Senior Manager, Buying- Ready to Wear

Senior Manager, Buying - Ready-To-Wear (RTW)

At Chanel, we are focused on creating an inclusive culture that nurtures personal growth, contributing to collective progress. We believe the uniqueness of each individual increases the diversity, complementarity and effectiveness of our teams. We strongly encourage your application, as we value the perspective, experience and potential you could bring to CHANEL.

About the job

Chanel, Inc. a leader in the luxury goods industry seeks a Senior Manager, in Buying - Ready-To-Wear for the US Fashion Division. This individual will be responsible for implementing a seasonal merchandising strategy and developing unique and fashion-centric assortments in accordance with global and regional strategies.

What Impact you can create at CHANEL:

Business Management

• Together with Senior Group Director- RTW, create, implement, and champion strategic vision and initiatives
• Creatively and strategically curate product assortments for 8 collections per year, taking into consideration the studio's spirit and intent, regional specificities, budget forecasts, and vision by Boutique
• Drive collection vitality in-season through the management of inventory movement through product transfers, consolidations, and support of VIC requests

• Produce high-level reviews on topics impacting critical business components and present solutions to your Merch leaders
• Drive the US pricing and harmonization process for RTW which includes key partnerships with Merch Planning, Operations, Account Services, Finance, Technology, and Global Supply Chain
• Lead collaboration with the Visual Merchandising team to ensure presentation of collections for launches, events, and special BTQ moments and to bring alignment to the seasonal brand image messages & business strategies
• Oversee the monitoring of deliveries in partnership with Visual Merchandising, Account Services, Global Supply Chain, and Planning to guarantee optimal and impactful collection launches and events to create a strong client experience
• Partner with other product category teams to ensure a holistic brand approach with RTW as the driver of our brand image

• Provide direction on annual business planning, financial reporting, and budget forecasting for the product category in partnership with Merchandising Planning
• Determine sample order & co-op advertising looks and supervise product discovery assortments
• Actively follow industry/ seasonal trends and hold a strong pulse on the competitive market and key influencers
• Develop strong partnerships with a variety of internal business partners to influence stakeholders and peers to achieve business objectives
• Champion change and push through roadblocks with creative solutions and rally the team to execute

• Hold a coaching and mentorship mindset for RTW Manager

Reporting & Analysis

• Have OTB accountability and manage business analysis in-season as well as lead report evolution
• Create and present buy reviews reflective of the assortment approach and strategies for each collection

• Lead weekly, monthly, quarterly, and seasonal analysis of collection performance and present findings as well as develop ad hoc studies leading to new insights and learnings
• Partner with Client Analytics and Merch Planning teams to synthesize data and analyses to tell a strong category and client story

Retail Connection

• Share seasonal product vision to boutique teams and drive inspiration in bold and assertive assortments while creatively driving engagement to promote styling and storytelling

• Show curiosity in understanding the retail landscape through spending time in boutiques to build a deep understanding of our client base
• Create an atmosphere of open dialogue supporting knowledge transfer and idea generation, with regular touchpoints outside of the buying sessions to understand the client and local market needs
• Have a deep understanding in how our Tech tools support and impact the client journey

You are energized by:

• Exuding enthusiasm, energy, and an ability to inspire others about retail and product. You'll have a strong fashion aesthetic understanding and demonstrate taste level
• Collaborating with a variety of cross-functional teams with a service mindset and building strong influential partnerships
• Strong analytical thinking coupled with qualitative essence. You are comfortable independently formulating theories and drawing conclusions from large, complex sets of data in a clear, concise manner driven by creative thinking
• Learning and optimizing systems and programs. You will have advanced Microsoft Suite expertise particularly in Excel and Powerpoint and experience with PowerBI a plus
• Coaching and development

• Thriving in evolving and dynamic environments; you have a proven track record of self-initiative, ability to multi-task and improve processes
• Strong written, verbal, and public speaking skills; ability to articulate to various audiences in many contexts (Boutique/Corporate/ Global)
• Being client-facing and understanding/enhancing the client experience
• Innate curiosity of the world around you, projection of authenticity, and self-awareness

Position Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree required
• 7+ years in a buying-related, strategic/analytical role with demonstrated results in impacting business, strong RTW background a plus
• Location requirement: NY Home Office. This position will follow a hybrid schedule of 3 days in the office and up to 2 days remote. Position will require weekend hours during buying sessions (6x per year) and select events.
• Travel requirement: Domestic (market enrichment, event and boutique opening support) & International for select collections

The anticipated base salary range for this position is $85,000 through $125,000. Base salary is one component of the total compensation for this position. Other components [may/will] include additional compensation, benefits, and perks.

Chanel is a private company whose values are grounded in creating the conditions for people to perform at their best and feel fulfilled and confident in their work. We offer a unique work environment where individuals are encouraged to better understand the brand, the business, and motivations, so that together we can unlock the possibilities of growth. This is reflected in:

Diversity and Inclusion:

• At CHANEL, we are intentional in promoting Diversity & Inclusion. We foster respect, empathy, and dignity for all. We believe strongly that the diversity of our people across the full spectrum of human differences is essential to our organisation and the connections we have with each other and our clients.
• We offer Employee Resource Groups in the US that are voluntary, open to all, employee-led groups formed around a shared identity or lived experience, whose aim is to foster a diverse, inclusive, and equitable community aligned with the values and missions of the communities they support.

Chanel Community:

• CHANEL Community empowers our employees to channel their passions, talents, and sense of purpose to contribute to and learn from our communities.
• Employees are encouraged to take time off annually to volunteer through CHANEL Community. CHANEL also matches employee donations to select charitable organizations.

Fondation Chanel:

• Since 2011, Fondation CHANEL's mission is for women and girls to be free to shape their own destiny. Through multi-year partnerships with financial and technical support, Fondation CHANEL is committed to improving the safety and autonomy of women and adolescent girls around the world, impacting over a million women and girls in its first 10 years.
• For more information, please navigate to the Fondation Chanel website here

Sustainability:

• CHANEL Mission 1.5° is our climate action plan. It is focused on transforming the business in line with the ambitions of the Paris Agreement on climate change to limit the average global mean temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.

• Employees are encouraged to contribute to our US Sustainability efforts at the corporate level and within the divisions, through organized taskforces and initiatives.

Arts and Culture:

• We are committed to extending our legacy of cultural engagement. Global support includes the CHANEL Culture Fund, which supports a select group of leading art culture institutions across the globe, and the CHANEL Next Prize for the next generation of creative talent. US support currently includes Annual sponsorship of the MoMA film program, Tribeca Film Festival programs and Through Her Lens, Support of the Academy Gold Fellowship for Women and Sponsorship of the BAAND Together Dance Festival at Lincoln Center.

Career and Leadership Development:

• We have dedicated in-house teams focused on supporting the onboarding of employees,developing leadership skills via custom programs like Imagine Chanel People, Heart of Leadership and group and individual coaching, and blended online and live classes offered on our Bloom platform and by skilled trainers, such as Shape Your Career, to develop career building skills.

Compensation :

• Base salary, bonus potential and other forms of variable pay [may/will be] offered for this position

Benefits and Perks:

• Flexibility (flexible time and hybrid work options)
• Wellbeing resources include dedicated paid time off for wellbeing (2-week August Office Closure and Wellbeing Days in Retail) and a Wellbeing fund
• Family and care giving benefits (inclusive of parental leave, fertility support, MilkStork, and Care.com Membership)

• Generous paid time off policies to include vacation, holiday, sick and volunteer days
• 401K, pension, and other incentives
• Robust healthcare offerings; medical, dental, vision, MDLIVE (virtual care), One Medical, Flexible Spending Accounts (Health Care & Dependent Care), Health Savings Account and Employee Assistance Program
• Life insurance, Accidental Death & Dismemberment, Short Term Disability, Long Term Disability, Health Advocate, International Business Travel Accident & Medical, and Commuter Transit & Parking

*Chanel, Inc. benefits and perks are dependent on eligibility and subject to modification by Chanel at any time.