Senior Director of Merchandising, Alternative Channels and Strategic Partnerships
Lululemon
Sales & Business Development
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2023
who we are
lululemon is an innovative performance apparel company for yoga, running, training, and other athletic pursuits. Setting the bar in technical fabrics and functional design, we create transformational products and experiences that support people in moving, growing, connecting, and being well. We owe our success to our innovative product, emphasis on stores, commitment to our people, and the incredible connections we make in every community we're in. As a company, we focus on creating positive change to build a healthier, thriving future. In particular, that includes creating an equitable, inclusive and growth-focused environment for our people.
about this team
The Merchandising team creates and executes transformative global product strategies that ensure we have the right assortment in the right place at the right time to fulfill our guests’ unmet needs, to deepen our guest relationships, grow our brand and deliver on our long-term enterprise goals. We possess deep awareness and intuition of global marketplace dynamics and guest needs and use this knowledge to identify opportunities to maximize demand.
a day in the life
The Senior Merchandising Director – Alternative Channels & Strategic Partnerships (ACSP) leads Global/Regional product creation for Strategic Sales and Partnerships (including Campus, Arena, Studio/Peloton), Events, Membership & Community, Awareness Days, Olympic Partnerships, and Collabs and Tourist Merchandising and drives the creation of merchandise for those business pillars to grow the brand and the business through our design vision whilst delivering best-in-class sales, inventory and margin results. This role reports to the VP, Global Merchandising, Accessories and Alternative Channels & Strategic Partnerships (ACSP).
you
- Have the unique ability to see beyond the here & now to identify a vision for the future to consistently deliver the right product to the right point-of-sale at the optimum time and price over time in a way that consistently and continuously surprises and delights our guests.
- Excel as cross-functional leader for all ACSP merchandising strategies to drive alignment at the intersection of Product Strategy, Guest, In-store and Web Experience, Digital Marketing and Strategic Partnerships.
- Understand consumer needs and market capacity for our ACSP product at a global scale.
- Enable ACSP merchandising from an omni-channel perspective and in a way that the Retail, Ecommerce and Strategic Sales Activity executions are fully aligned and complement & enhance one another.
- Lead a team of merchants in anticipating guest and strategic partner product demand as well as event, membership, awareness days and collab product needs and ensuring the delivery of strategies and products that exceed expectations and guarantee growth.
responsibilities and outcomes
- Develop & Drive the ACSP merchandising vision and omni-channel strategies in alignment with the Global Product vision and own Consumer and Market Insights and Hindsights inclusive of all geographies. Own and/or Influence North America & Europe as well APAC & China regional in-season execution; Ensure the execution and maintenance of In-store and Digital Activity Merchandising assortments in collaboration with VM, Store Operations and Digital partners.
- In collaboration with Strategic Sales partners, lead & drive Strategic Sales partner-relevant assortments.
- In collaboration with Event, Athlete and Ambassador/Influencer program management partners, lead & drive relevant product assortments that meet the needs of the athletes and the events (eg. 10Ks, Sweat Events, etc)
- In collaboration with Integrated Marketing & Community management partners, lead & drive relevant Membership product assortments that enhance our guests’ membership experience and meet their product needs.
- Drive all connection and communication with respect to product assortments to all cross-functional stakeholders to ensure consistency and amplification in execution at events and in marketplace towards a focused and elevated guest experience.
- In partnership with Category/Divisional Merchandising VPs/Directors:
- Drive completion of ‘meltdown’ seasonal geographic hind-sighting and align on future assortment adjustments as necessary.
- Ensure that regional needs are incorporated into line plans
- Ensure concept-to-market execution from designing the line to geographic distribution, planning,
- clustering and allocation, working cross-functionally with all global and regional MP&A teams
- Drive desired global Core Assortment which highlights (global) seasonal marketing styles.
- Align on regional line plan adoption intent by geographic merchandising partners with respective global category merchants and communicate changes to assortment strategies.
- Review product demand in hot markets across all geographics and adjust product briefs and/or align on line plan adoption changes accordingly
- Partner with all cross-functional teams including Channel, Global Brand & Community, Strategy, Operations Excellence, and Supply Chain teams to ensure the design vision is delivered to our guests.
- Help develop & guide global brand and regional marketing policies, programs, and activities.
- Responsible for sales, margin and inventory productivity goals across all channels.
- Hire, manage, mentor and develop a team of qualified merchants to support each pillar.
qualifications
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Merchandising Management, Marketing, and/or Business
- 15+ years of global & regional omni merchandising experience across wholesale, vertical retail and digital
- 5-10+ years licensing/licensed asset merchandising experience
- 5-10+ years management experience
- Senior Collaboration and Brand/Merchandising Partnership leadership experience preferred
- Proven ability to work with and lead a cross functional team
- Excellent communication skills - interpersonal, written and verbal
- Proven ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously; Self-starter approach to work, with an eagerness to consistently meet and exceed objectives and take on more responsibility
- Entrepreneurship – an ability to make decisions and take calculated risks
- Focus on creating an extraordinary guest experience, organisational and time management skills
- Strong knowledge of MS Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Outlook) and working knowledge of Adobe Illustrator
- Willingness to travel (domestic and international) and work on the retail floor
must haves
- Acknowledge the presence of choice in every moment and take personal responsibility for your life.
- Possess an entrepreneurial spirit and continuously innovate to achieve great results.
- Communicate with honesty and kindness and create the space for others to do the same.
- Lead with courage, knowing the possibility of greatness is bigger than the fear of failure.
- Foster connection by putting people first and building trusting relationships.
- Integrate fun and joy as a way of being and working, aka doesn’t take yourself too seriously.
additional notes
Immigration support is potentially available for this role.
Immigration support is potentially available for this role.
compensation and benefits package
lululemon’s compensation offerings are grounded in a pay-for-performance philosophy that recognizes exceptional individual and team performance. The typical hiring range for this position is from $199,000 – $261,100 annually; the base pay offered is based on market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and internal equity. As part of our total rewards offering, permanent employees in this position may be eligible for our competitive annual bonus program and equity offerings, subject to program eligibility requirements.
At lululemon, investing in our people is a top priority. We believe that when life works, work works. We strive to be the place where inclusive leaders come to develop and enable all to be well. Recognizing our teams for their performance and dedication, other components of our total rewards offerings include support of career development, wellbeing, and personal growth:
- Extended health and dental benefits, and mental health plans
- Paid time off
- Savings and retirement plan matching
- Generous employee discount
- Fitness & yoga classes
- Parenthood top-up
- Extensive catalog of development course offerings
- People networks, mentorship programs, and leadership series (to name a few)
Note: The incentive programs, benefits, and perks have certain eligibility requirements. The Company reserves the right to alter these incentive programs, benefits, and perks in whole or in part at any time without advance notice.
workplace arrangement
This role is classified as Hybrid under our SSC Workplace Policy: In-person collaboration is important, and much of the role can be performed remotely. Work is performed onsite at least 3 days per week. #LI-Hybrid #LI-KB2