Mark Wilson
Articlave
Summary
I am a caring and sociable person who enjoys working with people, both staff and customers. I very much enjoy providing a service to people which features in almost every job I have had and culminating in my role last year as cafe manager at the World Peace Cafe in Tara Buddhist Centre last year.
I am a trained barista since 2017 and love the atmosphere of working in busy environments where people are the main focus and where building rapport and relationships is key.
I am confident both working as part of a team and also working alone where I have to be proactive with excellent time management and a responsible attitude
Overview
9
9
years of post-secondary education
28
28
years of professional experience
Work history
Barista
The Orangery at Drenagh Estate
Limavady, Causeway Coast and Glens
2025.08 - 2026.07
- Addressed any customer complaints or issues promptly, ensuring customer satisfaction.
- Assisted in inventory control measures for effective stock management.
- Performed cash handling duties accurately to maintain financial integrity.
- Trained new staff members on café operations, fostering teamwork and consistency.
Barista
Al's Coffee
Limavady, Causeway Coast and Glens
2024.12 - 2025.07
- Managed high volume orders during peak hours maintaining quality of service.
- Upheld excellent relationships with regular clients fostering loyalty and repeat business.
- Implemented hygiene standards throughout café premises for public health safety compliance.
- Ensured freshness of pastries on display, contributing to overall quality assurance.
Barista
Maegden (grilled cheese and cheese supplies)
Bushmills
2024.02 - 2024.12
- Serving customers with a friendly manner and building relationships with local customers especially
- Making coffee to a high standard
- Having a good knowledge of the wide variety of products in our artisan food shop
- Sharing cleaning duties as part of the team including cleaning and maintenance of the coffee machine, using the dishwasher in the kitchen, cleaning tables between customers etc.
Cafe manager
World Peace Cafe at Tara Buddhist Centre
Etwall, Derbyshire
2023.03 - 2024.01
- Welcoming, training and being responsible for volunteers in a cafe entirely run by volunteers visiting from all over the world
- Monitoring stock levels and taking care of all ordering of supplies to ensure a
- Providing a warm environment for both volunteers and customers by building relationships and keeping a friendly and professional manner
- Working closely with other managers within Tara Centre itself to make the centre function in the best way for all and especially to prepare for larger events.
- Being responsible for the cafe menu, health and safety policies and all aspects which feed into running a safe, welcoming and busy cafe
Barista
Sea Shed Coffee & Surf
Benone
2017.04 - 2021.06
- Greeting customers with a friendly manner and building a rapport with regular customers
- Making coffee to a high standard in a busy environment for both local customers and visitors to the area
- Performing all opening and closing duties fully and accurately to maintain cleanliness of café equipment.
- Providing surf hire for customers on a walk in and pre-booked basis
Restaurant waiter
Richmond Hill Cafe & Larder
Melbourne, Australia
2011.09 - 2012.03
- Preparing tables for guests and reset tables between customers.
- Serving meals and drinks with professionalism and skill, maintaining high presentation and quality standards.
- Providing a friendly, courteous service in a fine dining environment including helping customers to match cheese and wine combinations
- Cleaned and set tables quickly after customers left to maximise restaurant capacity.
Fruit and vegetable picker
Dalbeg Farm
Queensland, Australia
2011.05 - 2011.08
- Selecting fruit and vegetables for picking according to size, colour and ripeness.
- Working effectively as part of a team in a fast paced and physically demanding environment to meet quotas and to guaranteed quality
Administrative assistant
Northern Ireland Civil Service - Housing Benefit
Belfast
2007.02 - 2010.12
- Handling incoming calls for staff, answering questions, directing calls and documenting messages.
- Keeping and maintained accurate filing system for preservation of office information.
- Receiving, sorting and distributing incoming mail.
Restaurant waiter and barman
Coast Restaurant and The Harbour Bar
Portrush
2005.01 - 2007.05
- General waiter duties including welcoming customers, taking food and drink orders and serving food to tables.
- Stock maintenance in the bar and dessert cabinets
- General cleaning duties during shift and at the start and end of the day
Lifeguard
Waterworld
Portrush
2000.06 - 2003.09
- Training regularly to maintain excellent fitness levels to meet physical job demands.
- Observing swimmers attentively, quickly responding to risks and concerns.
- Minimizing accidents through diligent monitoring.
- Remained calm under pressure to professionally handle evolving emergency scenarios.
Food service assistant
McDonalds
1998.06 - 1999.07
- Following health and hygiene standards when handling food and cleaning restaurants.
- Using appropriate sanitising and cleaning products to maintain hygienic kitchen and food preparation areas.
Education
Music Technology and Innovation
De Montfort University
Leicester 2003.09 - 2005.06
Media & Cultural Studies
Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham 2001.09 - 2002.01
A-Levels -
Coleraine Academical Intitution
Coleraine 1999.09 - 2001.06
GCSEs -
Coleraine Academical Institution
Coleraine 1994.09 - 1999.06
Skills
- I have a lot of experience of providing friendly and professional customer service in a range of different settings
- I am responsible and can use initiative in working without supervision
- I have excellent communication skills as were required to manage a cafe run by volunteers where training was constantly required for newly arriving volunteers
- I can work with equipment safely and easily including till systems, coffee machines etc
Timeline
Barista
The Orangery at Drenagh Estate
2025.08 - 2026.07
Barista
Al's Coffee
2024.12 - 2025.07
Barista
Maegden (grilled cheese and cheese supplies)
2024.02 - 2024.12
Cafe manager
World Peace Cafe at Tara Buddhist Centre
2023.03 - 2024.01
Barista
Sea Shed Coffee & Surf
2017.04 - 2021.06
Restaurant waiter
Richmond Hill Cafe & Larder
2011.09 - 2012.03
Fruit and vegetable picker
Dalbeg Farm
2011.05 - 2011.08
Administrative assistant
Northern Ireland Civil Service - Housing Benefit
2007.02 - 2010.12
Restaurant waiter and barman
Coast Restaurant and The Harbour Bar
2005.01 - 2007.05
Music Technology and Innovation
De Montfort University
2003.09 - 2005.06
Media & Cultural Studies
Nottingham Trent University
2001.09 - 2002.01
Lifeguard
Waterworld
2000.06 - 2003.09
A-Levels -
Coleraine Academical Intitution
1999.09 - 2001.06
Food service assistant
McDonalds
1998.06 - 1999.07
GCSEs -
Coleraine Academical Institution
1994.09 - 1999.06