Senior Director, Head of LEGO Retail China

Job Description

Are you passionate about profitable and sustainable sales growth by delivering a world-class, premium branded in-store experience with end-to-end ownership of the consumer/shopper experience in China?

We are looking for a Senior Director who has brand strength and elevated shopper/end-user experience as well as the ability to build a collaborative working environment marked by trust and psychological safety with passionate about talent development and inspire/motivate the organisation in China.

Build and strengthen the LEGO® Brand and performance in China

• Consistently deliver a world-class, premium branded in-store experience that reflects a shopper-first, channel agnostic approach to engaging with end-users.

• Source, share, and leverage key shopper & end-user insights to not only elevate the retail experience, but to better inform stakeholders across the LEGO Group in a way that routinely enhances the end-user experience and growth in the China market.

Consistently deliver on P&L growth targets and essential retail key performance indicators (KPIs)

• Monitor Key Performance indicators (KPI’s) - Traffic, Conversion, UPT, ATV, and NPS - and make necessary adjustments at store level with respective teams to optimise team performance in service of stakeholders

• Portfolio and people productivity – ensure retail fleet regularly tests and deploys the latest store environments, and that dilutive stores or those no longer fit for purpose are improved or closed to optimise profitability. Consistently measure employee productivity to optimise labor and maximise the employee experience.

Acts in a general management capacity on behalf of LEGO® Retail in China, ensuring strong cross-functional collaboration

• Translating global retail functions into a China market context to facilitate decision-making and high quality execution at speed.

• Proactively reaches out to colleagues across the business to stay connected and execute in alignment.

Flawlessly execute store operations in service of a world-class retail experience

• Ensure robust operational ways of working are in place in all back office, field, & store environments to protect company assets, staff, premises, and products, including a focus on loss prevention and audit

• Manage and control operational expenses (stores and back office) in line with budget

Establish and cultivate strong, collaborative, and complementary working relationships across Global LEGO® Retail, as well as with China Market Group Leadership Team/organisation

• Contribute to the growth and development of LEGO® Retail broadly as a highly engaged member of the LEGO® Retail Leadership Team

• Align with the Market Group, Retail Development, and Branded Stores Center of Excellence on eco-system-based decisions related to new spaces or remodelling, and format changes to existing store portfolio across the country

Build team capabilities, engagement, and performance

• Set clear and measurable objectives for direct reports; assess and help develop their functional and human-centred skills; identify and develop talent for career and leadership opportunities, all by leveraging the company system for performance management.

• Ensure high employee engagement and performance at every level through effective motivation, coaching, training, and development of personnel in the team, both in the back office and in the field.

Create and deliver the vision and strategy for all owned stores in China, including related back-office functions, to deliver the required retail experience at store level

• Identify key growth strategies, including marketing and expansion plans, in alignment with the overall LEGO® Retail strategic plan in a way that grows sales without negatively impacting the existing eco-system, and further supports enhancements to the end-user experience

• Advance the company’s digital integration transformation, building omnichannel capability in China, and across the LEGO Group

Play your part in our team succeeding

With over 1,000 stores worldwide, LEGO® Branded Retail is at the heart of the LEGO Group’s long-term growth strategy. Millions of consumers and shoppers across the globe are interested in a direct relationship with the LEGO Group, and LEGO® Retail is uniquely positioned to deliver the premium LEGO® branded retail experience. As a result, building branded, experiential retail capabilities is a key strategic priority the company. Given its proximity to shoppers and end-users, LEGO® Retail also plays an important role in helping all functions stay close to the needs and interests of our fans.

This role is a member of the China Market Group Leadership Team as well as the Global LEGO® Retail Leadership Team, as the primary LEGO® Retail representative in China drives key initiatives and strategies through owned stores in China, and elevates the LEGO Group’s retail capabilities both in China and globally by influencing global agendas and best practices

Do you have what it takes?

Functional Expertise:

• Multi-site retail operational experience

• Omnichannel and experiential retailing

• Strong retail mindset and commercial drive

Team Leadership:

• Can galvanise diverse groups in the organisation around common goals, motivate employees and create forward momentum. Develops best-in-class teams, creating an environment of high achievement, accountability, and growth

• Treats employees with respect and integrity, and consistently builds an environment of trust and psychological safety, leading by example

Delivering results:

• Track record of consistently driving positive comp growth

• Exhibits a strong drive for results and the tenacity to move major initiatives forward, while delivering top and bottom-line impact. Entrepreneurial, with a roll-up-your-sleeves approach and a relentless focus on making this happen.

Customer/Shopper Orientation:

• Uses a consumer perspective and insights to successfully anticipate and respond to customer/shopper needs. Has a track record of taking action to add value to the customer/shopper.

Innovation & Change Management:

• Can communicate a clear, compelling new direction, engaging others and championing a culture of change and transformation. Encourages others to initiate change.

• Ability to drive growth by building upon existing strengths and seizing new opportunities

• Mind for innovative work in the area of branded retail

Collaboration:

• A low ego, curious team player with a successful history of forging strong and credible partnerships.

• Collaborative and nimble in style, can influence effectively with a diverse set of stakeholders, and is equipped to partner with teams and individuals across the LEGO Group.

• Excellence in senior stakeholder management and diplomacy and ability to build strong, collaborative relationships

• Ability to collaborate across functions and borders, with a global mindset and enterprise perspective

• Experienced in handling cultural differences (Western/Asian)

• Good command of English (written and oral communication)

• Ability and willingness to travel as necessary (approx. 30-40% per year)

• Proven experience of Director+ level

Nice to have:

• Retail general management experience in China

• Franchise/Licensed/Wholesale (B2B) experience

• Central operations experience

• International experience

• New store opening experience

• Awareness and experience working with Landlords and real estate deals

#LI-JY2

Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis. However, please note we do amend or withdraw our jobs and reserve the right to do so at any time, including prior to any advertised closing date. So, if you're interested in this role we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

What’s in it for you?

Here is what you can expect:

Family Care Leave - We offer enhanced paid leave options for those important times.

Insurances – All colleagues are covered by our life and disability insurance which provides protection and peace of mind.

Wellbeing - We want our people to feel well and thrive. We offer resources and benefits to nurture physical and mental wellbeing along with opportunities to build community and inspire creativity.

Colleague Discount – We know you'll love to build, so from day 1 you will qualify for our generous colleague discount.

Bonus - We do our best work to succeed together. When goals are reached and if eligible, you'll be rewarded through our bonus scheme.

Workplace - When you join the team you'll be assigned a primary workplace location i.e. one of our Offices, stores or factories. Our hybrid work policy means an average of 3 days per week in the office. The hiring team will discuss the policy and role eligibility with you during the recruitment process.

Children are our role models. Their curiosity, creativity and imagination inspire everything we do. We strive to create a diverse, dynamic and inclusive culture of play at the LEGO Group, where everyone feels safe, valued and they belong.

The LEGO Group is highly committed to equal employment opportunity and equal pay and seeks to encourage applicants from all backgrounds (eg. sex, gender identity or expression, race/ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, age and religion) to apply for roles in our team.

Research shows that women and people from different minority backgrounds often only apply for a job if they meet 100% of the listed qualifications. If you dream of being a part of our team and you meet many, but not all of our listed qualifications for this role, please apply.

The LEGO Group is fully committed to Children’s Rights and Child Wellbeing across the globe. Candidates offered positions with high engagement with children are required to take part in Child Safeguarding Background Screening, as a condition of the offer.

Thank you for sharing our global commitment to Children’s Rights.

Just imagine building your dream career.

Then make it real.

Join the LEGO® team today.