Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:
A culture driver responsible for leading the product backbone for our European omni-channel Digital business. There are 4 keys pillars under this role – Buying, Planning & Trading, Merch Operations & Personalization and Off-Price Merchandising. It is critical that this role leads and orchestrates the pre-season Planning and Buying and owns in-season trading for ECOM, driving execution and securing a holistic DTC approach aligned with global guidelines. Ensure the achievement of market KPIs and global guidelines in our pursuit of market leadership.
A strong emphasis is placed on the leader to attract, develop and retain the very best, diverse talent in a safe, inclusive environment. We need our best leaders to help develop even better leaders.
Key Responsibilities:
- EU Ecom Product Merchandising
- Own E2E the seasonal buying and planning process or EU Ecom. Lead a 40+ person team focused on the 4 Product Merchandising pillars for a billion+ Euro enterprise.
- Develop and drive data-driven business intelligence and range insights to maximize seasonal .com range efficiency, trading updates and to drive commercial impact.
- Contribute as a strong voice at the table for all SMT meetings and decision making.
- Act as close partner to Sales Planning and Finance for IBP monthly meetings, also the Retail team across the seasonal milestones to secure a DTC-led and members-first product assortment.
- Deliver .com EU buying guidance for key commercial moments like members moments, covering MSS, EOSS, Black Friday, Back to School and Holidays as key examples.
- Ensure clear goal setting and quarterly plans are set in place reflecting both Market and Country focuses as well as channel specific initiatives and targets to drive a common focus and increase brand market share.
- Lead the continuous evolution of .com & Partner Program Product Merchandising processes by leveraging internal and external networks to define optimization opportunities and best practices. Continuously drive learnings and improvement into global and market teams to evolve our global and local buying and planning processes to maximize full price sell through.
- Partner closely with Demand Planning, Product Supply & Excess Inventory to ensure the correct balance of stock purchased and company profitability. Continuously evolve size buy breakdowns focused on optimizing conversion considering geo, product type, sport, gender, and brand nuance.
- Manage allocation strategy and teams to ensure that .com & partner store needs are covered by a complex fulfillment landscape including multiple DC’s and physical stores as well as the roll out of S4EU.
- Define and continuously optimize pre-season strategy for OTB Planning & Management for .com & partners following the market financial targets.
- Lead input to category BU’s, to ensure Ecom have a clear point of view and marketplace collaboration for all product categories and play their part within DTC. Focused on product lifecycles through from full price to online FO.
- Marketplace Buying / Partner Program: Drive seasonal alignment with DPC around marketplace account product needs from a Buying & Planning pov.
- Partner with Digital & Media Activation teams to ensure brand collaboration including a Members proposition to drive brand loyalty.
- Maximize the opportunity of seasonless creation for EU Ecom based on consumer insights and range opportunities. Partner with marketplace BD’s to have expert knowledge on marketplace consumer behavior, Confirmed to drive Hero to Halo and speed opportunities to ensure trends are optimized.
Key Relationships
- VP EU Ecom
- EU Ecom SMT/Leadership
- EU Market(country) leadership teams
- EU Marketing Business Units
- Digital Commercial Partners
- Retail (Concept & Factory Outlet)
- Demand Planning
- Product Supply
Knowledge, Skills, Experience and Abilities
- Strong proven skill-set in pre-season Planning and Buying for a multichannel direct-to-consumer (own retail, franchise, and e-com) global brand, acquired through advanced training, studies, and relevant working experience, with at least 10 years of leadership experience.
- Broad knowledge of merchandising and retail supply and operations topics and solid knowledge of other functional areas involved in the Planning & Buying process.
- Experience in Leading and Developing Teams - ensure organizational efficiency through effective motivation, training and development. A builder of diverse, inclusive high performing teams and talent.
- Senior business leader with proven track record of successfully managing an Ecommerce business, working successfully in cross-functional teams.
- Strong strategic, influence as well as operational skills.
- Digital experience across DTC, B2B, B2B2C, Omni, App etc.
- Proven ability to navigate and be effective in matrix organizations.
- Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills.
- Knowledge and passion for the global fashion, sneakerhead, hype, fashion influencer market is a plus.
- Fluent in written and spoken English is a must. Skills and abilities in other languages are an added plus.
Personal attributes
- Entrepreneurial and creative mindset – leads business always pushing and innovating to drive growth.
- Visionary – has a clear image of what it takes to reach full potential and can powerfully articulate it to all the different stakeholders.
- Motivational – inspires and engages by role modelling.
- Accountable – takes ownership and responsibility for successes and failures and translates them into learnings.
- Dynamic and adaptable – can quickly and effectively assimilate and drive change and/or new initiatives.
- Can demonstrate strength in Confidence, Creativity & Collaboration.
Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications:
- BA or BS degree from a four-year college or university or equivalent relevant experience (Masters Degree Graduate level preferred).
- 10+ or more years of leadership experience (Ecom or Digital environment preferable).
- Established track record of both defining and implementing credible seasonal strategies.
- Fashion / Sporting Goods Industry experience.
- Scaling business models in a multi-national environment.
- Proven P&L Delivery.
adidas celebrates diversity, supports inclusiveness and encourages individual expression in our workplace. We do not tolerate the harassment or discrimination toward any of our applicants or employees. We are an equal opportunity employer.