About this opportunity
State of Comics, LLC. lists this General Manager opportunity in northern, Kentucky. Review the employer’s description below for duties, qualifications and application requirements.
Job description
Position: General Manager
Employment Type: Full-Time, Salaried
Compensation: Negotiable based on relevant experience and qualifications
Schedule: Minimum 40 hours per week; typically 40+ hours, with potential for up to 50+ hours during high-volume periods, major events, releases, holidays, projects, or as business needs dictate.
Requirements: To be considered for the General Manager position, candidates should meet the following requirements:
5+ years of management experience , preferably in retail, hospitality, entertainment, specialty retail, or another fast-paced customer-facing environment
3+ years directly managing a team , including responsibility for scheduling, coaching, performance management, and accountability
Demonstrated experience building, improving, or repairing operational systems and processes
Experience managing payroll, labor budgets, staffing levels, and employee scheduling
Experience working with sales goals, KPIs, budgets, margins, inventory, and other business performance metrics
Strong understanding of inventory control, shrink prevention, receiving, merchandising, and operational accuracy
Proven ability to identify recurring problems, determine root causes, and implement long-term solutions
Experience documenting procedures, creating workflows, and turning informal practices into repeatable systems
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Ability to give clear direction, provide constructive feedback, and address performance issues directly and professionally
Strong organizational and time-management skills
Ability to manage multiple departments, priorities, deadlines, and projects at the same time
Ability to work independently and make sound decisions without constant owner involvement
Willingness to be hands-on and assist with any area of the business when needed
Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, holidays, major releases, and special events
Ability to consistently work 40+ hours per week , with the understanding that some periods may require 50–60 hours
Reliable transportation and consistent attendance
Ability to work on-site at State of Comics in Plymouth, Michigan
Preferred Qualifications: The following are not required, but would be considered a strong advantage:
Previous experience as a General Manager, Store Manager, District Manager, Operations Manager, or similar senior leadership role
Experience managing a retail operation with multiple departments or revenue streams
Experience in hobby retail, comics, trading card games, collectibles, tabletop gaming, bookstores, or specialty retail
Experience with e-commerce or omnichannel retail operations
Experience using Shopify or similar retail/e-commerce platforms
Experience with POS systems, inventory systems, scheduling software, and business reporting tools
Experience developing supervisors, managers, or department leads
Experience opening, expanding, restructuring, or scaling a retail operation
Experience creating SOPs and implementing new operational procedures
Experience managing events, organized play, or community-driven retail programs
Experience working directly with business owners in an entrepreneurial or independently owned company
Leadership Expectations: This role requires more than previous management experience. The General Manager must be someone who can:
Make decisions
Create structure where structure is missing
Hold people accountable
Develop employees instead of simply completing their work for them
Recognize when a process is broken
Build a better process
Follow through until the solution is actually implemented
Communicate problems before they become emergencies
Balance customer service, employee needs, and the financial needs of the business
Understand when to act independently and when ownership needs to be involved
We are looking for someone who is comfortable being responsible for results. This is not a position where success is measured by simply being present or completing a shift. The General Manager will be expected to make State of Comics operate better because they are here.
About State of Comics
State of Comics is an established, fast-paced, growing comic book and hobby retailer specializing in comics, graphic novels, manga, trading card games, tabletop games, collectibles, organized play, events, e-commerce, and more.
We are not a traditional retail environment where managers simply supervise a shift.
State of Comics is constantly moving, changing, and growing. Our leadership team is expected to be hands-on, solve problems, develop people, improve systems, create accountability, and take ownership of the business every day.
We have built a strong business with an established customer base, active departments, experienced employees, multiple product categories, a growing online presence, and a significant amount of day-to-day activity already in motion.
At the same time, we are very aware that parts of the internal operating system behind the business are not where they need to be.
That is a major reason this position exists.
Position Overview
The General Manager is responsible for the overall day-to-day operation and performance of State of Comics.
This is a senior leadership position responsible for ensuring that the store operates efficiently, employees are productive and accountable, customers receive exceptional service, company standards are consistently executed, and problems are addressed before they become larger issues.
The General Manager will work closely with ownership to help build the operational infrastructure State of Comics needs for its next stage of growth.
There are areas of the business that are too dependent on ownership, processes that are inconsistent, responsibilities that are not always clearly defined, departments that need stronger structure, and systems that have grown organically rather than intentionally.
We are hiring a General Manager in large part to help build and repair that operating system.
This is not a role for someone who expects to inherit a perfectly organized company and simply maintain it.
We need someone who can walk into an active, fast-moving business, understand what is happening, identify where systems are breaking down, and help build the structure necessary for the company to operate more consistently and scale successfully.
The General Manager will work with ownership to:
Identify broken or inconsistent processes
Establish clear ownership and accountability
Build repeatable systems and procedures
Improve communication between departments
Develop managers and department leaders
Create stronger follow-through and reporting
Reduce unnecessary dependence on ownership
Turn developing areas of the business into reliable, functioning departments
Help create an operation that can continue to grow without becoming increasingly chaotic
We are not expecting the General Manager to personally do everything.
We are expecting them to help create a system where the right people know what they own, have what they need to succeed, are held accountable for results, and can operate effectively without constant intervention from ownership.
The General Manager should be able to operate the store independently and make sound decisions without requiring constant direction.
This position requires someone who is comfortable balancing leadership, systems-building, and hands-on work.
There will be days spent coaching employees, reviewing performance, planning schedules, analyzing results, documenting processes, or improving workflows.
There will also be days where the General Manager needs to jump onto a register, receive inventory, clean the store, help fulfill orders, solve a customer problem, merchandise product, support an event, or handle whatever else the business requires.
No task is beneath the General Manager.
Primary Responsibilities
Store Operations: Oversee the daily operation of State of Comics and ensure the store is organized, productive, properly staffed, and prepared for business.
Maintain high standards for cleanliness, merchandising, organization, inventory handling, opening and closing procedures, cash controls, safety, and overall store presentation.
Identify operational problems and implement solutions rather than waiting for ownership to discover or resolve them.
Ensure company policies, procedures, and expectations are being followed consistently.
Ensure responsibilities are clearly assigned and completed.
Develop processes where processes do not currently exist or where existing processes are not producing consistent results.
Recognize recurring problems and address the underlying cause rather than repeatedly treating the symptoms.
Team Leadership & Accountability: Lead, coach, develop, and hold employees accountable to State of Comics standards.
Set clear expectations and follow up to ensure assigned work is completed correctly and on time.
Manage employee performance, including coaching, documentation, corrective action, recognition, and development.
Help create a culture where employees take ownership of their responsibilities rather than waiting to be told what to do.
Ensure managers, department leads, and employees communicate effectively across departments and shifts.
Develop employees who demonstrate leadership ability and help them take on greater responsibility.
Address poor performance, missed expectations, attendance issues, lack of follow-through, and behavioral concerns promptly and professionally.
The General Manager should create clarity around a simple question: Who owns this? Every important responsibility should have a clear answer.
Scheduling & Labor Management: Create and maintain employee schedules based on business needs, employee availability, events, workload, expected sales volume, major releases, and company priorities.
Monitor payroll and scheduled labor to ensure staffing levels are appropriate for the needs of the business.
Make adjustments when necessary to maintain both customer service standards and responsible labor spending.
Ensure appropriate management coverage and staffing for major releases, events, weekends, holidays, and other high-volume periods.
Monitor scheduled hours versus actual hours worked.
Identify unnecessary overtime, inefficient scheduling, underutilized labor, and coverage gaps.
Labor should be treated as an investment that must produce appropriate results—not simply a fixed schedule repeated every week regardless of business needs.
Customer Experience Maintain an exceptional standard of customer service throughout the store.
Handle escalated customer concerns professionally and work toward solutions that protect both the customer relationship and the business.
Coach employees on customer interactions and ensure customers are acknowledged, assisted, and treated with respect.
Ensure customer concerns are not ignored, passed around indefinitely, or unnecessarily escalated to ownership.
Identify recurring customer service problems and address their underlying causes.
Build long-term customer relationships and help maintain State of Comics as a welcoming destination for experienced hobbyists, families, collectors, gamers, and customers completely new to comics and gaming.
Sales & Business Performance: Understand store sales performance and work with ownership to achieve company goals.
Regularly review sales results and understand where the business is ahead of or behind expectations.
Ensure employees understand current promotions, products, events, major releases, and company priorities.
Take ownership of store performance rather than viewing individual departments or problems as someone else’s responsibility.
When a category, department, or initiative is underperforming, the General Manager should work with ownership and the appropriate employee or department lead to determine why and develop a plan to improve it.
Identify opportunities to:
Increase sales
Improve merchandising
Increase employee productivity
Improve conversion
Strengthen underperforming departments
Reduce unnecessary expenses
Improve the overall customer experience
Inventory & Merchandising: Ensure incoming inventory is received, processed, priced, merchandised, and made available for sale accurately and efficiently.
Maintain high standards for product organization and presentation throughout the store.
Work with department leads and ownership to identify inventory issues, shrink, discrepancies, slow-moving merchandise, and merchandising opportunities.
Ensure receiving procedures are consistently followed.
Help ensure high-demand releases and major product launches are properly planned and executed.
Identify recurring inventory errors and implement systems, training, or accountability necessary to prevent them.
Ensure inventory backlogs do not become accepted as normal operations.
Events & Community: The General Manager is responsible for supporting and developing the Events Coordinator and ensuring they have the resources, staffing, information, training, structure, and management support necessary to succeed.
The Events Coordinator manages the planning and execution of State of Comics' organized play, tournaments, prereleases, community events, and other gaming programs. The General Manager's responsibility is to create an environment where the Events Coordinator can successfully own that role.
This includes:
Maintaining regular communication regarding upcoming events, priorities, challenges, and deadlines
Ensuring appropriate staffing and store coverage are available for events
Removing operational roadblocks
Ensuring access to necessary information, tools, supplies, prize support, space, and other resources
Establishing clear expectations and accountability
Providing coaching, feedback, training, and support when needed
Coordinating event needs with the overall store schedule and business priorities
Ensuring clear communication between the Events Coordinator, management, employees, and ownership
Reviewing event performance and identifying opportunities to improve attendance, customer experience, execution, and profitability
Helping build repeatable systems around event planning and execution
Stepping in when necessary to resolve problems or ensure successful execution
The General Manager is not expected to personally perform every responsibility of the Events Coordinator. Their responsibility is to manage, support, develop, and hold the Events Coordinator accountable while giving them what they need to successfully own their department. The goal should be to make the Events Coordinator increasingly successful and independent—not to continually take responsibilities away from them.
Growth, Systems & Business Development: A central responsibility of this role is helping State of Comics build the operational infrastructure necessary for its next stage of growth.The General Manager will be expected to evaluate areas of the business that are incomplete, inconsistent, inefficient, or overly dependent on ownership and help turn them into structured, repeatable, accountable parts of the company.
This may include:
Building or rebuilding operational procedures
Clarifying roles, responsibilities, and decision-making authority
Creating workflows that reduce mistakes and missed deadlines
Establishing measurable standards for departments and employees
Developing reporting and accountability systems
Improving delegation and follow-through
Building management routines and communication structures
Training employees and department leads to operate more independently
Identifying where additional staffing, technology, or resources are needed
Eliminating unnecessary bottlenecks
Improving how departments communicate with one another
Turning informal practices into documented, repeatable systems
Helping developing revenue streams become organized, measurable, and profitable
Building departments that currently exist but are not yet functioning at their full potential
Creating systems that can continue working as State of Comics grows
The General Manager should expect to encounter areas where the answer is not already written down. They should be capable of helping create the answer. We want someone who can look at a recurring problem and ask:
Why does this keep happening?
Then build the process, accountability, training, staffing, technology, or structure necessary to prevent it from continuing. The goal is not bureaucracy for the sake of bureaucracy. Systems should make the business easier to operate, easier to understand, easier to measure, and easier to grow.
Measurable Accountability & Performance Standards: The General Manager will be evaluated not only on effort, but on the measurable performance and operational health of State of Comics. Specific numerical targets may be established or adjusted by ownership based on seasonality, business conditions, company growth, and current priorities.
Sales Performance:
Meet or exceed company-established sales goals
Review sales performance regularly
Understand where the store is ahead of or behind expectations
Identify declining categories, missed opportunities, and areas of growth
Develop and execute plans with ownership and department leaders to improve underperforming areas
Ensure promotions, new releases, major product launches, and sales initiatives are properly executed
Identify measurable opportunities to increase revenue and profitability
Payroll & Labor:
Maintain payroll within company-established labor targets
Build schedules based on projected sales, workload, events, and actual business needs
Monitor scheduled versus actual labor
Address unnecessary overtime
Address inefficient scheduling
Address attendance and punctuality issues
Address unproductive labor
Ensure appropriate management coverage
Ensure reducing payroll does not come at the expense of customer service or critical operational needs
Employee Performance:
Ensure every employee has clearly defined responsibilities and expectations
Conduct regular employee coaching and performance conversations
Complete formal employee reviews according to company-established schedules
Address performance and behavioral issues promptly rather than allowing problems to continue
Document corrective action when appropriate
Develop employees who demonstrate the ability and desire to take on additional responsibility
Hold managers and department leaders accountable for the performance of their areas
Improve overall employee productivity and accountability
Reduce the amount of owner intervention required to manage routine employee issues
Inventory Accuracy & Loss Prevention:
Maintain accurate inventory
Investigate significant discrepancies
Reduce preventable shrink, loss, damage, and inventory handling errors
Ensure receiving and inventory procedures are consistently followed
Identify recurring inventory problems and implement corrective procedures
Escalate significant inventory discrepancies or suspected theft immediately
Measure whether inventory-related mistakes are decreasing over time
Receiving & Product Processing:
Ensure incoming product is received and processed within company-established deadlines
Ensure new releases and high-demand products are ready for sale by their scheduled release dates
Prevent unnecessary backlogs of unprocessed inventory
Ensure pricing, quantities, product placement, and merchandising are accurate
Identify why recurring receiving delays occur and correct the underlying problem
Customer Service
Maintain State of Comics' customer service standards across all employees and departments
Resolve escalated customer issues promptly
Identify recurring customer complaints and correct the underlying operational problem
Coach employees when customer service expectations are not being met
Ensure customer issues requiring ownership involvement are escalated appropriately rather than ignored
Reduce recurring customer service failures
Store Standards:
Maintain consistent standards for cleanliness, organization, merchandising, safety, and presentation
Complete regular walkthroughs of the store
Address deficiencies when they are identified
Ensure opening, closing, cash-handling, cleaning, and operational procedures are consistently followed
Maintain a store that is customer-ready throughout the business day—not only at opening
Events:
The General Manager will be measured on their ability to create the conditions necessary for the Events Coordinator to succeed. This includes ensuring:
Event staffing needs are addressed in advance
Necessary resources and operational support are available
Problems brought to management's attention are addressed promptly
Event-related deadlines and responsibilities are clearly assigned
The Events Coordinator receives regular communication, coaching, and feedback
Recurring execution problems are addressed rather than repeatedly accepted
Event performance and opportunities for improvement are reviewed
Systems are developed to make event execution more consistent and predictable
The General Manager is accountable for supporting the Events Coordinator's success without unnecessarily taking over the Events Coordinator's responsibilities.
Systems & Operational Improvement: The General Manager will be evaluated on whether the business becomes easier to operate, more predictable, and less dependent on ownership over time.
Examples of measurable progress include:
Recurring operational problems decrease
Fewer responsibilities require repeated owner follow-up
Department responsibilities become clearly defined
Employees understand who owns specific tasks and decisions
Deadlines are consistently met
Managers and department leads provide updates without being chased
Key processes become documented and consistently followed
Inventory and operational errors decrease
Staffing and scheduling become more predictable
Problems are escalated earlier
Projects move from discussion to implementation and completion
Developing departments become increasingly self-sufficient
Ownership spends less time resolving routine operational issues
Employees and managers demonstrate greater accountability
Business performance can be tracked through reliable metrics rather than guesswork
Business Development: The General Manager will also be evaluated on their ability to help strengthen and grow developing areas of the company. Success may include:
Previously inconsistent processes becoming reliable and repeatable
Clear ownership being established for responsibilities that previously required frequent intervention
Departments operating with greater independence
Improved employee capabilities and leadership
New systems being implemented and followed
Fewer recurring operational problems
Reduced dependency on ownership for routine decisions
New or developing revenue streams becoming organized and measurable
Identified opportunities being converted into actionable plans
Projects moving from discussion to implementation and completion
Not every initiative will succeed.
The expectation is that opportunities are evaluated intelligently, results are measured, lessons are applied, and unsuccessful initiatives are adjusted or discontinued rather than allowed to consume resources indefinitely.
Communication & Reporting:
Maintain regular communication with ownership regarding store performance, staffing, significant customer issues, inventory concerns, upcoming events, and operational challenges
Communicate significant problems early rather than after they have become emergencies
Provide requested sales, payroll, staffing, inventory, and operational information accurately and on time
Come to ownership with potential solutions—not simply a list of problems
Ensure information from ownership is communicated to the appropriate managers and employees
Establish reporting systems where necessary so important information does not depend on ownership asking for it
Execution & Follow-Through: One of the most important measures of success in this position is follow-through.When a task, project, problem, or responsibility is assigned:
There is a clear owner
There is a clear deadline
Progress is followed up on
Problems are communicated
The responsibility is completed
Completion is verified
Ownership should not need to repeatedly ask whether something was completed. The General Manager should establish a culture where responsibilities move from discussion to execution.
What We're Looking For
The ideal candidate is an experienced leader who is organized, accountable, decisive, adaptable, and comfortable operating in a rapidly changing environment. Candidates should possess:
Previous management experience, preferably in retail or another high-volume customer-facing business
Experience directly managing and developing employees
Experience building or improving operational systems and processes
Strong leadership and communication skills
Excellent organizational and time-management abilities
Ability to prioritize multiple responsibilities simultaneously
Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills
Experience working with sales goals, payroll budgets, inventory, and business metrics
Ability to identify root causes rather than repeatedly solving the same problem
Ability to create processes where structure is lacking
Ability to give and receive direct feedback professionally
Willingness to work alongside the team and perform any task necessary to keep the business operating
Dependability and the ability to work independently without constant supervision
Availability to work evenings, weekends, holidays, major releases, and special events when required
Experience with comics, trading card games, tabletop gaming, collectibles, or hobby retail is beneficial, but strong management and operational experience is more important than simply being knowledgeable about the products we sell.
We can teach someone about comics.
We need someone who already knows how to lead, build systems, and develop people.
Schedule & Expectations: This is a full-time salaried leadership position.
A minimum of 40 hours per week is expected. Depending on business needs, the General Manager should expect to work approximately 40–50 hours per week , with periods potentially reaching 50–60 hours , particularly during major releases, events, holidays, staffing shortages, major projects, or other high-volume periods.
The General Manager must have scheduling flexibility. This is not a Monday-through-Friday office position. The schedule will vary based on the needs of the business. Must be available Nights and Weekends.
Compensation: Salary is negotiable and will be determined based on the candidate's management experience, retail experience, industry knowledge, systems-building experience, leadership background, and overall qualifications.
What Success Looks Like: A successful General Manager helps create a business that does not require ownership to personally manage every daily detail.
Employees know what is expected of them. Managers and department leaders have what they need to succeed. Responsibilities have clear owners. Schedules make sense for the business. Payroll is controlled. Inventory gets processed. Customers are taken care of. Events are supported. Developing areas of the business become functioning departments and processes. Broken systems are identified and rebuilt. Recurring problems become less frequent. Deadlines are met. The store is clean, organized, merchandised, and ready for customers. Employees are held accountable. Managers communicate. Projects get completed. Ownership knows what is happening without needing to chase down information. The business becomes more organized, more predictable, more scalable, and less dependent on ownership for routine operation. Most importantly, the General Manager takes ownership. When something isn't working, they don't simply identify the problem. They make sure it gets fixed.
#J-18808-Ljbffr
Who can apply
Review the original listing for work authorization, qualifications and employer requirements.