Senior Specialist Real Estate & Construction

About the role

Talabat is looking for a Senior Specialist Real Estate & Construction who will own end-to-end site management, from scouting and lease negotiation to acting as the main point of contact between Talabat and its landlords across all locations. The role works closely with internal stakeholders so that real estate solutions match operational needs and landlord relationships are proactively managed.

Key responsibilities

• Construction and engineering leadership: lead construction projects from design through delivery, coordinate consultants, contractors and suppliers, manage budgets and schedules, and interpret architectural layouts, blueprints and engineering specifications.
• Tendering, negotiation and market pricing: run tenders for materials, equipment and services, analyse market prices and negotiate contracts with vendors, contractors and suppliers.
• Deal structuring and negotiation: negotiate leases with landlords, property managers and brokers, draft and finalise Letters of Intent (LOIs).
• Cross-functional collaboration: work with legal on lease agreements, finance on business cases and budget approvals, and procurement on vendor onboarding and fit-out materials.
• Location scouting: research markets for new dark kitchen sites, negotiate leases and build a pipeline of prospective sites through outreach, brokers and real estate networks.

Required profile

• Background in construction management, civil engineering or facilities engineering, with proven ability to manage complex construction projects from planning to execution.
• At least 3 years of hands-on experience in cloud kitchen operations, F&B logistics or similar high-volume food service facilities, including operational excellence and vendor management.
• Experience managing tenders, analysing market pricing and negotiating competitive contracts.
• Ability to handle multiple construction projects, operational rollouts and budget oversight at once.
• Strong communication across operations, finance and construction teams; basic commercial real estate negotiation and site selection experience is a plus.

Required skills

• Expert reading of architectural blueprints, engineering drawings and construction specifications.
• Familiarity with construction management software and project tracking tools.
• Negotiation, relationship management and troubleshooting of real estate issues.