Head of Marketing, THE DUSTY KNUCKLE Full Time NEW

SLT level: with ambition for Exec team

Reporting to: COO

Line manages: Social media manager and any adjacent agencies or external partners – web, design, digital etc.

Location: Dalston Office, but expected to be present at all sites regularly

Contract: Full Time

Salary: £55k+

Who we are?

The Dusty Knuckle Bakery is a purpose-driven business operating a wholesale bakery and busy cafés across North and East London.

Founded in 2014, The Dusty Knuckle began by baking a handful of loaves from a shipping container in a Dalston car park. It has since grown into a permanent café and wholesale bakery supplying some of London’s best food businesses, alongside a milk float, a permanent van in Highbury Fields, and a café-pizza restaurant in Haringey.

Awarded Time Out’s Best Bakery in London and a King’s Enterprise Award in 2025, The Dusty Knuckle is about more than great food. We train young people with offending histories, or those at risk of crime, into confident, responsible professionals. Every role at TDK supports this mission.

We are committed to making exceptional food using the finest ingredients, with everything produced in-house wherever possible.

Why work for us?

Part-bakery, part-cafe, part training-program, The Dusty Knuckle is a truly unique workplace. Join our team, and you will:

• be part of an expert crew with a detailed understanding of baking, cooking, hospitality and coffee
• have opportunities for career progression in a diverse and growing organisation with ambitions
• be given paid training opportunities

Enjoy our staff perks; At TDK, we offer:

• Paid training days
• Additional day’s holiday for every year worked
• Regular inhouse massages for staff
• Enhanced maternity and paternity
• Free staff food, coffee, bread and pastries every day
• Cycle to Work and Employee Tech Scheme
• Employee support and specialist third party wellbeing service
• Regular appraisals to develop person-specific career goals
• Free use of our Campervan (if over 25 and a clean UK license)
• Better gym membership discount

Role purpose

As the Head of Marketing, you will be the catalyst for keeping The Dusty Knuckle brand relevant and resonant with our customers. You’ll co-design and implement the brand pack used throughout the business, owning the marketing strategy to drive customer demand and grow audience, bringing market insights into everything from new product development (NPD) efforts through to impactful events. Your role will encompass the entire customer journey: whether a visit to our cafes or a digital interaction – you will ensure all touchpoints align with our overarching brand vision, ensuring we keep customers at the very heart of our decision making and ensuring high brand standards across all our key touchpoints.

Why apply for this role?

Join The Dusty Knuckle as the Head of Marketing to drive consistency and excellence in our branding and marketing efforts. This role is centred on understanding the market and the customer – spotting trends and opportunities and seamlessly communicating to the world using consistent brand language that you will need to speak fluently.

We are looking for someone who cherishes implementation and thrives on operational collaboration that turns innovative ideas into proactive plans/campaigns that drive sales.

If you are passionate about creating meaningful connections and making a real impact, this is the perfect opportunity to lead within a socially driven organisation.

This role would suit a highly competent marketeer with strong leadership attributes and a solid background in brand thinking, trend analysis and creative execution, who is passionate about driving customer-centric strategies in a socially responsible environment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Brand Development & Positioning:
• Help to shape and lead on executing The Dusty Knuckle’s brand identity (spanning both commercial and social impact) to reflect our core values while appealing to a diverse audience.
• Responsibilities:
• Deliver a compelling brand story that resonates across all channels and audiences.
• Manage and lead the social media team and any external agents to ensure consistent messaging / aesthetics and engagement that aligns with the brand voice.
• Ensure consistency in tone, messaging, and visual identity across all channels, adapting to customer feedback and market trends.
• Integrated Marketing Strategy:
• Lead the marketing calendar one year ahead and drive demand generation initiatives that enhance brand visibility and customer engagement across key opportunity trade areas (gifts, seasonal etc.).
• Responsibilities:
• Develop and execute all marketing for the company, from our usual product launches to seasonal campaigns
• Collaborate cross-functionally to align marketing efforts with retail operations and maximize key trading opportunities whilst aligning demand with operational capacity
• Bring market insight to all NPD: support the commercialization of new products through clear positioning, launch planning, operational synchronicity and performance analysis
• Take overall ownership for the sales impact of our marketing efforts
• Identify and pursue strategic collaborations and events that align with our brand and resonate with our audience
• Customer Experience & Engagement:
• Ensure that the brand experience is consistently delivered across all customer touchpoints, both in person and online.
• Responsibilities:
• Design, own and implement visual merchandising and customer interactions, ensuring they maximise sales and reflect brand values.
• Design and implement packaging, gift presentation, and promotional materials to enhance the customer journey.
• Manage website performance and digital sales channels to support overall business objectives.
• Drive engagement through effective online marketing strategies and social media presence, aligning efforts with operations in order to convert sales – for instance click and collect, QR ordering and other customer sales strategies
• Deploy external agencies as necessary to maximize any digital sales, removing friction from online purchase moments
• Data-Driven Insights, Trend analysis:
• Use analytics & trend analysis to inform marketing strategies and assess performance against business objectives, compiling regular reports to exec team.
• Responsibilities:
• Analyse sales data and customer feedback to refine product offerings and marketing tactics.
• Present actionable insights to the COO to ensure alignment with customer expectations and market trends.

You must be:

• Analytical Thinker: Proficient in using metrics and data to drive decisions and measure outcomes.
• Creative Communicator: Exceptionally skilled in writing to create engaging and impactful content.
• Organised and Proactive: Strong project management abilities with a collaborative mindset; well organised and personable.
• Passionate About Food: A genuine enthusiasm for the food and hospitality industry.
• Socially Conscious: Engaged with societal issues and understanding their intersection with marketing; opinionated and informed.
• Experienced in Growth Environments: A track record of success in dynamic, fast-paced settings, ideally within a growing business.
• Self-Starter: Capable of working independently while knowing when to collaborate and ask for help.
• Culturally Savvy: Experienced in multicultural marketing and understanding diverse audiences.
• Discerning Palate: A keen eye for food quality and presentation, with a genuine appreciation for culinary excellence.
• Positive Energy: Brings enthusiasm and positivity to the team environment

Instructions for application:

To apply for this position please email your CV via the button below, alongside a cover letter explaining why you would like to move on from your current role and why, based on the skills required for the role, you are a good fit for this role at The Dusty Knuckle. Please make sure you put the Subject of email application ‘HEAD OF MARKETING’

Deadline for applications 11th May.