Location: Portland, OR, Chicago, IL, Dallas, TX, Houston, TX, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, CA, Miami, FL, New York City, NY
 

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization

The Senior Manager, Visual Merchandising Training leads the development and execution of visual merchandising training programs across DTC NAM stores, ensuring alignment with Global and NAM standards. This role is responsible for creating dynamic training materials and adapting content in collaboration with retail partners to meet the evolving retail landscape.

In addition to content development, the Senior Manager manages and develops a team of trainers, overseeing the training calendar and driving the implementation of effective initiatives. This includes fostering partnerships with retail back-office and fleet training teams to support seamless delivery. The role ensures consistent application of visual merchandising standards across all stores, elevating product presentation, enhancing brand knowledge, and improving consumer engagement.

As a key member of the Retail Marketing leadership team, the Senior Manager drives visual merchandising excellence across NAM, helping to meet and exceed key performance indicators (KPIs) from both a brand and commercial perspective. The role ensures store teams are equipped with the tools, knowledge, and skills to deliver an outstanding consumer experience, contributing to the overall success of the DTC NAM retail business.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the creation, development, and delivery of visual merchandising training programs, focusing on team development to drive business outcomes and improve store-level KPIs.
• Build and develop a team of visual merchandising trainers, providing guidance and support to enhance their effectiveness in delivering training.
• Develop innovative training strategies to elevate the impact of the NAM Visual Merchandising team, ensuring consistent and high-quality execution across all stores.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to gather content and create training materials that align with business priorities, ensuring relevance and strategic impact.
• Manage vendor relationships and use brand templates to develop and maintain training content and schedules that support both team and business objectives.
• Facilitate ongoing training sessions, upskilling store teams and trainer staff, while ensuring consistent messaging in partnership with retail business teams.
• Utilize the ThirdChannel platform to track, report, and evaluate training effectiveness, ensuring continuous improvement.
• Plan and adapt training programs using Global Training Certification tools, ensuring alignment with global standards and seamless integration with local needs.
• Lead both in-person and virtual training initiatives, including meetings, conferences, and store openings, while providing hands-on support and coaching to trainers.
• Conduct store visits to assess training needs and work closely with trainers and local managers to create tailored training plans that drive visual merchandising excellence and commercial results.

Key Relationships

• District Managers
• Regional VM Managers | District VM Managers
• VM Training Managers | Retail Training Managers
• Global Sales Academy | Global Visual Teams
• Visual Direction | Space Planning | Retail Marketing | VM Strategy

Requisite Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Deep understanding and passion for visual merchandising, brand aesthetics, and strategic product presentation.
• Comprehensive knowledge of the retail landscape, marketing, and customer service principles, with the ability to translate category performance into effective merchandising strategies.
• Strong organizational and planning skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects and budgets, ensuring timely and impactful execution.
• Proficient in interpreting store KPIs and financial reports to inform strategic decision-making and drive profitability.
• Expertise in designing and delivering both virtual and in-person training programs that align with business priorities and enhance team performance.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, capable of leading cross-functional teams, motivating others, and driving alignment through clear communication across all levels.
• Ability to think conceptually, adapt quickly in a fast-paced environment, and implement strategies that achieve commercial and brand objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in dynamic, competitive environments and address challenges with a proactive, solutions-oriented approach.
• Inspirational attitude that fosters a positive and collaborative team culture, inspiring teams to meet and exceed goals.
• Advanced skills in Microsoft Office and various retail software platforms, including POS systems and ThirdChannel, to create, manage, and track training tools and initiatives.
• Ability to perform physical tasks such as lifting up to 50 pounds, standing, walking, and traveling up to 50% of the time.
• Strong ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with team members, vendors, and business partners, ensuring alignment and support for objectives.

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, Retail Management, Marketing, Education, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 6-10 years of experience in a sports/fashion retail environment, with at least 2-5 years focused on visual merchandising and training, preferably in a multi-store capacity. Minimum 18 months of store management experience or equivalent.
• Proven experience leading and developing teams, with a strong ability to manage and inspire individuals to achieve business and performance goals.
• Extensive experience in visual merchandising, including delivering a compelling in-store consumer experience and managing merchandising standards across multiple locations.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to effectively engage customers, store personnel, and cross-functional teams.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, and overnight shifts, to meet business needs.
• Experience working with agencies and writing briefs is a plus.

• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at adidas means championing individual uniqueness and cultivating a culture of belonging in which everyone can create at their best. We embrace diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives and seek to create a workforce that reflects our consumers and communities.
• adidas offers robust and progressive medical, including HSA (Health Savings Account) with employer funding or FSA (Flexible Spending Account) options, dental, vision, prescription drug coverage, adoption, with surrogate and fertility support, short and long-term disability, and basic life and AD&D insurance, which can be supplemented with employee-paid coverage. Employees are able to enroll in adidas’ 401k plan and Stock Purchase Plan with employer match. Full-time employees are eligible for education assistance and generous Leave policies including 14 weeks of paid parental leave.
• Employees are eligible to earn an annual bonus based on both company and personal performance. Employees accrue prorated flexible time off in the amount .4388 hours per day that increases with years of service, twelve paid holidays throughout the calendar year and Service Time Off during milestone years.
• We officially returned to office in a hybrid work environment, working 3 days in office and 2 days remote. The working location of this position is Portland, OR, Chicago, IL, Dallas, TX, Houston, TX, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, CA, Miami, FL & New York City, NY.
• Though our teammates hail from all corners of the world, our working language is English.