Job Description

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Title: Visitor Center and Garden Shop Manager Classification: Full-Time 40-hour work week nonexempt Department: Visitor Services Reports to: Director of Visitor Services and Education Programs Compensation: $32.00 / hour Schedule: Tuesday- Saturday, 8:45am - 4:45pm, during tour season. Must be available to support events.

About Lotusland: Ganna Walska Lotusland is a 37-acre botanical garden and historic estate in Montecito, CA, featuring a collection of over 3,000 plant species from around the world. Since opening to the public in 1993, Ganna Walska Lotusland has grown to become one of the world's premier botanical gardens and a center for sustainable garden practices, horticultural education, and plant conservation.

Mission Statement: Our mission is to preserve and enhance the distinctive botanical gardens of Madame Ganna Walska. Lotusland educates and inspires visitors with its collections, sustainable horticulture practices and plant conservation.

Position Description:

The Visitor Center and Garden Shop Manager has a key role within the Visitor Service Department. They will demonstrate and encourage a strong work ethic, provide, and model outstanding customer service, practice critical and innovative thinking, and be a solution-oriented problem solver. The Visitor Center and Garden Shop Manager supports daily operational functions to ensure the health and safety of our guests, staff and volunteers, and the delivery of exceptional guest service.

The Visitor Center and Garden Shop Manager works collaboratively with the Gardens Leadership Team and Managers and serves as a point of contact for emergencies, questions and concerns from guests, staff and volunteers and provides feedback and recommendations for improved guest experience needs. This position supports the development and implementation of efficient and effective operating procedures and staff training needs to ensure a warm welcoming environment and world-class guest experience for all.

The Manager sets a strong example by exhibiting and recognizing superior quality service within the Visitor Services staff and provides an exceptional customer service experience for our visitors, while effectively demonstrating product knowledge, and cultivating a safe, clean, and welcoming environment at the Garden Shop and Visitor Center.

The Visitor Center and Garden Shop Manager represents Lotusland to the public and members by creating a full Lotusland experience and fosters a sense of community building and knowledge about the Garden. They work in tandem with Garden administration and Development staff to greet members and guests upon arrival and communicates to visitors about Garden tours and connect them with Garden docents, promotes Garden events, and supports membership benefit facilitation of individual and/or ground or guests tours.

This position is also responsible for the Garden Shop buying and inventory, while overseeing the merchandising of the store. This role involves maintaining clean and vibrant displays and managing the Shop during events that engage guests and are profitable. Supervisory responsibilities include writing Garden Shop and Visitor Center Standard Operating Procedures.

Key Responsibilities Visitor Experience:

• Ensures all guests have an enjoyable experience by providing excellent customer service.
• Supports volunteers, supporting the Visitor Service team during tour days.
• Answers radio calls and aids docents, volunteers, and guests.
• Works collaboratively with Development to coordinate an exceptional experience for all Lotusland's high level guests upon arrival, greeting guests and providing front line concierge service.
• Answers questions and engages visitors during Lotusland visits and events.
• Trains team members of the rules of the Garden and Visitor Center.
• Works as Manager on Duty and collaborates to resolve any issues or handle emergencies in concert with the Manager of Visitor Services and Volunteers and/or the Directors of Visitor Services and Education, when necessary.
• Cross-trained to step into any Visitor Service role, this includes Kiosk, Reception, and Greeter.
• Assist and support special events and exhibitions, including promotion and information at the Visitor Center and Garden Shop.
• Additional duties may include safeguarding the Garden's collections, exhibitions, property, employees, and visitors through highly proactive, appropriately preemptive, and immediately responsive action.

Garden Shop:

• Serves as primary Key Holder for the Garden Shop, responsible for daily opening and closing.
• Makes recommendations for procedural improvements, tests before implementing new procedures, trains staff.
• Organizes inventory, manages backstock, serves as oversight and analytics owner for POS transactions, troubleshoots the POS.
• Coordinate daily tasks and processes for the team at the Visitor Center and Shop to keep the wheels turning and the Shop and Center area running smoothly.
• Runs and maintains the Lotusland Garden Shop online store to include posting inventory, writing descriptions, and photographing items, receiving, and processing orders, shipments, and replacements in a timely manner.
• Oversees Shopify and quarterly reporting for the Garden Shop to include updating of inventory and replenishing of items from the warehouse.
• Conducts Shop and Visitor Center training for all Visitor Services associates.
• Collaboratively works with Visitor Services Associates to process customer transactions as they occur.
• Ensures all sales are accurate.
• Produces quarterly sales reports and conducts and reconciles semi-annual inventory with reports for the Director of Finance.
• Serves as primary associate for Garden Shop and supports staffing of Greeters in absence of docents or staff.
• Manages Garden Shop budget.

Knowledge and Abilities:

• Ability to maintain a positive attitude, operate in a fast-paced team environment and multitask to meet the needs of visitors and members.
• Frequently sitting and standing, walking, and bending and climbing stairs with occasional lifting of light loads (25 lbs.).
• Answer and fulfill sales and shipping via telephone, emails, and web requests.
• Attends training and meetings of Admin, Staff and Departments and provides regular communications about Shop events, sales, inventory, and new products.

Qualifications and Experience:

• High school diploma or equivalent is required/college experience and/or knowledge of retail, management, and logistics is preferred. A passion for retail, art/gardening and the marketing of products relating to the Garden is preferred for this role.
• Experienced with Microsoft Office Suite and Shopify.
• Lead kindly and welcomingly with the Visitor Services team every day.
• Must maintain a valid driver's license and be insurable with company auto policy.

Work Environment:

• Lotusland's administrative offices are on a historic 2-story estate in a 37-acre garden.
• General office environment within the garden setting of Lotusland.
• Requires working outside during events and the ability to comfortably move around the garden.
• Frequent work on the telephone and computer (repetitive movement - typing)
• Frequent standing, sitting, walking, climbing stairs and bending with occasional lifting of light to moderate loads (25 lbs.)
• Occasional driving of company electric golf carts.

The responsibilities and deliverables listed above are intended to describe the general nature and level of work to be performed by the individual in the position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and/or skills. Other tasks will be assigned as needed.

Benefits

• Health, dental, vision and life insurance.
• 403(b) Retirement plans.
• Paid vacation and sick leave.
• Paid company holidays.

Additional Information

• Employment background/criminal check is required.

Lotusland Core Values: Accountability : We take ownership of the commitments we make, holding ourselves accountable for our actions and decisions, both to ourselves and those we lead.

Teamwork and Collaboration: Our roles are interdependent, requiring intentional collaboration within teams to consistently achieve our mission.

Communication: Effective communication is crucial for building trust among our staff, board, and the larger community. We strive to share information clearly, consistently, and in a timely manner to foster understanding and commitment across our organization.

Trust: We aim to cultivate mutual respect and open communication throughout the organization. Employees are encouraged to openly share their perspectives and feel secure in taking risks to enhance our effectiveness.

Integrity : Aligned with our guiding principles of honesty, fairness, and decency, we promote a strong ethic of integrity among individuals and leaders.

Lotusland is an equal opportunity employer. We acknowledge that equal employment opportunity for all persons is a fundamental human value. Each employee will be considered based on individual ability and merit, without regard to race, color, age, religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, sex, or marital status.

To learn more, visit us at

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