwaZulu-Natal.

The group operates within the premium dining, lounge and entertainment sector, combining elevated food and beverage experiences with strong social and lifestyle positioning. Its venues are known for their atmosphere, guest engagement and dynamic events-led offering. This is a hands-on leadership opportunity for an accomplished hospitality professional who can protect the guest experience while driving commercial performance, operational discipline and team accountability.

Reporting to the ownership team, the General Manager will assume full responsibility for the leadership, profitability and day-to-day management of both venues. The successful candidate will be visible on the floor, commercially astute and confident managing high-volume operations across food, beverage, entertainment and events.

Responsibilities

• Lead, motivate and develop front-of-house and back-of-house teams across both venues.

• Establish a culture of professionalism, accountability, teamwork and consistent service delivery.

• Oversee recruitment, onboarding, training, performance management and employee relations.

• Maintain a visible leadership presence during peak trading periods, events and critical operational situations.

• Protect the guest experience and ensure service standards are maintained across every department.

• Build strong relationships with regular patrons, VIP guests, corporate clients and community partners.

• Resolve guest concerns promptly, professionally and with appropriate discretion.

• Manage daily operations, including opening and closing procedures, staffing levels, maintenance, cleanliness and venue presentation.

• Coordinate the kitchen, bar, floor, entertainment and security teams to deliver seamless service.

• Develop and manage operating budgets, revenue targets, labour costs and controllable expenses.

• Analyse daily, weekly and monthly financial reports and implement corrective action where required.

• - Drive profitable revenue growth through promotions, events, partnerships and commercially sound operational initiatives.
• Implement effective stock control procedures and monitor food and beverage cost percentages.

• Investigate stock variances and minimise wastage, theft and operational losses.
• Work closely with kitchen and bar leadership to maintain product quality, consistency, portion control and presentation.
• Review food and beverage offerings to identify opportunities to improve profitability and guest appeal.
• Ensure compliance with health, safety, hygiene, licensing and responsible alcohol service requirements.
• Maintain effective security, crowd-control and risk-management procedures.
• Oversee the planning and execution of events, entertainment schedules, DJs, functions and promotional activities.
• Ensure all events are commercially viable, professionally delivered and aligned with the venues’ positioning.
• Support marketing activity and use strategic partnerships and social media opportunities to strengthen brand awareness and customer loyalty.

Requirements

• A minimum of 5–7 years’ senior management experience within a high-volume lounge, bar, restaurant or lifestyle hospitality environment.
• Demonstrated experience managing multiple operational departments simultaneously.
• Strong knowledge of food and beverage operations, service delivery and venue management.
• Proven financial management capability, including budgeting, forecasting, labour control, cost management and profitability analysis.
• Experience managing stock systems, stock counts, cost percentages and variance reporting.
• Strong leadership, coaching and team-development skills.
• Experience overseeing events, entertainment or late-night hospitality operations is highly advantageous.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and hospitality point-of-sale systems.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Existing legal right to work in South Africa.
• A valid driver’s licence and reliable transport are preferred.
• Hospitality certifications or licences are a plus.
• Hands-on, visible and operationally driven.
• Commercially minded and results focused.
• Confident, composed and able to command respect.
• Highly organised with strong attention to detail.
• Professional, discreet and trustworthy.
• Emotionally intelligent with excellent people skills.
• Calm under pressure and effective in complex or high-risk situations.
• Flexible and responsive to changing business requirements.

Benefits

• A competitive market-related package of ZAR 60-80,000 p/m (DOE)
• Full salary and incentives details will be discussed with shortlisted candidates.
• Candidates available to commence at short notice will be prioritised.

We appreciate your interest in this vacancy. Due to the high number of applications we receive, only candidates selected to move to the next stage of the recruitment process can be contacted. Radiant does not charge any fee to candidates - all costs are always covered by the client