Director, Apparel Product Line Management & Merchandising

Who We Are:

At Brooks, we believe movement is the key to feeling more alive. That’s why we’re driven to create gear and experiences that take people to the place that makes them feel more alive — whether it’s a headspace, a feeling, or a finish line.

Everyone who works at Brooks is propelled by a company culture that sparks excitement, fuels collaboration, inspires creativity, and ignites innovation.

Our brand values help bond us together and drive our success:

·       Runner First  

We act in the best interest of the runner

·       Word is Bond 

We do what we say we’ll do

·       Champion Heart  

We give our all in everything we do  

·       There is no “I” in Run

We stay generous with our humanity

·       Keep Moving

We find ways to move every day, because joy is kinetic!

We welcome everyone from every walk of life looking to inspire others through the power of movement — because we’re all moving towards something. Let’s run there.   

Your Job:

The Director, Apparel Product Line Management & Merchandising, reports to the VP of Apparel & Accessories and is accountable for leading Brooks apparel from product creation through to market introduction. This position leads to both global functions of Product Line Management (creation) and Global Apparel Merchandising (GTM product strategies) for Apparel and Accessories.

This position is responsible for all global strategies and planning related to bringing Brooks complete and competitive apparel product lines to market (usage/appeal/profit/story) in a timely and profitable manner. You will lead the product line planning, briefing, forecasting, confirmation, presentation and pricing in coordination with design, development, Sourcing, S&OP, Sales and Brand Marketing. Keeps abreast of new technologies, concepts and market trends. Maintains a superior knowledge of technical apparel and the performance apparel marketplace. 

• Leadership
• Lead, coach and grow a team of Product Line Managers and Merchandisers by developing knowledge in consumer insight and technical apparel (Performance Materials, Construction and BioMechanics).
• Build a culture of openness and trust with project and functional team members to help them achieve their personal best and motivate them to higher levels of achievement.
• Provide direction, coaching, and training for direct reports as well as other product and cross-functional teams to create and foster a consumer centric culture.
• Provide technical expertise on relevant areas.
• Co-Leads product (InLine & SMU) planning, forecasting, pricing, briefing, confirmation, presentation, in partnership with Design, Development, Business Costing, Sourcing, S&OP, Sales and Brand Marketing.
• Promote Brooks’ Core Cultural Values: Responsible for team culture and keep a pulse on morale to proactively address any concerns.
• Create an organizational design to align with business strategy and conditions.
• Model leadership behavior across the organization.
• Influence Senior Leaders across the organization to take big steps forward, often into the unknown, with confidence in our ability to deliver desired product to the consumer.

• Drive and manage line architecture and planning
• Create and drive 5-year product roadmap to achieve business goals, win with consumers, expand brand reach, gain new consumers, create industry leading and innovative apparel that will create a profitable line.
• Oversee the maintenance and lead the evolution of our product architecture.
• Build comprehensive business plans for new product opportunities.
• Think broadly about product (the WHAT & WHO) as it relates to a consistent marketing mix (alignment and integration with the commercial “HOW” with sales, and the marketing “HOW” with the Brand.)
• Partner with Product Marketing in development of names, packaging, POP and any communication piece or key concept development.

• Ensure product lines hit revenue & margin targets
• Partner with Director of Development and Apparel Business Operations to ensure style, sku, margin and revenue targets are achieved to ensure a profitable business.
• Lead and ensure the timely execution of all major milestones within the apparel product creation calendar.

• Own Consumer Readiness
• Continuously analyze evolution of Consumers (segments, emerging groups & motivations, Athletes), Competitors, and Market Segment dynamics to identify opportunities, establish clear Product Marketing diagnosis, and build superior product positionings.
• Lead direction in Running Sports & trend research and vision, while integrating RunSights data.
• Drive and manage creations of Product Briefs (Future and In-Line) by providing Design and Development with visual and factual consumer and marketplace cues and product goals (synthesized in story telling that motivates, inspires and drives Triads in the product creation process.
• Assess/evaluate to confirm the propositions (Consumers, Athletes, Trade, vs. Competition) to validate the product package. Make recommendations to the Triad for product revisions as needed.
• Facilitate product commercial readiness in Merchandising.

• Build compelling storytelling about product and collections to achieve global buy-in
• Build storytelling for Triad at briefing stage that inspires creative solutions to come alive with new ways of making apparel (i.e., such as advances in manufacturing.)
• Present product stories to regional and corporate management, Brooks sales force at sales meetings, major accounts at seasonal pre-lines, trade shows, media, and consumers.

• Merchandising
• Own and execute global merchandising strategy that brings the apparel brand front and center and delivers on unit and GMROI targets.
• Own global product seasonal merchandising plan that supports regional business and channel needs. Includes bottom up style/color level forecast management developed through key account and channel focus. Build seasonal merchandising brief, integrating into go to market process across product, marketing, regional sales and direct businesses—head to toe storytelling, assortment planning, flow, color, SKU management.
• Responsible for balancing both Brand and Business by ensuring Apparel assortment and color SKU offering delivers on product goals as well as regional forecast deliverables.
• Partner with regional sales and demand planning to build consolidated style/color level forecasts that ladder up to overall revenue targets and alignment with inventory planning.
• Partner with visual, product marketing, eCommerce and stores to execute the merchandising strategy and adjust as necessary in order to ensure successful sell through.
• Be a critical contributor to the brand’s DNA and evolution by providing feedback and creating SMU Strategies, SMU Business Plans, and SMU offerings to support our growth.
• Lead the Event assortment planning effort including both inline assortment and unique SMU product. Partner internally with Brand Creative, Footwear and Regional Marketing as well as CGI to build relevant race and Run Happy assortments.
• Lead team to drive the apparel pagination for the consumer catalog and ensure integration with footwear that leads to brand enhancing, head to toe storytelling.

• As the main product lead with accounts and influencers, partner closely with PR and Sales to identify critical presentation opportunities to tell our apparel brand story, influence the account buys and bring inspiration and understanding to our business.
• Work closely with Planning & Allocation to ensure merchandise strategies are being supported with inventory.

• Accountability
• Lead the development and management of the annual department budget.
• Accountable for regional product readiness that delivers regional business needs.
• Demonstrate extreme enterprise accountability in managing Apparel PLM and Merchandising
• Apply Brooks requirements around budget planning and capex documentation to garner resources necessary to evolve the team to meet business objectives.
• Lead the team and hold them accountable to delivering Apparel market readiness. 

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business. Master’s degree in Business Administration preferred.
• 12+ years of apparel experience;
• Minimum 7 years’ experience managing an apparel product management or creation process required.
• Strong business and competitive analysis training & skills.
• Proven ability to create and maintain analytical tools for managing product line evolution, merchandising, SKU performance, revenue and gross margin optimization.
• Keen attention to detail in planning, organization and execution of tasks (self and through others), while still seeing the big picture and understanding how all of the pieces fit together and affect one another.
• Strong presentation and communication skills.
• Proven ability to lead in a collaborative, team-oriented environment.
• Proven ability to influence, persuade and negotiate to achieve progress toward goals.
• Ability to anticipate how a decision made can affect our customers, our partners, our products or other departments’ operations and/or morale; “connecting the dots.”
• Results-oriented person with the ability to balance numerous tasks and utilize all available resources.
• Demonstrated ability to conceive/create new thinking and ideas pertaining to the consumer and the product line.
• A passion for the running enthusiast and active lifestyle. 

Compensation: The pay range for this position, based out of the Brooks Seattle HQ, is $165,928 - $265,505 per year. Base pay offered will vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.  

Other:

Brooks is proud to offer a robust benefits package to our employees and their families!  

Benefits- including medical, dental, vision, life and AD&D insurance, disability insurance, HSA and employer contribution, FSA, family & fertility assistance, 401K Savings Plan and match, employee assistance program, and transportation assistance.  

Paid Time Off- Brooks offers generous time off including three to five weeks of paid time off, eleven paid holidays, paid sick and parental leave. 

Bonus- in addition to base pay, Brooks employees may also be offered an annual bonus based on company performance.   

Perks- including product discounts, employee recognition, fitness discounts, volunteer and donation benefits. 

Location- You will spend 3 days per week in our Seattle offices, as we believe our organization flourishes when connections, collaboration, creativity, problem-solving, and celebrations happen in person.

At Brooks, we celebrate diversity & equity. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment, and encourage people of all backgrounds, perspectives, experiences, and skills to apply. Brooks is proud to be an equal employment opportunity employer. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, two-spirit identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, the presence of a physical, mental, or sensory disability, marital status, pregnancy (including childbirth and related conditions), caste, citizenship or immigration status, honorably discharged veteran or military status, actual or perceived victims of domestic violence, harassment, sexual assault or stalking, HIV or Hepatitis C infection, political ideology, use of a trained service animal by a person with a disability, or on any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law, or any other non-merit based factors.