Category Director - Global Luxury
Hudson Group View all jobs
- Ontario
- $119,000-158,700 per year
- Permanent
- Full-time
- Health, dental and vision insurance
- Generous paid time off (vacation, flex or sick)
- *401(k) retirement plan
- *Company paid life insurance
- Referral program - refer a friend and earn a bonus
- Responsible for overseeing all aspects of the assigned Premium categories. Premium categories include luxury brands in both Duty Free and Duty Paid for watches, jewelry, designer sunglasses and leather; Luxury Apparel; Private Label and Local programs. For Duty Free only.
- Develops and implements assortment strategies, aligned with overall category strategy and objectives of global
- Leads Buying professionals in the development and implementation of category management strategies that align with company objectives and customer needs
- Establishes multi-year growth strategies in margin and sales for assigned categories
- Directs all aspects of product assortments in both Duty Free and Duty Paid for assigned categories, including, but not limited to, the product selection, plan-o-grams, orders and inventory management, sales and margin review, supplier relations, and market research.
- Works in partnership with global to oversee vendor relationships, contract negotiation, and compliance with company policies and procedures to secure favorable agreements to enhance the company's competitive edge
- Provides input to pricing, promotion, assortment, and commercial policies
- Drives category performance through correct and complete implementation of the agreed category strategy during the commercial plan
- Supervises local product category management in the countries and identifies and reports local needs for customization of assortment, promotion, and pricing planning
- Education and Experience: The combination of education and professional experience must exceed 10 years:
- In a leadership role: Requires 5 years of experience leading a senior level team of category management of Premium Luxury and International brand professionals engaged in developing and executing high end retail programs.
- In a technical role: Requires 10 years of buying experience in International Brands or Duty Free Retail experience engaged in developing and delivering perfume and cosmetics programs
- A bachelor's degree in a program related to the functional area can count for 3 of the ten-year requirement
- An MBA or a master's level degree in a program related to the functional area can count for an additional 2 years of the ten-year requirement
- In the industry: 3-5 years of travel or luxury retail experience
- Specialized Training:
- Training that leads to an in-depth understanding of buying and category management
- Specialized Skillset/Competencies/Traits
- Strong vendor relations: Ability to establish and maintain good long-term relationships.
- Advanced business acumen and also has the strategic mindset required to understand the long-term implications of buying and category management decisions and to advance the organizations goals
- Demonstrated history of anticipating the needs of the business and complex stakeholders, the employee population, and individual circumstances
- Demonstrated history of creating and maintaining positive work environments through coaching, developing, and leading teams to achieve common goals
- Demonstrated experience exhibiting a continuous improvement mindset with the ability to optimize work processes and achieve positive results
- Travel/Location
- Requires a regular presence in F&B or Retail Center of Excellence locations
- Requires 40% travel to airport locations