Chief Operating Officer (COO)

40+ Hours, Salaried

Based in Oneida, Tennessee

Reports to: Founders
Schedule: Minimum commitment of 40 hours per week, with flexibility to address operational needs
Travel: Regular travel to all Gather locations and the roastery required

About you:‍ ‍
We are preparing for a season of growth at Gather, and are looking for a highly experienced individual that can support this period. Culture is king at Gather, so the ideal candidate will be genuine, fun to work with, and take an active interest in the mission of growth. We are allergic to BS and drama, and want a candidate that has the same allergies.

Position Overview

Gather Coffee Company is seeking a hands-on Chief Operating Officer to lead daily operations across our cafés and roastery. This role is accountable for operational consistency, manager performance, profitability, and roastery revenue growth while preserving Gather’s commitment to community, craftsmanship, and authentic hospitality.

The COO will translate the founders’ vision into clear goals, effective systems, and measurable results. This person must be comfortable leading managers, reviewing financial performance, resolving employee concerns, and working alongside store teams when needed.

Key Responsibilities

Café Operations and Leadership

• Directly oversee location managers across all Gather stores, establishing clear expectations and holding managers accountable for results.

• Ensure each location meets standards for cleanliness, food safety, service quality, product consistency, and applicable legal requirements.

• Serve as the primary escalation point for managers and employees, resolving operational and personnel issues promptly and consistently.

• Conduct regular visits and quality reviews at every location, documenting findings and ensuring corrective actions are completed.

• Provide dependable leadership and decision-making when the founders are not present.

Financial Performance and Efficiency

• Monitor sales, labor costs, inventory, waste, operating expenses, and profitability by location.

• Provide brief business cases when investments or major changes in operations are proposed.

• Review location profit-and-loss statements and develop action plans to address underperformance.

• Interface with vendors as needed and ensure billing, and issues are addressed in a timely manner.

• Identify and implement improvements that strengthen service, reduce costs, and make operations more efficient.

• Manage operating budgets and spending within authority established by the founders.

• Improve purchasing, inventory controls, staffing practices, and operating procedures across the company.

Roastery Revenue Growth

• Own execution of roastery revenue goals across wholesale, e-commerce, and in-store sales.

• Develop new wholesale relationships, retain existing accounts, and identify opportunities to grow account sales.

• Coordinate roasting, inventory, fulfillment, and customer service to support reliable, profitable growth.

• Track revenue, margins, and sales activity against agreed targets.

People, Brand, and Systems

• Support manager hiring, onboarding, training, development, and performance management.

• Ensure managers maintain appropriate staffing and consistent employee accountability.

• Establish and maintain practical operating procedures, training materials, and quality standards.

• Ensure café and roastery operations consistently reflect Gather’s brand and hospitality standards.

• When needed, support managers with hiring and staff terminations.

• Support the founders with expansion and new locations.

Founder Reporting

• Provide a weekly report covering sales, profitability, labor performance, roastery growth, key wins, operational issues, and priorities.

• Clearly identify decisions requiring founder input and recommend solutions.

• Translate company priorities into measurable goals and follow through on execution.

• Attend video conferences as needed.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated leadership experience in multi-location hospitality, food service, retail, or a comparable operating environment.

• Ability to interpret financial reports and use operating data to improve performance.

• Strong manager coaching, communication, and problem-solving skills.

• Expertise in training and identifying gaps.

• Experience developing processes and holding teams accountable.

• Ability to balance strategic planning with direct involvement in daily operations.

• Coffee, roasting, wholesale sales, or e-commerce experience highly preferred.

• This position will be based out of the HQ location in Oneida, Tennessee.  Candidate must be located within commuting distance or be willing to relocate.

Measures of Success

Success will be evaluated through location profitability, labor and inventory performance, service and quality standards, manager effectiveness, roastery revenue and margin growth, and consistent execution of company priorities.

Ready to join a great company and team at an exciting time of growth?