VP of Retail

Job Description

COVID-19 : Allbirds requires all US-based Corporate employees who enter an Allbirds-owned or operated Corporate facility to demonstrate proof of receiving a COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of their employment, subject to exemptions for sincerely held religious beliefs, or valid medical reasons.

Who is Allbirds?

At Allbirds, we believe in using business as a force for good. We’re a global footwear and apparel brand with roots in New Zealand and our headquarters in San Francisco. Since 2016, we’ve been on a mission to prove that comfort, design, and sustainability aren’t mutually exclusive. Our commitment to creating better things in a better way is fueled by a belief that the fashion industry needs to focus less on flash and more on thoughtfulness. And as a certified B Corp, we’re dedicated to making the most sustainable products we can using premium natural materials - designed for life’s everyday adventures.

Where we need help

We are looking for an experienced Head of Retail within our Commercial team to be a key member of our rapidly-growing business. In this role, you will work closely with the CCO and Retail Teams to drive the strategic direction and operational efficiency in this key channel.

We have a retail fleet across the US that has grown rapidly and delivered incredible results to date pre covid. We need a seasoned end-to-end retail leader to support that same success at scale through rapidly building out capability across the organization to ensure a world class retail experience. Our success is rooted in our people and their ability to represent our brand as well as deliver an incredible customer experience. We need a leader of leaders to connect the dots across our retail proposition and ensure we have what we need to not only deliver the best-in-class customer experience, but to ensure strong comp performance and profitable 4 wall EBITDA growth.

What does the job entail?

• C ontinued development of our retail vision, strategy and roadmap
• Owner on all things retail with a holistic end-to-end view across both strategy and the operational capabilities required to deliver flawless execution now and as we continue to scale
• Develop strong partnerships with all relevant HQ functions to ensure retail is being adequately and effectively served by teams that may not always have brick and mortar top of mind; holding leadership and their teams accountable for retail centric deliverables
• Drive performance
• Understand what really moves the needle to improve store performance, both short term tactics and long-term strategies so our stores can exceed expectations across comp growth, EBITDA while maintaining standards across labor and NPS
• Optimize core drivers across inventory, merchandising, retail marketing and VM.
• Develop and codify retail growth drivers in partnership with our brand marketing team.
• Develop our Team
• Develop the flock both within retail and across HQ functions to ensure success
• Instill a performance culture that’s right for Allbirds both across the stores and within HQ
• Develop world class field management structure to enable flawless execution
• The Foundational Responsibilities
• Own our retail fleet P&L, budgets, resources and staffing levels, exceeding forecasts and delivering exceptional results.
• Ensure our stores are delivering on our standards in partnership with the owners of those standards from HQ like Employee Experience, Retail Ops, Visual Merchandising and Supply Chain, among others
• Invest time physically in our stores as often as possible, ensuring area-level and store-level meetings/calls are happening at the right frequency and enabling strong two-way dialogue. Promote feedback, idea generation and an “open-door” policy to support employee happiness and give everyone a voice
• Build a Fleet-wide culture that is grown out of the incredible store-level cultures that have already been created.
• Travel expectation: 50% of the time
• Location based in SF, CA
• Reports to Chief Commercial Officer

What kind of person are we looking for?

• Seasoned retail leader that has overseen dozens, if not hundreds of stores, and has demonstrated a proven record of both high quality comp growth while delivering new store openings on time and to plan.
• Passionate, curious, and interested in a growing, consumer-facing DTC brand.
• A team-first attitude, who is willing and eager to roll up his/her sleeves, doing the tasks necessary to help advance the business forward.
• Ability to think and work independently, approaching problems with a solution-oriented mindset. Focus on the team and their results, as you advocate for their needs at HQ, ensuring they have the resources and support they need to run their individual businesses.

More practical skills needed:

• 14+ years of retail leadership both in stores and successful HQ multifunction leadership
• Must have footwear / apparel experience
• Flexibility and adaptability to fit into a strong existing culture
• You are a people person, easy to build rapport and camaraderie with
• A servant leader, willing to do whatever it takes to support your team
• Entrepreneurial attitude and willingness to take the initiative to build things from scratch
• Comfortable with ambiguity but have an ability to remove ambiguity through process, structure and technology particularly cross functionally
• Scrappy mentality that lends itself to spending time on the sales floor in favor of always directing from HQ
• You take pride in the place you work, and Allbirds’s business, mission and values align with your own
• Able to comfortably lift 30 lbs when needed

What can we offer?

• Competitive salary + equity
• Medical/Dental/Vision insurance
• One Medical Membership
• Mental Health and Financial Wellness Benefits
• 401k employer match
• Hybrid work schedule
• Paid parental leave
• Cell Phone and Wellness Stipend
• 50% Discount on Allbirds Products
• Unlimited PTO
• Employee Stock Purchase Program

Diversity

Allbirds is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of merit. Allbirds policy prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, marital or veteran status, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information or characteristics (or those of a family member), sexual orientation, pregnancy, or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws. It also prohibits discrimination based on a perception that anyone has any of those characteristics, or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics. All such discrimination is unlawful.

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