Sales Director – Lifestyle

Role Overview

• Own and lead the Lifestyle retail channels for Merrell US Wholesale, including full accountability for Key Account Managers, Account Executives, and Sales Support, delivering sustained growth and strong financial performance through disciplined new business generation and expansion of existing accounts.
• Build and drive Merrell’s sales strategy to elevate the lifestyle segment at national retailers and influential tier zero accounts.
• Own the annual sales budget and regional and key account plans, ensuring alignment to strategy, disciplined execution, and delivery of financial commitments.
• Direct the weekly management of sales by forecasting business trends, assessing growth opportunities, and translating strategy into planning actions that consistently meet or exceed targets and expand market presence.
• Build, lead, and hold accountable a high‑performing sales organization, setting clear strategic priorities, reinforcing a competitive Win Together mindset, and driving consistent results through focus and execution.
• Operate as a senior commercial leader across Merrell, driving global alignment and direction on business planning with finance, regional leadership, product, marketing, and planning partners.
• Establish and lead an insights‑driven selling culture, directing research and competitive analysis and converting consumer, customer, and financial insights into clear, compelling strategic recommendations that influence internal and external decision‑making.
• Make disciplined portfolio and investment decisions, systematically evaluating growth opportunities, establishing clear prioritization criteria, and aligning resources to brand and financial objectives.
• Elevate brand positioning within Lifestyle accounts, leading key strategic initiatives and determining optimal in‑store execution, including shop‑in‑shop strategies where applicable.
• Represent the Lifestyle & Pure Play business with executive presence, delivering fact‑based recommendations to senior leaders and customers through clear, decisive communication that drives alignment and action in a fast‑moving environment.
• Identify, penetrate, and build relationships with future prospect accounts, particularly with key national tier zero and tier one retailers, and track progress.
• Optimize and lead the sales operating model, establishing KPIs, business reviews, and mitigation plans that drive accountability, performance transparency, and continuous improvement.
• Lead commercialized efforts across accounts, directing regular reviews of plans, orders, inventory, merchandising, competitive analysis and markdowns, and driving revenue and profitability through deep wholesaler knowledge, margin analysis, and commercial judgment.
• Build strategic proposals and negotiation strategies through partnerships as the key stakeholder to drive retailer growth.
• Ensure tight execution through cross‑functional alignment, overseeing communication and issue resolution between customers and internal partners across Sales, Design, Production, and retail coordination teams.
• Lead go‑to‑market execution, directing internal and external resources to develop and deploy sales strategies, programs, tools, and assets that support distribution priorities and deliver results; clearly communicate strategy and expectations to customers.
• Partner with Marketing to maximize commercial impact, leading the development and execution of sales and marketing programs that drive brand growth with targeted retailers and consumers and deliver strong returns on co‑op investment.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent work experience.
• 10+ years of progressive sales leadership experience in wholesale footwear, with demonstrated success across multiple distribution channels, including national, sporting goods, and tier zero and/or tier one accounts.
• Proven people leader with at least 3 years at the manager level, known for building, developing, and holding high‑performing teams accountable.
• Demonstrated executive presence with C‑suite customers and senior internal leaders, with a track record of influencing decisions through insights, rigorous analysis, and clear storytelling and recommendations.
• Deep experience partnering with retailers as strategic business partners, beyond transactional selling, to drive mutual growth and long‑term value.
• Strong commercial and negotiation acumen, with the ability to make investment trade‑offs, manage margins, operate to budget, and consistently deliver results.
• Resilient and creative problem solver that can lead in fast paced and dynamic marketplaces.
• Proven change leader, embracing a growth mindset and driving continuous improvement, best practices, and stronger outcomes across the organization.
• Highly effective relationship builder and collaborator, capable of leading through influence and aligning a broad range of stakeholders at all levels internally and externally.
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills, with confidence in executive presentations, customer negotiations, and high‑stakes discussions.
• Ability to balance strategic leadership with decisive execution, managing complexity, prioritizing effectively, and stepping in when needed to deliver results.
• Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.).

Benefits

• Health insurance
• 401(k) matching
• Paid time off
• Flexible work arrangements