Not your standard café job. And we like it that way.
Outside The Box is a little difficult to put into one box — which is exactly the point.
We are a 100% gluten-free café, creative retail store, art and craft space and community hub in the heart of New Farm.
On any given shift, you might be making a matcha, helping someone choose the perfect gift, preparing an art activity, wrapping an order, merchandising the store or having a genuinely lovely conversation with one of our regular customers.
We are now looking for another brilliant person to join the Outside The Box team.
As a recipient of the 2026 Brisbane City Local Business Award, we are continuing to grow and are looking for someone who brings warmth, initiative, reliability and a little personality of their own.
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The Role
This is a genuinely varied role across café, retail and day-to-day store operations.
Your responsibilities may include:
- Welcoming customers and creating a warm, memorable in-store experience
- Taking café and retail orders through Shopify POS
- Preparing coffee, matcha and other beverages
- Serving our gluten-free food, cakes and ready meals
- Helping customers discover gifts, homewares, accessories and creative products
- Restocking and merchandising the retail space
- Preparing and resetting Art & Craft Café activities
- Gift wrapping and preparing customer orders
- Maintaining high standards of cleanliness and presentation
- Receiving deliveries and helping organise stock
- Supporting workshops, pop-ups and seasonal events
- Assisting with inventory and behind-the-scenes organisation
- Occasionally helping with Shopify, online orders and simple administrative tasks
We are looking for someone who can look around the store, notice what needs attention and take ownership without needing to be constantly directed.
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Who We Are Looking For
Experience is valuable, but attitude and reliability matter just as much to us.
You will likely be a great fit if you are:
- Naturally warm, friendly and confident with customers
- Reliable, punctual and responsible
- Proactive and comfortable taking initiative
- Organised and attentive to detail
- Calm when several things are happening at once
- Comfortable moving between café, retail and creative tasks
- Someone who genuinely enjoys helping people
- Comfortable working independently as well as part of a small team
- Willing to learn new systems and ways of working
- Interested in art, design, food, retail, hospitality or small business
- Someone who takes pride in doing the small things properly
You do not need to have the loudest personality in the room.
We are looking for someone genuine, thoughtful, capable and comfortable creating a welcoming experience for customers.
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Experience That Would Be Helpful
Previous experience in any of the following would be highly regarded:
- Café or barista work
- Retail
- Hospitality
- Customer service
- Shopify or POS systems
- Visual merchandising
- Art, craft or design
- Food handling
- Stock management
- Social media or content creation
- Small business environments
You do not need experience in every area. We would much rather meet someone with the right attitude who is willing to learn.
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What Working at Outside The Box Is Like
We are a small and close-knit team, which means everybody plays an important role.
You will not disappear into a huge roster of employees. Good work is noticed, ideas are welcomed and team members have opportunities to learn about different parts of the business.
We also believe strongly in recognising people who contribute to the business through excellent customer service, strong sales, reliability, initiative, teamwork and personal growth.
For the right person, there may also be opportunities to develop further into areas including:
Retail Operations | Inventory | Events | Shopify | Visual Merchandising | Marketing | Team Leadership
This can become much more than simply another casual hospitality job.
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About Outside The Box
Outside The Box is not really the kind of place that fits neatly into one category — and that has always been the idea.
We are an independent New Farm business built around fun, creativity, good food, curious finds and a genuine sense of community. Our space brings together a 100% gluten-free café, curated gift store, art and craft café, gallery, workshops, events and plenty of things you probably were not expecting to find when you walked through the door.
Our story started in 2023, when Outside The Box first opened as a small independent art gallery. Since then, we have continued to evolve — expanding into a gift and lifestyle store, introducing our completely gluten-free café, building our drop-in creative experiences and creating a space for workshops, functions, pop-ups and community events.
Today, OTB is colourful, slightly unconventional and intentionally difficult to define. You can come in for a coffee and leave with a piece of art. Drop by for lunch and end up making something at our Art & Craft Café. Find a quirky gift you did not know existed, bring your dog along, meet a local creative, or simply settle into a space that feels a little different from everywhere else.
Community is at the heart of what we do. We love collaborating with local artists, makers, schools, organisations and other small businesses, and we are proud to regularly support charitable and community initiatives through fundraising, events and creative projects.
Along the way, people have started to notice our slightly unusual little corner of Brisbane.
Outside The Box was named a finalist in the Brisbane City Local Business Awards in both 2025 and 2026, before going on to become a 2026 Local Business Award winner. We have also been featured by Brisbane publications and guides including Urban List Brisbane, where OTB has been recognised among Brisbane's gift-shopping destinations, as well as The Village Voice and Must Do Brisbane.
But for us, the best recognition is still when someone walks through the door for the first time, looks around and says, “What is this place? I love it.”
That is exactly what we want Outside The Box to be.
A little unexpected. A little playful. Very New Farm. And most definitely outside the box.
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Availability
We are particularly interested in applicants with flexible weekday and weekend availability.
Availability throughout October, November and December is highly valued, as Christmas is one of our busiest periods of the year.
Our current trading hours are:
Monday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday – Saturday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Sunday: 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
How to Apply
Apply on Indeed or, email us at [email protected]
Please attach:
- Your CV
- Your general weekly availability
- A short introduction about yourself
- Any relevant experience you would like us to know about
And instead of sending us a generic cover letter, answer one question:
What would make you an Outside The Box kind of person?
We want to know a little about the person behind the application.
Outside The Box People & Culture Team
Pay: $26.44 – $35.00 per hour
Expected hours: 4.0 – 12.0 per week
Benefits:
- Employee discount
- Employee mentoring program
- Free drinks
- Referral program
Work Location: In person
