Commercial Director

A bit about us...

The Sawdays group is a collection of exciting travel brands all centred on a passion for special places to stay (Sawdays Canopy & Stars Paws & Stay and Crown & Canopy). Since 2017 the company has been 52% employee-owned with the rest made up of a Charitable Trust and the founding family. Were proud to be B Corp certified and recognised by them as one of the top 5% places in the world for employees.

We are leaders in sustainable and ethical travel and every team in our business plays a vital role in achieving our impact goals. Our Impact Report outlines our five-year strategy and annual objectives which form the foundation of our company-wide approach. These goals drive every decision we make and we expect all team members to contribute to their success as part of our shared mission.

Your role Commercial Director

Were looking for a dynamic experienced and commercially driven leader to join our amazing business and deliver our brand strategies. This is a pivotal role with full responsibility and accountability for steering the commercial success of all four of our brands. Youll oversee sales marketing customer service product development operations & account management pricing data and budgets ensuring all departments work in harmony to deliver exceptional customer experiences and drive growth.

This is a hands-on position suited to someone who thrives in a fast-paced online B2C environment. You have a proven record in business development and a history of driving growth in fast-paced environments while maintaining the highest standards of quality and guest experience.

Ifyourea strategic thinker with the confidence commitment and commercial acumen to lead change inspire a high-performing teamseize new opportunitiesand develop our culturewedlove to hear from you.

Reports to

Managing Director

Works closely with

• All heads of departments and teams within our brands
• Part of the leadership team
  

Main tasks and responsibilities

Commercial Leadership & Strategy

• Contribute to the commercial strategies that support sustainable scalable growth
• Explore and develop new opportunities partnerships and revenue streams
• Lead on forecasting budgeting and reporting to ensure targets are met or exceeded
• Use market trends customer insights and performance data to inform decisions

Sales & Customer Success

• Oversee sales acquisition and e-commerce ensuring consistently high conversion
• Champion exceptional customer experience across onboarding support and account management
• Build collaborative relationships internally and externally
• Develop processes that enable scalable high-quality customer journeys

Marketing Pricing & Brand Growth

• Work with our marketing managers to shape brand development marketing activity and content strategies
• Ensure marketing activity reflects our values aligns with business goals and supports our leadership in sustainable and ethical travel
• Leads and optimises pricing strategies to enable profitability using the revenue management system

Operations & Development

• Support operational planning and delivery across business functions
• Work closely with product and development teams to evolve and strengthen our offering
• Introduce and refine ways of working that encourage efficiency performance and scalability
• Encourage clear open communication and alignment across teams

People & Culture

• Provide supportive inclusive motivational leadership for a small cross-functional team
• Foster a culture of trust shared accountability creativity and continuous improvement
• Encourage professional development through coaching feedback and mentorship
• Contribute to and help nurture our positive employee-owned culture

Necessary Skills and Experience

• Significant experience in senior commercial leadership
• Strategic and analytical with a strong track record in shaping and delivering growth plans
• Experience in high-growth environments ideally within an online business
• Background in supporting cross-functional teams
• Collaborative and empowering with the ability to motivate teams and enable high performance
• Flexible and comfortable working through change and uncertainty
• Deeply customer-focused committed to delivering exceptional service at every touchpoint
• Strong communication and people leadership skills
• A creative entrepreneurial and forward-thinking mindset

Salary & Benefits

• Circa 80000 per annum depending on experience
• 26 days holiday per year plus bank holidays
  
• Full-time 37.5 hours/5 days per week
  
• This role requires 4 days working in the office 1 day can be remote if that suits you
  
• Company pension scheme with enhanced employer contributions at 4% and an optional salary sacrifice scheme
  
• An employee-owned company: after your introductory period you will be eligible to a share of any dividends
  
• A special place to work: a colourful upcycled recycled open plan office on Bristols buzzing harbourside
  
• DEIBA Team: focused on diversity & inclusion efforts for our employees and customers
  
• 290 per year towards staying in one of our special places
  
• 20% employee discount and 10% family & friends discount on UK based Canopy & Stars breaks 15% discount on EU based breaks.
  
• 15% employee discount and 8% family & friends discount on Paws & Stay breaks in the UK.
  
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
  
• A volunteering day per year
  
• 15 wellbeing hours per year
  
• A Climate Journey Day policy which gives you the opportunity to earn up to two paid days per year to travel to and from a holiday destination using low-carbon transport.
  
• Social and wellbeing events held throughout the year
  

Applications

• Applicants need to be within a commutable distance of Bristol for in office working
  
• Closing date for applications: 28 February 2026

Our Behaviours and Values

How we work is just as important as the success we achieve at Sawdays. During your time with us you will be expected to treasure protect and embody our behaviours and values every day.

We celebrate quirkiness and difference

• We dance to the beat of our own drum
  
• We encourage curiosity and creativity
  
• We champion individuality and the special
  

We follow head and heart

• We are solidly commercial while flexible and human
  
• We are empathetic generous and supportive
  
• We make ethical holistic long-term decisions
  

We do important things brilliantly

• We use business as a force for social environmental and economic good
  
• We are committed to our craft and deliver with ambition and purpose
  
• We relish our role in sustaining a happy healthy world
  

We bring positive energy

• We foster a genuine spirit of togetherness and family
  
• We take pleasure in empowering and delighting others
  
• We are driven to learn grow connect and contribute
  

Finally

We place a strong emphasis on ethics people and the environment and it is important to us that you understand strongly identify with and are able to develop the company ethos.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and an inclusive company where diverse backgrounds and perspectives are valued and where everyone can bring their full authentic selves to work.

As a Disability Confident Employer we offer a guaranteed interview to any disabled candidate who meets all the Necessary skills listed above and is a commutable distance from the office.

If you need any further assistance with your application or require the application form in a different format please email Charlotte on or call 0.

Required Experience:

Director