Director, Sales & Retail Business Development

Every great story has a new beginning, and yours starts here.
Welcome to Warner Bros. Discovery... the stuff dreams are made of.
Who We Are...
When we say, "the stuff dreams are made of," we're not just referring to the world of wizards, dragons and superheroes, or even to the wonders of Planet Earth. Behind WBD's vast portfolio of iconic content and beloved brands, are the storytellers bringing our characters to life, the creators bringing them to your living rooms and the dreamers creating what's next...
From brilliant creatives, to technology trailblazers, across the globe, WBD offers career defining opportunities, thoughtfully curated benefits, and the tools to explore and grow into your best selves. Here you are supported, here you are celebrated, here you can thrive.
Your New Role...
The Director of Sales & Retail Business Development is responsible for elevating Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products' (WBDGCP) North America positioning at retail and driving sustainable consumer products revenue growth at Target stores, as well as manages the Sales & Retail Business Development Team located in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Your Role Accountabilities...

• Defines retail sales growth initiatives, develops, sells in, executes and activates key domestic retail strategies that align with the company's strategic marketing, sales, brands and franchise portfolio initiatives
• Acts as the Sales & Retail Business Development Retail Leader, Brand Ambassador, Change Agent, Influencer leveraging Target, Licensees, and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) organizations
• Serves as a cross-functional leader with focus on collaboration across the WBD enterprise for retail go-to-market initiatives and strategy
• Responsible for annual sales and growth targets across key lines of business - Toys, Collectibles, Fashion, Home, Hardlines, Publishing, Food, Health & Beauty
• Drives deliverables at retail utilizing knowledge and understanding of corporate initiatives, strategic plans, brands and franchises
• Deepens and expands WBDGCP relationships across all levels and cross org (merchandising, planning, operations, marketing, PD, Creative, Finance, Franchise); including an executable Top to Top strategy
• Delivers best in class and innovative experiences to stimulate retailer buy in and sales; leverages the broader organization where appropriate
• Builds & collaborates with WBDGCP marketing team to develop comprehensive Target on-line to-offline marketing plans supported by PR to drive awareness of key moments and sales against priority programs at Target
• Builds and drives 18-24 month planning calendar for Target, defining the everyday core business and key merch moments across brands and franchises
• Maximizes WBD IP for bespoke opportunities
• Drives ongoing evolution of WBDGCP Retail in line with changing consumer and industry trends
• Strategically partners with the top 10-20 licensees to execute all strategic pillars
• Leverages deep retail experiences to develop expansive multi-level retail relationships to drive and execute Top to Top alignment
• Builds best in class programs at retail using multiple touchpoints across the organization
• Strategically identifies & develops priority programs, product assortments, in collaboration with Category teams, Licensing partners & Target merchant & marketing teams to support growth plans
• Builds consensus with key licensing partners to deliver collaborative solutions
• Adept at defining and securing space at retail driving high sales and ROI
• Partners with internal and external partners (licensees, retailers, agencies) marketing and PR departments to ensure high awareness and consumer activation of retail programs
• Aligns retailer objectives with WBP IP solutions
• Identifies new opportunities to mitigate white space
• Motivates, leads and develops executive Target Team Talent
• Responsible for annual financial targets; quarterly reporting, forecasting and gap analysis
• Identifies and drives omnichannel opportunities across all lines of business
• Builds and drives development of account plan, annual long-range plan, retail strategies and revenue goals
• Executes retail and eCommerce strategies and initiatives that deliver financial goals
• Drives incremental volume and promotes sustained volume growth by implementing account plans that include strategic eCommerce growth initiatives
• Establishes and owns key retail Merchant, Marketing & Licensee relationships to meet and exceed revenue targets and growth objectives
• Determines and manages budget and advertising publicity trade spend to drive sales of retail program initiatives
• Team Leader of key meetings: Joint Business Planning meetings, Studio Swings,Top to Top meetings, Quarterly Business Reviews in collaboration with Target, Licensees & WBDGCP Retail Senior Management, Merchant and Marketing Teams
• Responsible for personnel management and development of Target Sales & Retail Business Development Team
• Manages team travel and expense budget
• Leads, manages and drives account specific retail and eCommerce initiatives, promotions, campaigns and events in partnership with internal stakeholders & licensees to maximize sell-in and sell-through of products
• Presents and develops high quality retail presentations leveraging franchise strategies, consumer insights, and market trends that support the Warner Bros. Discovery brands and franchises
• Acts as decision maker and relationship builder with Target Omni and eCommerce senior merchants and marketing teams
• Manages third-party vendor relationships on retail program execution
• Uses POS data analytics to regulary track & report on performance
• Analyzes WBDGCP programs- Target physical and digital business to develop growth strategies and objectives
• Analyzes all programs post mortem to identify key learnings and to influence future strategies and programs, ROI

Qualifications & Experience...
Work Experience

• Minimum 10 years experience in retail-related buying, product development and/or sales at a manufacturer, retailer or licensor.
• Minimum 10 years sales and marketing experience in the toys, softlines, hardlines, consumables or e-commerce industries
• Proven ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with senior level retail executives to provide high level retail intelligence and drive revenue growth for the business
• Demonstrated team personnel management experience
• Proven track record of developing and executing best in class retail account strategies that elevates and drives ongoing evolution of the Retail Business to stimulate and deliver sustainable revenue growth
• Demonstrated success in developing and executing brand and/or retail programs/campaigns in collaboration with external and internal partners

Education, Professional Training, Technical Training or Certification

• BA/BS degree in business or related field required
• MBA preferred

Knowledge/Skills

• Strong knowledge of retail industry, ecommerce space, solution selling and marketing principals
• Strong strategic, digital and analytical skills
• Strong social media marketing and eCommerce trends
• Strong Sales & solution selling skills: relationship building, presentations, influencing skills
• Thrives in a collaborative environment: capacity to engage, willingness to learn and to share ideas with a positive attitude
• Proven financial acumen
• Proven and effective interpersonal skills and ability to develop relationships with personnel at all levels of retail organization
• Excellent collaborator and working with cross functional teams
• Ability to navigate and work through a matrix structure to deliver the end solution
• Respectful role model, leader, resilient, tenacious, diplomatic and problem solver
• • Proven and effective written and oral communication skills
• Working knowledge of creative and product development
• Proven ability to drive business independently, demonstrates leadership and management skills
• Computer Skills: MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Must have the ability to communicate effectively with all levels of personnel
• Must have the ability to pay close attention to detail
• Must have the ability to organize and schedule work effectively
• Must have the ability to guide and direct team
• Must have the ability to work well under time constraints
• Must have the ability to handle multiple tasks
• Must be able to work independently and meet deadlines
• Must demonstrate flexibility and effectiveness when faced with changing schedules or priorities
• Some travel required

Other Requirements

• Must be able to perform job responsibilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota to best drive the business forward, build strong relationships with key retail executives and develop local teams

Management has the right to add or change duties and job requirements at any time
How We Get Things Done...
This last bit is probably the most important! Here at WBD, our guiding principles are the core values by which we operate and are central to how we get things done. You can find them at www.wbd.com/guiding-principles/ along with some insights from the team on what they mean and how they show up in their day to day. We hope they resonate with you and look forward to discussing them during your interview.
The Legal Bits...
Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects the diversity of our society and the world around us. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, mental or physical disability, and genetic information, marital status, citizenship status, military status, protected veteran status or any other category protected by law.
If you're a qualified candidate with a disability and you need a reasonable accommodation in order to apply for this position, please contact us at recruitadmin@wbd.com.