Deputy Head of Boutique - Fashion, Watches & Fine Jewelry

Job Purpose : The Deputy Head of Boutique plays an important role in inspiring and managing the boutique team to achieve the mission of the brand, and is the primary driver of effective day-to-day operations in the boutique.

As a bridge between the Head of Boutique and the Boutique team, the Deputy Head of Boutique supports the Head of Boutique to reinforce, communicate and execute The Chanel Difference on the Boutique floor to ensure luxury retail leadership.

Vision: The ultimate house of luxury defining style and creating desire now and forever.

Mission: Dedicated to inspiring and managing the boutique team to engage the consumer of today and tomorrow to the brand by providing unsurpassed service to all our customers (internal and external) while supporting the Head of Boutique in always ensuring high image standards in the boutiques while being committed to the employee’s personal and professional development and growth.

Key Responsibilities:

 

• Uphold the Image of the Brand (VM Merchandising +BTQ Maintenance +Grooming)
• Communicates the importance of image to the boutique team and sets a good example in “walking the talk”.
• Swiftly spots and effectively corrects and explains to the boutique team on lapses of images to prevent future recurrences.
• Conducts or appoint senior boutique staff members to conduct daily checks to ensure that window and in-boutique displays consistently reflect the essence of the seasonal line and are in accordance with the Chanel image.
• Ensures or appoint senior boutique staff members to ensure that the boutique environment is always in optimum condition from cleanliness to maintenance of furniture, fixtures and décor including the professional image of team members.
• Organizes or appoint senior boutique staff members to organize regular inspection on boutique team’s grooming.
• Manage and inspire the Boutique team
• Inspire & Motivate team members by being a role model, taking a close interest in his/her direct reports’ well-being, and actively participating in their professional development (service, CEM, sales performance…) Achieve this through spending a significant amount of time on the boutique floor observing, interacting and coaching the team.
• Develop talents by formulating performance objectives and conducting reviews of the Fashion Advisors formally every six months, with frequent informal interactions. Identify specific development plans for team members, regular coaching and follow-up (IDP/PIP). Work on the team development in terms of structure and pipelines.
• Coach and mentor talents, ensuring team engagement and team culture infusion.
• Partner and/or provide support to all “Specialists’’ positions in the boutique (including W&FJ)
• Manage product categories & Drive business performance
• Formulate category plans (vision translation, long term goals, category strategy)
• Apply business acumen (Data Analysis, action plan and follow up)
• Build network: Expertise cooperation, merchandising communication, and other resources)
• Contribute to the Buy (client feedback, identify and share business opportunities, sizing for RTW & Shoes)
• Ensure Ultimate Client Experience on the boutique floor
• Support the Head of Boutique and Client Strategy team in ensuring a client-centric culture among the boutique team that emphasizes on clienteling program to build long lasting relationships with them.
• Ensure ultimate experience with on floor support to FAs, participating in appointments with top clients as well as observation for service elevation opportunity
• Guide the team to deliver top-notch service and build lasting client relationships
• Boutique event management
• Manage Projects
• Lead BTQ/participate national projects
• Drive project landing and adoption in boutique, by orchestration with boutique and office teams
• Develop and lead boutique initiatives in test and learn approach
• Contribute and support change management in the boutique team
• Properly manage Merchandise & Inventory
• Direct or appoint senior boutique team members to direct daily opening and closing inventory count to ensure no inventory losses. Discrepancies, if they arise, must be reported in a timely manner as determined by the Boutique and/or Retail Manager.
• Supervise the Back of House team or Boutique team in-charge of Back of House to ensure that the Back of House is neat, and that stocks are managed efficiently to facilitate Front of House activities.
• Conduct or appoint senior boutique team member to conduct regular cycle count of inventories; personally conduct the annual full inventory count.
• Adhere to Company guidelines to ensure that proper controls are instituted to prevent stock losses, pilferage, or damage. Monitor and perform spot checks to ensure that these controls are being followed.
• Devise a system to ensure that best sellers are continually replenished, and easily accessed in the Back of House, while flagging out slow sellers to the Boutique/Retail Manager and Product team to take further action.
• Encourage active participation from the boutique team during pre and post buy meetings, and mandate providing regular qualitative feedback on products to the Product Team.
• Effectively manage day-to-day Operations
• Rotates with Head of Boutique and/or other Deputy Head of Boutiques on shift (including weekends and public holidays) to ensure adequate supervision of boutique team on the floor.
• Design and review roster to maximize staff strength in accordance to traffic demands and trading patterns.
• Ensure all operational procedures regarding sales, discounts, transfers, stock adjustments and all policies are followed.
• Identity opportunity and drive optimization (mindset and roadmap cf. Project management)
• Ensure daily sales and appropriate paperwork is accurately completed.
• Provide to Head of Boutique qualitative information on customer trends / demands, competitor activity and merchandise movement to Fashion Management on a regular basis.
• Attend to all day-to-day Operations issues promptly and astutely, seeking direction and guidance from the Head of Boutique as needed.
• Foster close partnerships
• Form close partnerships with W&FJ Division, and the relevant divisions (IT, Finance, ODHR, Logistics, Communications) as well as within the Fashion division (VM, Marketing, Product, PR, Training) in order to best execute and achieve business objective
  
   

Person Specifications:

Academic / Professional Qualifications

• Colleague / Bachelor Degree
   

Work Experience

• Fashion / retail / luxury background definitely an advantage
• Minimum 10 years experience in managing a team of no less than 5 members
   

Required Competencies

• Fluent in English and local language, Mandarin a plus
• Knowledge of shop operations such as stock organization, cash and credit card handling, stock count measures