Mark Taggart
Bishopton
Summary
As a Store Manager for over 15 years, I have expertise in leadership development, delivering operational standards and driving operational efficiency. My focus remains on creating a positive shopping experience while supporting organisational goals.
Overview
2026
2026
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work history
Store Manager
Sainsburys
Multiple sites across West of Scotland
10.2010 - Current
- Leading teams of up to 18 leaders and 350 to 420 colleague as an inspiring visible leader, I am accountable for taking a longer term view (12 months) and delivering Retail and Digital outcomes, focused on Customer, Financial, Operational and Colleagues. I plan, monitor and take action to improve store performance and standards (working in a safe & legal environment).
- I build, lead and deliver customer plans, driving sales through understanding local demographics and competitors. In conjunction with out loyalty program and customer listening I successfully adapted my store range delivering a 12% outperformance to sales budget.
- Leading and role modelling great service and service leadership, passionately talking to customers about value and innovation, understanding their needs and taking appropriate action to improve their shopping experience. My customer satisfaction score is a key strength and I am currently performing at +5% above target which is also 6% above corporate average.
- I raise the bar on my performance targeting my personal development and developing my direct reports on their career paths. I am very proud to have supported 6 of the current store manager population on their journeys.
- I create an environment where everyone feels heard, where colleagues feel safe to challenge the ways things are done. I have led the regional colleague forum to improve communications delivering engagement scores of +70%
- I hold weekly and periodic team meetings with my store team communicating how we are doing and working together to support delivering Retail outcomes.
- I create and role modelling an inclusive culture within my store, working together with my team to take actions that has a positive impact.
- I lead my store leadership team on the floor, using data and insights when reviewing our store priorities and plans to achieve our commercial and customer outcomes, celebrating success and taking improvement actions where appropriate.
- I lead with a performance edge focus, coaching, supporting and developing my team, ensuring honest feedback drives improvement to our plans and individuals performance. Ensuring people, performance management and talent processes are consistently applied.
- Leading change delivery in store, connecting change with what it means for 'us' and 'why' we are making the change to grow as a business before the 'what' and 'how', delivering high engagement and colleague buy in through story telling.
- Continuously develop myself as an operational expert across the whole store and region, leading delivery of operating models, coaching my team and peers to follow the correct processes at all times.
- Working together across our brands to build strong relationships with Argos peers to understand their business and take co-ownership to spotting, developing and mobilising talent.
- I work effectively with 3rd parties more recently understanding the business model of 3rd parties e.g. Uber, Just Eat to support delivering sales growth in new channels and communicating with in store concessions to deliver a great experience for our customers.
- Leading, supporting and delivering any allocated lead or project work within the agreed timelines and outcomes. I have led regional project work on stock loss initiatives reducing wastage % to sales by 0.5% v budget for the year, lead operational efficiency program and currently lead the performance agenda for the region to name a few.
- Making a difference to our local community as an ambassador for the company and supporting my team to do the same.
Lean Coach
Sainsburys
West of Scotland / Northern Ireland
- Multi site coaching landing corporate lean efficiencies to support cost reduction across 2 regions.
- Delivery and on going coaching across 24 stores on lean principles engaging with both peers and senior leaders to influence ch
- Managing my own time to enable me to spend the right time in the right locations to land the program at pace, prioritising outlying performance.
Deputy manager
Sainsburys
Glasgow
02.2003 - 10.2010
- My role as a Deputy Store Manager was to deliver the store outcomes and store manager goals in the absence of my store manager.
- Make decisions at pace in absence of store manager and stand by them.
- My planning horizons were weekly to monthly with 3 to 6 month strategy building with team.
Department manager
Sainsburys
Scotland
02.1998 - 02.2003
- Leading team across Produce, Fresh Foods, Grocery, Nightshift, Counter and cafe during my time as a department manager learning all aspects of the store operation from the ground up.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Networking and Computing
Caledonian University
Glasgow 08/2002 - 05/2005
Skills
- Leadership development and mentoring
- Customer experience
- Communication
- Performance management
- Value-based leadership
- Inventory and loss management
- Visual merchandising
- Budgeting and Profit and loss management
- Strategic planning
- Data analysis
- Market and competitor analysis
- Change management
- Health and Safety Compliance
Accomplishments
- My proudest achievement as a store manager was being recognised regionally, by leading the store of the year in 3 separate occasions on different stores.
- My greatest accomplishment as a store manager was delivering all my profit and loss measures, customer and colleague measures in the toughest of environments while delivering the Best Christmas Ever with record breaking sales for my store delivering the highest sales performance in Scotland.
Mentoring
In my spare time I offer my leadership experience in the form of mentoring to leaders of the future and have been involved in women in the work place mentoring programs.
Certification
- Personal License and premise licence holder
- IOSHH Risk management
References
References available upon request.
Timeline
Store Manager
Sainsburys
10.2010 - Current
Deputy manager
Sainsburys
02.2003 - 10.2010
Department manager
Sainsburys
02.1998 - 02.2003
Lean Coach
Sainsburys
Bachelor of Science - Networking and Computing
Caledonian University
08/2002 - 05/2005