Want to land a bar job that’s as exciting as your latest cocktails?
You’re going to need a winning CV.
This guide includes 2 real-life bartender CV examples, and a step-by-step guide to writing a CV that will get you noticed by the best employers in the hospitality industry.
Get stuck in.
Guide contents
- Bartender CV examples
- Structuring and formatting your CV
- Writing your CV profile
- Detailing work experience
- Your education
- Vital skills for a bartender CV
Bartender CV example
Cocktail Bartender CV example
The above CV example displays the structure you should be following when producing your own CV, showcasing your suitability for bartender roles.
This comprehensive guide, documents how to correctly structure your CV, helping you land an interview.
Bartender CV structure & format
A well-defined structure enables recruiters to easily navigate your experience, highlighting imperative information at first glance without recruiters having to dig through your CV.
You need to grab recruiters’ attention at the top of the page, enticing them to delve deeper into your CV.
The infographic below displays how to correctly format your CV, showing what sections you need to be including.
Formatting Tips
- Use bullet points, bold headers and clearly defined sections to break up large blocks of text, facilitating ease of reading
- 2 sides of A4 is the ideal length for a CV, enough space to showcase your suitability without boring the reader
- Don’t include any imagery such as company logos or profile pictures, stick to a clear structure and a muted colour pallet, as an over designed CV can distract the reader’s attention
Structuring your CV
Use defined sections within your CV, making it easier for recruiters to navigate your experience and identify your suitability for bartender roles.
When crafting your CV work towards the below structure:
- Contact details – Make yourself easily reachable by keeping your contact details to the top of the page
- Profile – Begin your CV with an opening paragraph that summarises your work experience, qualifications and sector specific skills
- Work experience / Career history – Detail your work experience in reverse chronological order
- Education – Record qualifications obtained specifically those most pertinent to bar staff roles
- Interests and hobbies – Unlike other sections this section isn’t mandatory but can be used to further showcase your applicable skills
This guide will now walk you through how to write each of these sections.
CV contact details
Keep your contact details to the top of the page so you are easily reachable, sticking to the below essential information.
- Phone number
- Email address
- Location
Only incorporate information that is vital to your application, avoid adding additional details such as marital status, date of birth and headshots.
Top Tip – don’t waste space in your CV by including your full home address as the city you reside is enough information.
Bartender CV profile
Like a blurb to a good book, your CV profile should be a summary of your experience and sector specific skills, appealing to recruiters at first glance, tempting them to read further.
A 5-10 line paragraph at the top of the page which exhibits your suitability for bartender roles.
These tips will support you in producing your profile:
- Don’t blend into the crowd and instead make your profile sector specific, avoiding cliché phrases which add no further value
- Research the bartender industry prior to producing your profile, tailoring your introduction to the sector, adding any applicable key words
- Stick to 5-10 lines, be concise as you will be able to elaborate elsewhere in your CV
What to include in your CV profile?
- Previous companies worked for – Whether working in a local pub, a high end bar or working for a hospitality organisation
- Level of your experience – If you have recently started in your career or have bar manager experience
- Qualifications – Detail sector specific qualifications whether in hospitality or mixology courses
- Bartender skills – Display the soft or hard skills that make you the ideal candidate for roles, such as interpersonal skills, resilience and a bubbly confident personality
Core skills section
Beneath your CV profile, include a core skills section comprised of two to three columns of bullet points.
Highlight your marketable skills, demonstrating your relevancy for bartender roles to recruiters at first glance.
Look to research the industry prior to putting together this section or use the vital skills section below for guidance.
Work experience/Career history
Record your work experience in reverse chronological order, reserving more space for your recent positions or those most applicable to the industry you’re pursuing.
As you work backwards through your career history, look to shorten your role descriptions, keeping room for more significant elements of your experience.
Structuring your roles
Give an overview of your previous roles to recruiters, showcasing your applicableness for bartender roles by displaying the role assumed and the impact you had in that position.
Break up your role descriptions by sticking to the below three sections.
Outline
Providing context to recruiters by giving an overview of the company you worked for, the job role you undertook and even the department you were part of.
E.g.
“Working as a bartender in a busy city centre bar, mixing a range of cocktails, and providing a great customer experience.”
Key responsibilities
Use bullet points to break up your key duties, including any project involvement or relationships built whilst in the position.
E.g.
- Maintaining stock levels and ordering new supplies
- Mixing cocktails for customers, suggesting drinks based on customer preferences
Key achievements
Display the impact you had within your previous organisation by adding achievements, including facts and figures to strengthen your examples.
E.g.
- Built and maintained relationships with returning customers, providing excellent customer service, which helped to increase regular customers by 25%
Education
Record any qualifications or courses obtained, especially those most applicable for bartender roles.
Whilst there aren’t essential qualifications needed to become a bartender, look to add any mixology courses, NVQ’s in food and drink services or in hospitality.
If you have space also look to include additional qualifications such as GCSE’s, A-levels, degrees and vocational qualifications.
Interests and hobbies
Unlike other sections within your CV, this isn’t a mandatory aspect.
This section can be used to add depth and backup your skill set especially if you have less sector specific experience, but only look to include hobbies that add value to your application.
For example, as a bartender you want to add hobbies that showcase your communication skills and ability to build rapport whether involvement in clubs or sporting teams.
Essential skills for your bartender CV
When creating your bartender CV you need to ensure you are emphasising your sector specific skills, look to include the below strengths:
Mixologist Skills – being able to mix a variety of drinks, understanding which spirits work together
Inventorying – ordering new stock and taking account of available supplies
Customer service – Dealing with customers, serving drinks and handling transactions
Budgets – supporting with bar management by ensuring labour costs and supplier costs are reduced to achieve maximum profits
Writing your bartender CV
Creating a strong CV is all about ensuring your industry specific skills and experience are a focal point.
Use a clear and well defined structure so recruiters can easily navigate through your career history, emphasising the reasons why you’re the perfect candidate for the industry.
Use this guide to support you in producing your own attention grabbing CV, helping you stand out from the competition and land your dream job.
Good luck with your job search!