Brand Manager (Sportscene)

The Brand Manager II is responsible for developing and executing brand strategies that position the brand as a market leader while driving both brand-building and commercial objectives. This includes managing partnerships, overseeing multi-channel campaigns, and leading a team to deliver innovative and impactful marketing initiatives. The role also involves monitoring market trends and ensuring brand alignment across all touchpoints.

• Own Sportscene's marketing relationship with its 44 brand partners, led by strategic partners Nike, adidas, Jordan, PUMA and New Balance, as the single accountable marketing contact

• Build and deliver annual and seasonal joint marketing plans with each partner, aligned to the Sportscene brand strategy, buying plan and trading priorities

• Lead partner marketing sell-ins, weekly status meetings, monthly budget planning, quarterly planning sessions and brand strategy reviews

• Plan and execute partner campaigns, launches and activations across store, omni, CRM/mailer and social, from brief through to in-store and online execution

• Manage partner campaign shoots and the curation and approval of partner-supplied creative assets, within both partner and Sportscene brand guidelines

• Negotiate and secure partner marketing investment (co-op funding, campaign and activation support) and ensure every brand recovery is claimed, invoiced and settled

• Plan, commit and track the branded marketing budget monthly, reporting spend and recoveries against budget

• Brief and approve store VM and point-of-sale collateral for partner launches across the Sportscene store network

• Monitor campaign performance and report on ROI, sell-through impact and KPIs to the business and to partners

• Protect confidential partner information, including embargoed product, launch dates and commercial terms

• Align Buying, Planning, Digital, VM and Store Operations around partner activity and launch calendars

• Direct the Sportscene Marketing Co-ordinator on partner campaign deliveryStay ahead of sneaker culture, youth trends, competitor activity and partners' global campaigns to keep Sportscene the destination for partner launches

• Bachelor's degree in marketing, Brand Management, Business or a related field

• 5+ years' marketing or brand management experience, with at least 3 years in retail, sportswear, footwear or fashion

• Proven experience managing global brand partners, trade marketing or co-op marketing relationships

• Track record of delivering integrated campaigns across in-store, digital and social channels

• Experience managing marketing budgets, purchase orders and supplier recoveries

• Exposure to omnichannel retail and the youth and sneaker market will be advantageous

Skills

• Partner relationship management and negotiation at senior level

• Integrated campaign planning and end-to-end execution

• Budget management, cost control and recovery tracking

• Commercial and analytical ability: reading sales, sell-through and campaign data

• Strong creative judgement and the ability to brief and critique creative work

• Project management across many concurrent partners, campaigns and deadlines

• Clear written and verbal communication, including presenting to partners and senior stakeholders

• Advanced MS Office (Excel and PowerPoint); SAP exposure advantageous

Behaviours

• Develops plans and prioritises initiatives that align to the organisational goals and objectives

• Thinks and plans strategically, focusing on the long-term goals and objectives of the organisation

• Applies market and business insights in order to drive organisational objectives

• Develops plans and prioritises initiatives that align to the organisational goals and objectives

• Relationship builder who earns the trust of partners and internal teams

• Commercially minded: links every marketing activity to sales and brand growth

• Resilient and adaptable under tight launch timelines and shifting priorities

• Effectively considers the diverse needs of various stakeholders

Preference will be given but not limited to candidates from designated groups in terms of the Employment Equity Act.