Cellar Manager

Cellar Manager

Permanent Full-Time | Winery Operations

Company: Poulter Family HB Winery Limited

Location: Hawkes Bay

Role Summary

Responsible for coordinating and managing daily cellar and winery operations, supporting and leading a hands-on team to deliver safe, efficient, high-quality wine production in a fast-paced environment.

Poulter Group is a proudly 100% family‑owned New Zealand business built on hard work, care for our people, and a commitment to doing things properly. From orchard to vineyard, winery to bottling line, we grow, harvest, craft, bottle, and deliver quality wine through a vertically integrated, resilient, and future‑focused operation.

As ONE team, we are building a strong, profitable, and sustainable wine and produce business for the next generation.

About the Role

Poulter Family HB Winery is seeking an experienced and hands-on Cellar Manager to join our winery team. Reporting to the Chief Winemaker, this role is responsible for coordinating and managing daily cellar and winery operations, ensuring workflow is effectively planned, prioritised, and delivered in line with production schedules and winemaking priorities. Working closely with the winemaking team, you will play a key role in managing cellar staff, improving systems and processes, ensuring compliance, and supporting the ongoing success of our winery operations.

Your duties and responsibilities include

• Play a leading role in coordinating and managing daily cellar and winery operations, ensuring workflow is effectively planned, prioritised, and delivered in line with production schedules and winemaking priorities set by the Chief Winemaker.
• Manage, support and train Cellar Staff, including hands-on involvement as required, while contributing to the recruitment of fixed-term and vintage staff, induction programmes and roster management.
• Develop and maintain operating and capital expenditure (capex) budgets in conjunction with the Chief Winemaker.
• Review, update, and implement Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in conjunction with the Winemaking team to ensure consistency and compliance.
• Oversee the repair and maintenance (R&M) programme and serve as the key liaison to external contractors.
• Ensure site compliance, including wastewater and waste management, council liaison, and building Warrant of Fitness (WOF) requirements, while managing site services such as water, electricity, and gas supply and usage.
• Maintain site security controls and practices.
• Ensure high standards of cellar housekeeping and cleanliness are maintained, including all cleaning and sanitation activities (tanks, hoses, and equipment), to meet required standards and support product quality and compliance.
• Support food safety requirements, external audits, and certification processes (including SWNZ, WSMP, and BRC), while ensuring high food safety standards across cellar operations through consistent adherence to processes, hygiene practices, documentation, and traceability, maintaining compliance and ongoing audit readiness.
• Accountable for the effective management of health and safety within cellar operations, ensuring hazards are systematically identified, risks are appropriately controlled, and safe systems of work are consistently implemented and maintained.
• Actively seek and implement opportunities to enhance departmental operations, processes, and systems, drive innovation, and improve efficiency, quality, and overall performance, while supporting a culture of ongoing improvement and proactive problem-solving.

Qualifications & Experience

• Experience in cellar or winery operations, including winemaking processes, equipment, and wine, beverage, or chemical knowledge, within a production or manufacturing environment.
• Must have the legal right to work in New Zealand.
• Confined Space Entry Certificate (or willingness to obtain).
• A tertiary qualification in Winemaking, Viticulture, Food Technology, or a related discipline is an advantage.
• Experience with Vintrace winery management systems is considered an advantage.
• Proven experience working as part of a team, with demonstrated leadership and people management capability.

Skills & Competencies

We're looking for someone with:

• Strong operational planning and coordination skills within a winery or production environment.
• Strong problem-solving capability.
• Good numeracy and literacy skills.

Personal Attributes

You will bring:

• A hands-on leadership style with a willingness to support operational tasks and your team.
• Strong organisation skills and attention to detail.
• The ability to work effectively under pressure, particularly during vintage.
• Confidence in your communication and professional conduct.
• A respectful and inclusive approach to working with others.

How to Apply

If this role sounds like the right fit for you and you are excited about the opportunity to join the Poulter Group team, we would love to hear from you. Please click the " Apply " button and follow the prompts to submit your application.

If you would like to learn more about the role, the winery, or what it is like to be part of our team, please get in touch at ***email_hidden*** or [email protected].