Head of Fashion

CHANEL is an independent luxury House dedicated to exceptional creation, the highest standards of craftmanship and enduring client relationships. Rooted in the vision of Gabrielle Chanel, the House preserves its unique heritage while shaping the future with creativity, integrity and responsibility. CHANEL believes in freedom of creation, the power of human potential and a positive, lasting impact on people and society.

The House promotes arts, culture, and creativity, while investing significantly in key areas including research & development, sustainability, and innovation.

Head of Fashion INDIA

The Head of Fashion in India is a senior leadership role at Chanel, reporting to the Managing Director of India and the Regional Fashion Director. The role is based in Delhi and travels will be required.

The Head of Fashion is accountable for shaping and leading the long-term vision and strategy of the Fashion business in India. As the expert of the Indian market, he/she anticipates its evolution and supports to build and implement strategic direction for Fashion business, lead the transformation towards a future-fit organization, develop a strong local client base. Must identifies medium- and long-term opportunities that will define the House’s presence, distribution roadmap and sustainable development across the territory. In close partnership with Regional and Global Fashion Leadership, he/she translates the strategic directions of the House into a clear and ambitious market roadmap—asserting Brand leadership, reinforcing CHANEL’s Fashion singularity and driving long-term qualitative growth.

The role also requires the development of corporate skills essential for deploying the Sustainability & Resilience Roadmap, with co-ownership of India Leadership.  

What impact you can create 

As the Head of Fashion at Chanel in India, your impact will be contributing to Brand Equity leadership and unique positioning in competitive market, while developing successfully our Fashion business.  Your ability to drive an agile organization, understand and execute strategic initiatives, and elevate the Client experience will be pivotal in the following ways. 

Brand Leadership and Business Strategy 

• In partnership with the India Managing Director and Regional Fashion Director to align on strategic directions, priorities, key initiatives and performance drivers to lead as Fashion Ultimate Luxury House in the market. 

• Craft and execute a comprehensive brand strategy in line with Global strategy and in spirit of co-creation with Regional, to assert Brand leadership and continue to reinforce our Fashion singularity. 

• Implement the India distribution roadmap and city strategy, reinforcing brand positioning, while formulate the medium-term and long-term prospective and opportunities for Fashion business development.

• Ensure One Boutique One Story is well understood and implemented, and Product strategy expresses each Collection creativity and purpose, while monitoring the inventory and business planning. 

• Anticipate the outlook and trends of Fashion industry, providing insights on market intelligence. 

• Continue to drive sustainability initiatives and bring it to the next level in line with Global and Regional framework.  
  

Client Strategy 

• Ensure the Fashion Client Relationship Promise is consistently embodied and delivered to every client across all Fashion boutiques in India.  
• Guarantee an unsurpassed Ultimate experience for Top Clients on a scale, while strengthening the foundations required to deliver it consistently and sustainably. 

• Accelerate roll-out of Chanel & Moi in boutiques to move the needle on perceived quality and value of our products, to express our commitment on quality and services. 

• Closely partner with tech team to develop future-fit infrastructure and ensure the business requirement are reflected in all Digital journey/solutions to meet Retail excellence and Client experience needs. 

• Provide client insights to closely monitor market client dynamics and contribute to Regional Fashion forward thinking and priorities setting. 

Retail Leadership 

• Drive Chanel’s continuous leadership in Luxury retailing, setting the benchmark in the market as the Retail Employer of choice and implementing Flexibility @Retail.  

• Understand current and future Luxury Retail business and trends, anticipate challenges, and provide appropriate solutions ensuring Brand posture and Retail excellence. 

• Drive overall Retail operation efficiency to support front line Retail needs and manage with agility and pro-activeness, according to context (internal & external). 

• Monitor key performance indicators and metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of business strategies and initiatives. 

Organization and People Leadership 

• Lead the Fashion division with a collaborative, open-mind mindset and transversal approach, fostering new ways of working and new stronger partnership with Swiss Markets Fashion team and Fashion community beyond India.  

• Continue to optimize the organization model and elevate talent capabilities to ensure a robust model to support the long-term growth of the brand, the business and our people. 

• Promote a positive and energetic work environment that encourages creativity, initiative, and employee engagement. 

• Develop future leaders for the House and continue elevating the Leadership capabilities of his/her teams, both in retail and office. 

• Ensure the Fashion Singularity and the Ultimate Luxury standards are well understood across organization, implemented across different touch points and create conditions for everyone to embrace and experience them. 

Stakeholder Management and Influence 

• Be the expert of India market and continue to identify the needs of the market and express to Regional and Global Fashion Leadership to co-create the future priorities.  

• Play leadership role in India ELC to drive market business strategy with a One-house mindset. 

• Embody the Fashion fundamentals and continue to infuse them and on-board beyond Fashion, while fostering Brand culture. 

• Be accountable for Watches & Fine Jewelry (WFJ) performance in Fashion, partnering with WFJ leadership team.  

Sustainability & Resilience roadmap 

• Play a pivotal role in fostering a culture of sustainability within the Fashion India Division, driving collective actions to achieve our shared sustainability goals. 

• Support & Advance integrated risk management practices to ensure robust, efficient and reliable business continuity. 

You are energised by 

You will be energized by the opportunity to drive and shape the future of our Fashion business in one of luxury emerging market of the Region. The following aspects of the role will fuel your passion and drive: 

• Leadership and Impact: You thrive on leading and inspiring teams to achieve their full potential. The impact you can create by setting directions, in line with Regional, driving business qualitative growth, deploying product strategies and elevating the client experience will be both rewarding and fulfilling. 

• Market Dynamism: The fast-paced and evolving nature of the Indian market and clients presents an exciting challenge. You will be energized by navigating this dynamic landscape, anticipating trends, and staying ahead of the curve. 

• Collaboration and Partnership: Building strong relationships and partnerships across functions within the market and operate closely with Regional teams is central to your leadership style. You will be energized by fostering a collaborative, open-minded culture and driving results through Teamwork. 

• Talent Development: You are passionate about developing and empowering talent. Building a solid organizational model and cultivating future leaders will be a cornerstone of your tenure as Head of Fashion. 

• People Leadership: As reliable leader of large organization, you will be energized by setting directions among all functions and executing them with excellence and precision. Your ability to connect different “métiers”, think analytically, be agile and drive collaboration will be pivotal in leading the fashion business. 

What you will bring

You will bring a wealth of experience and a unique skill set to the role. Having served as a fully accountable market leader overseeing an integrated business operation, you demonstrate a strong general management mindset and a holistic view of business performance.  Here's what you will contribute: 

• Luxury Retail Expertise: With 15+ years of experience in the luxury retail sector, you have a deep understanding of the industry, consumer behaviors, and the competitive landscape in India. 
• Brand Leadership: You have a proven track record in building brands, setting direction, crafting and executing winning business strategies, and driving business development. Your analytical thinking and ability to connect different domains will be invaluable. 
• Client-Centric Approach: Your strong business acumen is complemented by a deep understanding of the client journey and experience. You have a history of delivering service excellence and cultivating strong client relationships. 
• Influential Leadership: As a natural influencer, you have the ability to inspire and motivate teams, fostering a collaborative culture. With over 15+ years of people leadership experience, you have successfully led large, multi-layered teams and developed leaders of leaders. Your leadership style is inclusive and empowering, focused on talent development. 
• Adaptability and Resilience: Your experience has equipped you with the ability to navigate complex and evolving markets. You are resilient and capable of leading through challenges and  transformation. 
  
  

CHANEL is dedicated to creating the conditions for people to perform at their best, building on their strengths and enabling them to benefit from new opportunities. It offers a unique working environment where people are given time to understand the brand, and the business, and develop their personal motivations. This means everyone can grow, continue to be inspired, and feel included, now and in the future. The company fosters true collaboration and respect for all, grounded in the belief that diversity is essential to the success of the organization and its people.

CHANEL remains committed to rewarding people competitively, as well as offering initiatives such as well-being programs, learning and development opportunities, and parental leave for all parents globally.