Senior Director, Store Planning (Retail Design)

Summary:

The Senior Director, Store Planning is responsible for the full scope of the design, project management and budgeting process for retail, wholesale, partner and outlet projects, and collaborates on pop-up locations for the brand globally. This role will report to Chief Commercial Officer.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Projects & Scheduling

• Partner with Retail and Wholesale Team to analyze all potential projects from a store planning perspective, including providing schedule and budget estimates.
• Work with Retail Ops, Buying, Wholesale or Partners to analyze feasibility of capacity requirements needed for the space to meet its ROI requirement.
• Prepare budget estimate for NOP to assess financially feasibility.
• Prepare schedule estimates
• Evaluate and provide feedback on lease terms as it pertains to the space
• Oversee all department scheduling, most notably delegating projects to internal and external project managers managing the bandwidth of the teams
• Assist and teach project managers to resolve timeline issues that arise on projects
• Work with Retail Ops to ensure openings are spaced appropriately for the bandwidth of the operational team.

Design Management

• Work with Project Managers to approve layouts and educate the team on best practices based on the operational needs of the business.
• Work with teams to study and design the BOH spaces to meet the needs of the business
• Oversee Project managers incorporation of key operational tools – people counter, security cameras etc. Into the design ensuring it is in keeping with the aesthetics of the brand.
• Oversee Project Management of all materials and sampling to ensure all materials meet brand standards and are reviewed/approved internally.
• Manage external rendering/drawing strategies
• Source and maintain relationships with vendors, consultants, and collaborators to ensure the success of the store network growth plan and to achieve competitive pricing.
• Create templates, tools etc. as needed to improve the process
• Visit stores regularly to see the designs and material implemented

Operational Standards

• Oversee the external partner that manages the Concept book to ensure it is kept up to date
• Evaluate all fixtures, finishes and construction details to ensure they meet the brands needs both operationally, aesthetically and require a reasonable amount of maintenance
• Partner with VM to develop VM tools and new fixtures as necessary
• Partner with internal/external creatives on new fixtures and finishes as necessary
• Oversee technical development of all architectural, fixture and finish details
• Put in place a process for handling aesthetic maintenance issues that arise within the network and a way of tracking them
• Identify recurring issues and flag them as design changes that need to be made for future projects an prepare solution for stores that contain the same condition
• Work with Retail Ops to identify, price out and execute strategic small renovation work within the store network that is needed to maintain the brand’s image and KPIs.

Budget Development & Management

• Track & provide estimates on all project costs to understand budget trends globally
• Partner with CCO and CFO on budget estimates for projects and building out of the 5-year plan
• Analyze department and project costs to find cost saving solutions.
• Assist and educate project management team on negotiating terms, pricing etc. for project-specific vendors.
• Prepare annual department OpEx and CapEx budgets and provide reforecasting as necessary

Position requirements:

• 10+ Years of experience
• Architecture/design degree
• Ability to read architectural and engineering drawings
• Strong global construction knowledge
• Ability to sketch out details and resolve design problems thoughtfully and quickly
• Understanding of the brand aesthetic
• Strong cross-functional communicator and problem-solver
• Strong understanding of retail operations, capacities and project context and ability to translate these into functional store layouts
• Familiar with leases and contracts
• Experience assembling significant CapEx and OpEx budgets
• Should come with key industry contacts to further support the development of the Store Planning resource network
• Capable of leading a team & performance management
• Able to provide reliable, accurate schedules for projects and the department as a whole

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer M/D/F/V

In compliance with the New York City salary transparency requirements, the potential salary for this position is from $170,000 to $175,000, which represents a range commensurate with experience, knowledge, and skills required.