Director, Global Product & Merchandising

Director, Global Product & Merchandising The Director, Global Product & Merchandising will lead global product strategy, merchandising, seasonal commercialization, and product lifecycle management for Gibson's growing lifestyle business across apparel, headwear, accessories, and future consumer categories, including bags, home/office products, collectibles, and other lifestyle extensions. This leader will translate Gibson's iconic heritage, craftsmanship, artists, and cultural influence into premium, commercially compelling global assortments that strengthen the brand and drive growth across direct-to-consumer (DTC) and traditional wholesale channels. The role will lead product and merchandising strategies across Gibson's DTC business, including e-commerce and owned retail, while leveraging significant wholesale expertise to build strategic retail partnerships across department stores, specialty retailers, and other key global distribution channels. Working across Gibson's internal business units and a network of world-class external product manufacturing partners, the Director will serve as the central cross-functional leader responsible for bringing products from concept through commercialization. This individual will partner closely with Design, Marketing, Sales, Licensing, Legal, Operations, Finance, and Executive Leadership to deliver global assortments that achieve brand, consumer, channel, revenue, margin, and profitability objectives while maintaining Gibson's premium positioning and long-term brand strategy. The Director will also lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing Product Management and Merchandising team, fostering accountability, collaboration, operational excellence, and career development. The ideal candidate brings deep experience in global product management and merchandising, wholesale and DTC businesses, multi-category product creation, financial and commercial management, and team leadership within premium global consumer lifestyle brands.

Develop and execute global wholesale strategies that launch and scale Gibson Lifestyle's presence across department stores, specialty retailers, premium boutiques, and other strategic wholesale accounts in the U.S. and international markets. Build and manage strategic retail partnerships, serving as a senior business leader with key accounts to establish distribution strategies, negotiate commercial opportunities, develop assortments, and drive sustainable revenue and margin growth. Leverage deep knowledge of wholesale retail dynamics to identify high-value distribution opportunities, optimize account segmentation and door strategies, and ensure Gibson product assortments are appropriately positioned by retailer, channel, geography, and consumer. Partner closely with Marketing, Sales and Operations to develop compelling wholesale line plans, seasonal assortments, pricing architectures, sell-in strategies, and account-specific initiatives that maximize both retailer productivity and Gibson's financial performance. Establish and scale wholesale operating processes and performance metrics, including sales forecasting, open-to-buy alignment, sell-in and sell-through analysis, inventory management, account profitability, and seasonal business reviews, to drive continuous improvement across the global wholesale business. Cross-Functional LeadershipServe as the primary cross-functional business partner connecting Lifestyle with key Gibson organizations, partnering with each of the following including: Global Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Build exclusive product strategies Optimize assortments by sales channel Improve online conversion through merchandising Support retail store product planning Analyze consumer purchasing behavior to improve future assortments Global Marketing Collaborate on seasonal campaign planning Develop integrated product launch strategies Align merchandising stories with marketing content, artist partnerships, events, and brand initiatives Support retail marketing, digital storytelling, and consumer engagement Global Instruments Product Division Identify opportunities to translate instrument innovation, craftsmanship, finishes, artist collections and product launches into compelling lifestyle products Align seasonal launches with new instrument introductions and key brand initiatives Ensure Lifestyle products authentically reflect Gibson's instrument heritage LicensingDevelop commercially viable licensed product programs Ensure product consistency across licensees Evaluate new licensing opportunities Support collaborative product development with strategic brand partners Maintain premium brand positioning across all licensed categories LegalReview product approvals Support licensing agreements Ensure trademark compliance Protect Gibson intellectual property Manage product compliance and contractual obligations throughout development External Product Creation LeadershipServe as Gibson's primary business lead with external product creation partners responsible for design, sourcing, development, manufacturing, and commercialization.

Required Skills/Abilities 10-15+ years of Product Management and Merchandising experience within premium global consumer-based lifestyle brands. Minimum of 10 years of experience developing and managing traditional wholesale sales strategies and operations, with significant responsibility for retail partnerships, including department stores, within the lifestyle, apparel, footwear, accessories, or related consumer goods sectors. Minimum of 5 years of experience managing direct-to-consumer