Experience

Brown Thomas Arnotts

• Ireland
• Retail
• 400 - 500 Employee

• Beauty Director at Brown Thomas Arnotts

  • Sep 2021 - Present



Dunnes Stores

• Ireland
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Head Of Beauty

  • Aug 2019 - Dec 2021

  Following my garden leave period from Primark, I joined Dunnes to create from scratch, head up and fully project manage the roll – out and launch of a brand new premium Beauty department (incorporating lifestyle and well-being) throughout multiple stores. The focus is very much on high quality products encompassing; make up, skincare and hair care as well as the customer ‘experience’ which offers services such as an in-store nail bar and hair salon. Our goal is to become the number one affordable to premium beauty destination on the high-street, expanding our demographic by attracting a younger customer whilst retaining our more mature customer base. This is part of a five year store expansion strategy and I am responsible for the full execution of everything relating to the start – up of this department which includes; - Business and strategy planning (including financial detail) - Working closely with architects to plan in-store layout - Help design and create branding – ensuring the intended message is consistently strong and clear - Sourcing and engaging relevant bloggers and influencers via social media platforms - Signing off on fixtures and fittings - Continuous market and competitor research - Sourcing, networking and negotiating with new suppliers in order to secure the highest quality products at the best price - Deciding on product ranges - Negotiating price on all products - Recruitment of all staff including; buying team, floor staff and beauty experts/therapists - Working within strict timelines and budgets



Primark

• Ireland
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Global Buying Director

  • Mar 2015 - Feb 2019

  Here I was responsible for all aspects of strategic planning, leadership and customer focus across 11 regions, with direct responsibility for 382 stores within Europe and throughout the US. My varied duties and achievements included; - Managing a team of 64 direct reports globally and maintaining responsibility for all aspects of recruitment, coaching, training, performance management and succession planning - Pioneering an engaging a supportive work environment which championed innovation and dynamic problem solving - Leading daily team meetings to discuss global/national strategic objectives, areas of concern, change initiatives and wider market issues - Devising and implementing highly effective buying strategies in accordance with both national and global strategic objectives - Maintaining an excellent knowledge of the Primark brand and the retail market at large in order to engineer continuous commercial growth and brand engagement - Attending regular meetings with Business Partners to discuss P&L, business development strategies and any areas of missed opportunities - Managing all P&L analysis, forecasting and ensuring the effective delivery of the budget - Overseeing the effective opening of new stores and ensuring all stores achieve commercial growth - Visiting stores in order to engage with managerial staff and analyse business performance - Meeting with the Board of Directors to discuss buying strategies, macro decisions and assess the future direction of the business - Overseeing the delivery of a key change project and tasked with merging and embedding two teams (across Dublin and Reading) into one. This entailed promoting cultural change within the department, developing new policies and implementing new ways of working, as well as ensuring all staff were aware of role expectations - Coordinating the successful entry of the business into several new markets - Overseeing the development and implementation of new product areas

• Buying Controller

  • Jan 2011 - Mar 2015

  Within the position of Buying Controller, I managed 25 staff members across 4 regions and maintained responsibility for 125 stores. My duties included; - Overseeing training and recruitment whilst working to ensure continued professional development - Attending stores regularly to assess areas of improvement and to analyse P&L - Pitching ideas to senior management on how to reduce cost and increase ROI - Ensuring the effective execution and delivery of strategies in order to meet all short, mid and long term financial targets - Analysing seasonal sales and providing recommendations to engineer commercial growth - Regular liaison with the Director Of Buying, Business Partners, Buyers and Junior Buyers - Managing all aspects of forecasting and budget management to assess profitability in line with market conditions and demands - Strategic sourcing: pro-actively sourcing new suppliers to obtain the most lucrative rates - Conducting quality assurance checks to ensure high standards are maintained - Assessing stock levels in order to inform procurement strategies

• Trainee Buyer, Assistant Buyer and Buyer

  • 1994 - 2011

  I began my career at Primark as a Trainee Buyer and then worked my way up via promotion to become Assistant Buyer and then Buyer. This was an extremely fast paced and pressurised environment in which I learned to achieve tight deadlines and deliver profit through providing knowledge and trend intelligence gained from analysis as well as speed to market through trading. Duties were extremely varied and included; - Regular worldwide travel in order to conduct product development and carry out sourcing meetings, - Working with and managing numerous supply bases, lead times and product types at any one time - Making quick decisions in order to deliver profitable ranges - Actively sourcing new suppliers - Negotiating key line deals - Constantly building product knowledge across hard goods, soft goods, licensing and gifts - Working closely with design teams - Competitor shopping trips to keep on top of both UK and European trends - Pricing architecture - Analyse daily and weekly sales figures - Work closely with Merchandisers to manage weekly stock and sales position as well as line projections - Managed, mentored and motivated various teams, carrying out regular appraisals and PDR’s - Constantly and consistently worked towards targets to ensure they were always met or exceeded

• Store Manager

  • 1992 - 1994