Pentland Brands
Head of Market Merchandising - Speedo EMEA
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We’re Pentland Brands
A global family business behind some of the world’s most iconic active and lifestyle brands. We bring integrity, energy, and ambition to our work, setting high standards and striving to deliver great outcomes without ego.
Design Swimwear Built for Movement, Confidence, and Performance in the Water
At Speedo, product has to do more than look good. It has to move with the swimmer, feel comfortable in the water, and support performance, confidence, and freedom of movement, whether someone is training, competing, learning, or simply enjoying the swim.
Head of Market Merchandising for Speedo
As the Head of Market Merchandising for Speedo, you will lead the dedicated Market Merchandising team across EMEA, acting as the most senior authority for the brand in the region. This role bridges Global Product Creation & Commercial, requiring a comprehensive understanding of global and regional product strategies, consumer data, pricing analytics, and market behavior.
You will shape the strategic direction and operational delivery of assortments, pricing, and forecasting for Speedo in EMEA, ensuring every decision drives brand elevation, top-line growth, and margin improvement. Partnering with global and regional functions, you will embed data-led, consumer-first merchandising frameworks, operate as a visible cross-functional leader with direct P&L accountability, and lead the evolution of merchandising capabilities through digital tools, AI, and future-fit operating models as Speedo scales across EMEA.
What you’ll be doing:
- Champion the use of consumer, competitor, and market insight in every merchandising decision.
- Turn competitor benchmarking and trend analysis into clear, actionable plans.
- Define and govern EMEA pricing frameworks across channels, tiers, and markets.
- Own final pricing decisions that balance value, competitiveness, and profitability.
- Lead the seasonal and long-term assortment architecture for Speedo across EMEA.
- Own segmentation, range breadth, and strategic focus across DTC and wholesale channels.
- Own the forecast input process with Commercial & Planning, driving accountability for forecast accuracy.
- Own EMEA margin delivery and merchandising’s contribution to revenue and profit.
- Drive financial scenario planning and embed forecasting rigor across the function.
- Lead the transformation of merchandising into an AI-enabled, insight-driven function.
- Pilot and embed scalable tools and planning processes that future-proof the team.
- Represent Market Merchandising in strategic forums and planning reviews.
- Build trusted relationships across Product Creation, Marketing, Planning, Commercial, and DTC.
- Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing, multi-country team of Market Merchandisers.
- Shape talent strategy and build career pathways for future merchandising leaders.
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What you’ll bring:
- Deep experience in merchandising or commercial leadership across EMEA markets.
- Proven track record leading assortment, pricing, and forecasting strategies with full P&L ownership.
- Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional projects and influence matrixed stakeholders.
- Familiarity with competitive landscapes in swimwear, sports, and lifestyle sectors.
- Strategic, big-picture thinker with sharp commercial attention to detail.
- Collaborative leader who builds alignment and inspires confidence across teams.
- Data-driven and proactive, always looking for margin, efficiency, and growth.
- A genuine passion for innovation and building future-fit merchandising capability, brought to life with the curiosity, ownership, and collaborative spirit that define our Pentland culture.
Why Speedo?
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Speedo is one of the world’s most iconic swimwear brands, built on a heritage of innovation, performance, and a lifelong love of swimming.
From elite competition to everyday fitness, leisure, and learning, Speedo creates product for every type of swimmer. It is a brand trusted in the water because it understands what matters: fit, movement, comfort, durability, confidence, and performance.
Joining Speedo means becoming part of a team that cares deeply about helping people feel at home in the water, whether they are chasing a personal best, building confidence, training regularly, or discovering the joy of swimming for the first time.
Perks & Benefits
We offer a competitive salary, discretionary bonus, hybrid working, flexible start and finish times, generous holiday allowance, product discounts, sample sales, enhanced family-friendly policies, healthcare support, gym and fitness discounts, cycle to work scheme, and electric car scheme.
You can find full details of our benefits and perks on our UK Benefits page.
The Interview Process
We want our interview process to feel clear, straightforward, and supportive. If your experience and expectations look like a strong match for the role, here’s what you can expect next:
- Talent Team Intro Call - A 30-minute video call with our Talent Team to get to know each other, talk through the role and your experience, and answer any questions you have.
- Experience Interview - A more in-depth interview (usually online) with the hiring manager to explore your skills, experience, and approach, and how these align with the role, our principles, and our ways of working.
- Final Interview - A final in-person interview at our office, focused on deeper discussion and practical application, giving you the chance to meet more of the team and see Pentland Brands in action.
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