Operating Officer - Retail

Spec-Savers South Africa is looking for a commercially astute, operationally sharp retail leader to help shape the next chapter of one of South Africa's most recognised optometry and audiology franchise networks.

This is not a caretaker role. It is a demanding senior management appointment for someone who can sit close to the Group Chief Operations Officer, translate strategy into disciplined execution, and lead a young, high-performing team through growth, complexity and commercial trade-offs.

The Operating Officer - Retail will lead the consumer-facing and franchise-facing engine of the business: franchise operations, retail performance, RSP governance, store growth, retail finance and digital enablement. The mandate is simple to describe and hard to execute: strengthen franchisee profitability, improve customer and store outcomes, and build a retail operating model that can scale.

The Mandate

• Own the retail commercial agenda, including retail selling price, franchisee economics, promotions, customer value and store performance.
• Lead and support the retail leadership team across operations, finance, medical equipment, shopfitting, IT enablement and audiology.
• Work closely with the Group Chief Operations Officer and other Group Chief Officers to convert Group strategy into practical retail execution.
• Partner with the Operating Officer - Distribution so stock availability, cost inputs, product range and retail pricing work together without duplicated ownership.
• Drive franchisee trust through consistency, commercial credibility, operational support and clear communication.
• Use data, market insight and financial discipline to identify growth opportunities, underperformance and the interventions required.