Operations Director | Riyadh

Role overview

Position: Operations Director

Location: Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Employment: Full-time, senior leadership

Business: Luxury floral boutique, hospitality programmes, events and special projects

Reporting: Riyadh Board, with day-to-day co-leadership alongside the Executive Director — Brand, Clients & Stakeholder Relations

Languages: Fluent professional English required. Arabic is a strong advantage.

We are not a conventional flower company

Daniel Ost is a house of floral artistry, rooted in Belgium and active internationally. Nature is our medium. Proportion, movement, texture and emotion shape the work. From intimate gestures to architectural installations, we create floral expressions that transform spaces and give exceptional moments their own identity.

Our clients include private individuals, luxury houses, leading hotels, royal and institutional environments, cultural organisations and event partners. Every commission is approached with authorship, craftsmanship, discretion and an uncompromising eye for detail.

Flowers are authored. Beauty is never accidental, and creative ambition is only meaningful when it is delivered with precision.

Daniel Ost in Riyadh

Riyadh is one of the most dynamic luxury markets in the world: ambitious, culturally rich and defined by an extraordinary sense of hospitality. Our Riyadh business brings the Daniel Ost house to this setting through three complementary activities:

• A luxury floral boutique for private, corporate and gifting clients.
• Recurring floral programmes for leading hotels and hospitality environments.
• Bespoke celebrations, events, installations and special projects.

These activities must perform as one business: commercially focused, operationally disciplined and unmistakably Daniel Ost.

How we work

• Artistry with discipline. We protect creative ambition while understanding scope, timing, resources and economics.
• Personal ownership. Senior leaders remain close to clients, teams and projects, from the first conversation to final delivery.
• Discretion and cultural intelligence. Judgement, confidentiality and sensitivity to context are essential.
• Collaboration across borders. Riyadh and Belgium bring together local insight, international perspective, creativity and execution.
• High standards, low ego. The best result matters more than individual territory. We challenge constructively and act decisively.

The opportunity

We are looking for an Operations Director to co-lead Daniel Ost Riyadh and take primary responsibility for the commercial and operational performance of the business.

You will lead daily operations, people, sales conversion, financial delivery and the reliable execution of boutique, hospitality and event activities.

This is a visible, hands-on leadership role. You will be equally credible in a senior client conversation, a commercial review, a team briefing, a supplier negotiation and the final hours before an important installation.

You will work closely with the Executive Director — Brand, Clients & Stakeholder Relations, supported by the Riyadh Board and the wider Daniel Ost group.

Your mandate: Build a stronger, more profitable and scalable Riyadh business without losing the creative integrity, personal service or sense of occasion that define Daniel Ost.

What you will do

Lead the business and its performance

• Own the operating plan, budget, forecast and P&L for Daniel Ost Riyadh.
• Drive revenue growth, healthy margins, cash discipline and stronger performance across all business streams.
• Turn management information into clear priorities, timely decisions and corrective action.

Build commercial momentum

• Maintain a focused sales pipeline and ensure qualified opportunities move forward with pace and discipline.
• Lead commercial conversion and contribute actively to important pitches alongside the Executive Director.
• Translate client ambitions into clear proposals, sound costings and deliverable commitments.
• Support renewals, upselling and long-term relationships through excellent delivery and follow-through.

Elevate the boutique and client experience

• Own boutique performance, staffing, fulfilment, presentation, service standards and retail rhythm.
• Create an experience that feels personal, refined and consistent across physical and digital orders.
• Build the routines, visibility and accountability needed to grow the boutique sustainably.

Deliver exceptional hospitality programmes

• Ensure every recurring floral programme is beautifully executed, operationally reliable and commercially healthy.
• Build trusted relationships with hotel teams and respond to service issues quickly and thoughtfully.
• Protect consistency while continuously looking for ways to strengthen each partnership and its creative expression.

Own events and special projects

• Lead major assignments from approved proposal through planning, production, logistics, installation and post-project review.
• Bring client, creative, floral, supplier and installation workstreams together around one clear delivery plan.
• Protect scope, timing, quality and profitability while remaining responsive to the realities of high-end events.

Lead people and build culture

• Lead, schedule, coach and develop the Head Designer, floral team and operational support roles.
• Create clarity around expectations, ownership, feedback and standards of performance.
• Build a culture that combines craftsmanship, accountability, generosity, pace and client care.
• Lead recruitment, performance and team-development processes with the Executive Director and relevant leadership.

Strengthen operations and production

• Plan production and resource allocation across boutique, hospitality and events.
• Oversee flower purchasing, stock, quality, waste, logistics and supplier performance.
• Introduce practical systems that make the business more reliable, transparent and scalable.
• Maintain strong workplace organisation, administration and Saudi employment compliance.

Enable the creative standard

• Test feasibility, timing, resources and commercial fit early, so ambitious ideas can be realised well.
• Work closely with the Executive Director, Head Designer and Creative Director & Brand Guardian while respecting each role’s expertise.
• Know when to protect an idea, when to challenge it and how to make it possible without lowering the standard.

What success looks like

Success will be visible in the quality of the business, not simply in the volume of activity. We will look for progress across these outcomes:

• Sustainable revenue growth supported by a healthy pipeline and stronger conversion.
• Consistent margin and project-profitability discipline.
• A boutique that grows while delivering an exceptional client experience.
• Hospitality partnerships that are retained, valued and expanded through reliable service.
• Events and projects delivered beautifully, on time and within agreed budgets.
• A capable, motivated and accountable team supported by clear systems and leadership.
• A business platform ready for the next stage of profitable growth in Riyadh.

Your first twelve months

Phase one: Listen, understand and stabilise

Learn the Daniel Ost standard, build trust with the team and key clients, understand the economics of the business and establish a dependable operating rhythm.

Phase two: Strengthen performance

Improve the sales pipeline, proposal quality, conversion, boutique performance, hospitality consistency, project planning and management visibility.

Phase three: Build for the next stage

Create repeatable standards, develop the team and shape a credible plan for the next phase of profitable growth.

Who we are looking for

We are looking for a mature, commercially minded and culturally intelligent leader. You bring operational rigour without becoming bureaucratic, and aesthetic sensitivity without needing to be the floral designer.

You are motivated by responsibility and understand that in a creative luxury business, the smallest detail can carry the greatest meaning.

You can read a P&L and read a room. You can challenge a costing, inspire a team, reassure a demanding client and still understand why one creative detail matters.

The experience we value

• Substantial senior operations or general-management experience in luxury retail, premium hospitality, high-end events, experiential services, floral design or another relevant creative business.
• Strong P&L, budgeting, forecasting, pricing, project-costing and margin capability.
• A record of improving sales conversion, operational performance and client delivery.
• Experience leading multicultural teams and developing people through clear standards and constructive feedback.
• Strong project-management ability across simultaneous, time-sensitive and logistically complex assignments.
• Commercial procurement and supplier-management experience. Exposure to seasonal, perishable or quality-sensitive products is valuable.
• Experience in Saudi Arabia or the wider GCC is strongly preferred.
• Fluent professional English is required. Arabic is a strong advantage.

The person who will thrive here

• Hands-on, present and energised by responsibility.
• Calm under pressure and decisive without being rigid.
• Commercially ambitious while protective of quality, relationships and reputation.
• Structured, numerate and disciplined in follow-through.
• Collaborative and low-ego, with the maturity to co-lead and influence across different perspectives.
• Culturally aware, discreet and credible with senior clients, family stakeholders, hotel leadership and creative professionals.
• Adaptable to seasonal peaks, event-driven working patterns and occasional evening or weekend requirements.

Why work with Daniel Ost Riyadh

This is a rare opportunity to shape the business behind an internationally recognised creative house in a market of extraordinary energy and ambition.

The role offers genuine influence over growth, standards, people, client experience and the operating platform that makes exceptional work possible.

• Work at the intersection of artistry, luxury, hospitality and business.
• Collaborate closely with Saudi leadership and an internationally experienced Belgian group.
• Contribute to exceptional private, hospitality and event projects.
• Build a team and business platform with lasting impact in Riyadh.
• Join a house where precision, beauty and human experience matter equally.

Working in Riyadh

This is a full-time, on-site leadership role. The Operations Director is expected to be visible and accessible: present with the team, close to clients and actively engaged in the daily life of the business.

The working rhythm follows the needs of a luxury floral and events business. Strong planning should create stability, while occasional early starts, evenings or weekends will be part of delivering important installations and events.

What we offer

A visible senior leadership mandate, meaningful autonomy within a clear governance structure, close access to decision-makers and the opportunity to grow with the Riyadh business.

You will join a brand with international standing and a local operation with genuine room to shape its next chapter.

Remuneration: The package will combine fixed remuneration and a performance-related bonus, based on the selected candidate’s experience, expertise and results.

Ready to shape what comes next?

Apply through the form below with your CV and a concise note explaining why this role and Daniel Ost Riyadh resonate with you.

We would also like to hear about one business, team or client operation you have helped strengthen.

Applications will be reviewed with discretion. Selected candidates will be contacted directly for an initial conversation.

Apply for the Operations Director position