General Manager – Switzerland
Location: London (initial 6+ months, Hybrid – 3 days from the office, two days from home), then Zurich (remote work)
Reports to: CEO
Start date: Q3 2026
Type: Full-time, permanent
About August
August is a full-service real estate development and lifestyle company, based in London. We create and manage beautifully designed holiday home collections across Europe, each one rooted in the character of its place, shaped by Studio RL, and looked after with the kind of care that makes arriving feel effortless.
Our homeowners are globally mobile families and individuals who want the beauty of a second home without the weight of managing one. We give them that, through considered design, seamless service, and a community built around how they want to live.
Founded in 2018, August has grown steadily into a premier platform for European holiday homes. We are now entering our most ambitious phase of growth.
The Switzerland market
Switzerland is one of August’s priority markets, and one of its most significant opportunities. The General Manager will own it entirely: strategy, team, pipeline, and performance, with a dedicated local team and full support from London across brand, CRM, training, and sales enablement. This is not a regional outpost. It is a fully resourced commercial operation with a clear mandate: build a market that sustains 100 share conversions per year.
Why this role, and why now
August is changing the way it sells. We are focused on premium collections. That shift demands a fundamentally different approach: consultative, relationship-led, unhurried. Gravitas at every touchpoint. Brand alignment from first conversation to signed agreement.
We need someone who understands that instinctively. Someone who has spent a career building trust with people who expect the best and who knows that the best relationships are never rushed.
This is a founding role in the truest sense. You’ll begin embedded with August’s leadership team in London, learning the business from the inside, contributing to strategy, and building the foundations of the Swiss operation, before relocating to Zurich to lead the market on the ground. We’re open to someone currently based in the UK who is open to move to Switzerland, or an expat with Swiss roots who sees this as the right moment to return.
The role
As General Manager, you’ll own the full commercial journey for August in Switzerland, from first introduction to signed share agreement. You’ll be the most senior August presence in the market: leading the team, setting the strategy, and representing the brand at the moments that matter most.
The homeowners you’ll be working with are discerning, globally mobile, and unhurried. They respond to authenticity, taste, and a genuine understanding of how they want to live. You’ll earn their trust over months through thoughtful introductions, immersive property experiences, and the kind of patient, considered relationship-building that never feels like selling.
What you’ll own:
Maket leadership
- Own the Switzerland P&L against a double digit net revenue target
- Set local strategy in close alignment with HQ
- Report regularly to the CEO on pipeline progress, market intelligence, and team performance
- Represent August at all senior touchpoints across the region
Team
- Hire, lead, and develop your local team: a Sales Director, Sales Manager, and Marketing Lead
- Create an environment where high standards and genuine care for colleagues go hand in hand
- Coach your team through a sales journey defined by patience, craft, and deep respect for the people you work with
Pipeline and conversion
- Build and manage a warm prospect pipeline across four sourcing channels: private office and agent networks, brand partnership events, and targeted digital and PR
- Guide your team through a nurture cycle that is frictionless and focused: these are relationships that take months, never a hard sell
- Host immersive property previews at August homes, curating experiences that show the seamless service proposition at its best
Network development
- Cultivate referral relationships with wealth managers, private bankers, family offices, lifestyle concierges, and existing homeowners
- Build connections that deepen over time and generate introductions that matter across the Swiss and broader DACH community
Brand, events and partnerships
- Work with August’s events and partnerships team to activate brand collaborations, key sporting partners, private schools, cultural moments, and the gatherings where the right people come together
- Represent August at select industry events, art fairs, and wherever the right audiences gather
Collaboration with London HQ
- Work hand-in-hand with August’s marketing team on digital strategy, content, and prospect intelligence
- Brief the design and creative team on collateral needs and contribute to the broader August commercial team’s learning
Who you are
This role sits at the intersection of entrepreneurship and hospitality. We need someone who can build something significant, but who does it with warmth, taste, and a genuine respect for the people around them.
Essential:
- Significant experience in HNW relationship management: private banking, family offices, luxury real estate, superyacht brokerage, or premium hospitality at the highest level
- C-suite or Director level, with 20+ years of commercial experience and board-level presence
- A genuine entrepreneurial instinct: comfortable building a pipeline, creating opportunities, and operating without a rigid script
- An established network within the Swiss HNW community, whether built locally or maintained from abroad
- A natural collaborator who understands that the best results come from working closely with marketing, design, events, and leadership
- Polished, credible, and warm: as comfortable at a Michelin dinner as at a private view, a vineyard, or a sailing week in the Mediterranean
- A storyteller who can articulate what makes August different, through conviction and lived understanding, not a pitch
- Fluent in German, and in English
Currently based in the UK, or able to work from the UK for a minimum of six months, we also welcome applicants with Swiss roots who are ready to return
- Willing to travel significantly across Europe
Desirable:
- Additional European languages, particularly French or Italian
- Experience across multiple HNW sectors
- Familiarity with HubSpot, Gong, and AI-enabled sales tools
- Deep knowledge of the Swiss or DACH market
AI & Ways of Working
All August team members are expected to progress through the August AI framework. For this role, you will be expected to be on level L1 with a clear pathway to get to L2:
L1: Projects, Skills & Connectors (starting point)
- Create Claude Projects with persistent context about your role, team, or clients
- Connect Claude to Google Drive, Gmail, Calendar, and other tools to build a live knowledge base
- Use connectors so Claude can read your actual files, emails, and data when answering
- Build and save custom instructions and Skills so Claude works consistently for your recurring tasks
L2: Agents & Prototypes (progression goal)
- Build AI agents in Claude that can take actions, not just generate text
- Create working prototypes and interactive tools using Claude Artifacts
- Use Claude Cowork to collaborate with teammates and AI together in real time
- Connect Claude to external tools and data sources to automate multi-step workflows
What we offer
- Competitive compensation: a performance-led salary alongside commission and bonus structures that reflect the ambition of the role
- The August way of working: high-performance, entrepreneurial, fewer meetings, more craft
- A structured onboarding period in London, working directly alongside the leadership team before the move to Zurich
- Clear progression paths and dedicated mentorship within a company that is growing deliberately and well
- 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, company closure over Christmas, and early finishes on selected Fridays through the summer
- Private health insurance following a successful probation period, and automatic pension enrolment
- A company-provided laptop and setup built for the way you work
- An inclusive, diverse, and genuinely supportive team
August values
Resourcefulness – Ownership – Urgency – Kindness – Excellence – Openness
How this role works
You’ll begin your time with August in London, embedded with the leadership team, building your understanding of the business, and laying the groundwork for the Swiss market. After an initial period of six months or more, you’ll relocate to Zurich to lead the operation on the ground.
This structure is intentional. The strongest market leaders at August understand the business deeply before they build independently.
We work in a quiet, considered way. We expect you to do the same.
