Director of New Business - Wholesale

Job Description

The Director of New Business will be responsible for identifying, developing, and securing new wholesale business opportunities that drive profitable growth and expand the company’s presence across key fashion retail markets. This role will lead the full new-business development cycle from market identification and prospecting through relationship building, negotiations, account onboarding, and long-term growth.

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The ideal candidate brings a strong network within the fashion and luxury retail industry, a proven track record of opening new accounts, and a deep understanding of wholesale merchandising, buying, pricing, and account management.

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Key Responsibilities

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• Identify, prioritize, and develop new wholesale opportunities across domestic and international markets, including department stores, specialty retailers, boutiques, travel retail, hospitality groups, e-commerce platforms, and other strategic channels, with a focus on long-term revenue and profitability.
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• Develop and execute the company’s B2B business strategy, establishing a strong pipeline of prospective accounts and converting opportunities into profitable new partnerships.
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• Build and maintain relationships with retail partner buyers, merchants, divisional leaders, and executives at target accounts, while developing a deep understanding of each retailer’s customer, business model, assortment strategy, and growth priorities.
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• Develop account-specific business proposals, presentations, assortments, and sales strategies tailored to the needs and objectives of prospective partners.
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• Lead end-to-end contract negotiations and commercial terms, including pricing, margins, assortments, payment terms, inventory commitments, marketing tactics and launch strategies.
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• Evaluate prospective accounts for strategic and financial viability, including revenue potential, profitability, margin requirements, inventory considerations, and operational requirements.
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• Partner cross-functionally with Wholesale, Merchandising, Planning, Operations, Finance, and Marketing to develop launch strategies, initial assortments, inventory plans, sales targets, and successful onboarding plans for new accounts.
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• Monitor new account performance and identify opportunities for growth, including expansion of distribution, doors, assortments, and volume.
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• Manage and report on the new business pipeline, including opportunity status, probability, timing, sales forecasts, expected revenue, and key next steps.
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• Provide leadership with market intelligence and strategic recommendations, including competitive activity, emerging retail opportunities, account prioritization, and risks. Transition newly established accounts to the broader account management team while maintaining key executive relationships.
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• Spearhead the creation and optimization of the new account toolkit— including line sheets, brand guidelines, training tools and onboarding collateral.
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• Lead the end-to-end tradeshow strategy; evaluate industry events and define participation plans to represent the brand on-site in partnership with Marketing.
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Qualifications

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• 5–10+ years of experience in wholesale sales, business development, account management, or a related role within fashion, luxury, accessories, or retail.
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• Demonstrated success opening and growing new wholesale accounts.
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• Established relationships with key buyers and decision-makers within major department stores, specialty retailers, luxury retailers, hospitality groups, and/or e-commerce.
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• Strong understanding of the wholesale fashion business, including AUR, sell-through, margin, inventory, markdowns, assortments, and retail planning.
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• Strong negotiation, presentation, and relationship-building skills.
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• Highly commercial and results-oriented with a strong understanding of profitability.
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• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
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• Ability to work cross-functionally and influence internal and external stakeholders.
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• Strong analytical and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple opportunities simultaneously.
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• Willingness to travel as required.
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Ideal Candidate

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The ideal candidate is a highly connected, entrepreneurial, and commercially minded fashion executive who knows how to identify new opportunities within the market. They are equally comfortable developing a relationship with a buyer, presenting a business case to a CEO, negotiating commercial terms, and working internally to bring a new account to life.