Partnerships Retail Lead

Job Title: Partnerships Retail Lead

Department: Partnerships

Reports to: Head of Partnership Activation

Contract Type: Permanent

Location: Elland Road, Leeds

Hours of Work: 37.5 hours per week (Monday to Friday 9am-5.30pm mainly). Must be flexible to work matchdays

Closing Date: 29th August

Overview

Leeds United Football Club (LUFC) is seeking a Partnership Retail Lead to join the club’s Partnership team to deliver a variety of important Club & Partnership retail deliverables. This is an opportunity for a detail-oriented, strategic-thinking, and ambitious individual to lead the Partnership Retail deliverables and support Club-wide retail requirements, contributing to the success of one of the region’s most beloved sports teams.

Due to an updated Retail Operations model we are now looking to expand our Partnerships team to include dedicated Retail lead. The successful candidate will work in a dynamic environment, reporting to the Head of Partnership Activation and play a vital part in overseeing and managing key strategic deliverables across our Retail partnerships and Club processes. You will work collaboratively across various stakeholders, both internally and externally, ensuring effective service delivery and contributing to the overall success and commercial growth of the club.

Main Responsibilities

Lead POC for the Clubs Technical kit partner, retail partners and dedicated Retail operator

Manage the day-to-day relationship with the retail operator with a focus on driving strategic alignment, data analysis and reporting, identifying new product opportunities and appropriate retail growth areas, deliver specific contractual brand requirements and be the Club lead on internal retail working groups to ensure constant alignment

Manage the day-to-day relationships with the Technical kit partner and retail partners to ensure effective and efficient delivery of contractual rights and Partnership assets

Oversee licensing approvals and key processes with the dedicated retail operator whilst also developing, defining and delivering the Clubs own licensing strategy to create additional revenue opportunities

Oversee all relevant Club and dedicated retail operator product approvals to ensure correct application of Club IP and support brand management and IP protection across all retail and partner materials

Lead the Clubs key design and approval processes, leveraging input for relevant internal departments to align on first team product design and endorsement plans that are critical to the Club and Technical kit partner success

Oversee the management of Technical kit partner orders and product buy for the Club. This key role will ensure that team kits, staff allocations and Club orders are processed efficiently and to the highest standard. You will oversee the entire order process from forecasting, ordering through to tracking, delivery and distribution. You will work closely with internal teams including the 1st team, U21s, Women’s, Academy, Foundation to ensure their specific kit needs are met on time.

You will oversee staff kit allocations, keeping accurate records of items such as sizes, names, numbers and manage the logo & embellishment needs of the Club. Close coordination with the Technical kit partner will be essential to ensure timely deliveries and effective inventory management.

Oversee all Club related product fulfilment, retail deliverables & partnership operations

Develop, define and implement a Partnership and Club wide gifting strategy to service the needs of the organisation and commercial requirements

Work alongside relevant retail stakeholders to develop, define and implement an effective process for partners to secure premiums and co-branded product to support partnership activation requirements

Develop and manage relationships with key suppliers, partners, agencies and internal stakeholders

Other responsibilities as assigned

Required Knowledge, Skills & Experience

• Minimum of 4-5 years in experience in retail partnerships, merchandise buying, ecommerce and licensing, preferably within a sports or entertainment environment. A strong understanding of order management and inventory systems is essential

• Strong analytical experience across retail sales and performance data

• Experience to oversee product processing, delivery and fulfilment, ideally with Technical Kit partners and sportswear brands. A solid knowledge of sports apparel, including its sizing, durability, and functionality, is also beneficial

• Experience with Microsoft Suite, including Excel, Teams, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Word

• Experience building excellent working relationships and dealing with senior stakeholders, both internally and externally

• Great people person and a proven team player with strong communication skills

• Flexible approach to working hours there will be a requirement to work weekends/evenings to attend matches and events.

Required Behavioral Attributes

• Strong interpersonal skills

• Organised and good attention to detail

• Strategic thinker and solution orientated

• Ability to use initiative and be creative

• Excellent communication skills

• Ability to prioritize and anticipate case load and manage time effectively

• Confident and assertive

• Ambition, passion and willingness to learn

• Strong time management skills

• Self-motivated

• Hands-on approach with a can-do mentality

• Ability to multitask