Retail Director

Holland & Barrett, owned by investment firm L1, is a specialist health and wellness retailer focused on adding quality years to its customers’ lives. The new Retail Director will lead the retail, distribution, and property teams with a clear focus on improving store standards and excellent execution, while shaping the long-term strategic supply chain to support future growth.

About Holland & Barrett

The company has been active in the European market for over 150 years, proudly calling itself the largest and oldest health and well-being retailer in Europe. With more than 1,600 stores worldwide and over 230 in the Benelux, Holland & Barrett is one of the largest retailers in the field of nutritional supplements, natural care, and healthy food. Holland & Barrett’s strategy is focused on unrivaled customer care. As a result, the company has been recognized at the prestigious Retail Week Awards in the Customer Service Gamechanger category, for leading the way in delivering outstanding customer experience.

Although life expectancy is at an all-time high, the number of healthy years per person – defined as living without chronic illnesses – is decreasing. By focusing on preventative well-being products, Holland & Barrett aims to impact consumers’ lives and reverse this trend. Whether the desire is better sleep, increased muscle mass, stronger bones, optimal brain function, or other ways of improving health, Holland & Barrett is consumers’ trusted partner in achieving their personal health goals – using the power of nature, because most of its products are based on natural ingredients. All Holland & Barrett employees receive extensive training on the products and are always up to date with the latest developments in the fields of natural health, care, wellness, and nutrition.

Vacancy: Retail Director

Leading the store operations and logistics teams, the Retail Director will drive commercial success in stores and optimize the supply chain, with a relentless focus on store standards, excellent execution, exemplary customer service, and operational efficiency. In short: they will ensure that the right people are in the right place and doing the right thing to deliver Holland & Barrett’s customer offer. In doing so, the Retail Director will grow the Benelux stores’ annual revenue from approximately two hundred million to three hundred million euros over the next five years. The network plan includes up to forty new stores and eighty refitted stores, bringing Holland & Barrett closer to existing and new customers and reinforcing its position in the Benelux retail landscape.

Success depends on a strong drive to set high standards and ensure they are effectively communicated and executed, becoming a part of the organization’s culture. This will be achieved through strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and setting appropriate KPIs with sound follow-up and review. Leading by example, the Retail Director champions the voice of store colleagues and provides constructive feedback to teams at the Customer Support Center (Holland & Barrett’s Head Office in Amsterdam), particularly the Management and Leadership teams. Working closely with the Director of HR, the Retail Director will create and execute a comprehensive people strategy, raising the bar on the quality of the customer experience in-store and simultaneously improving team member retention and attendance. This will be evidenced in higher engagement scores across the store and field management functions.

“The Retail Director raises the bar for the entire organization and is also able to motivate and inspire people to follow. This requires a combination of excellent leadership skills, the ability to bring structure to our execution in stores, and to identify and implement operational efficiencies.” – Thomas Tassone, Managing Director Benelux

Within the logistics function, the Retail Director will lead and direct the warehouse and logistics team to maximize in-store and online availability while optimizing the efficiency of the supply chain. Understanding the trade-offs involved, this professional will carefully balance the sales ambitions with the cost levers. As Holland & Barrett expands its footprint in Europe, close collaboration with Group and Benelux colleagues ensures an ambitious plan is developed and the necessary infrastructure is in place to deliver results.

This role offers a great growth opportunity for a talented people leader who knows how to lead a large and varied team and implement structured and consistent processes. The ideal candidate is passionate about delivering a great customer experience in the company’s retail estate and distribution network. As a commercially and operationally minded leader, they will have a major impact not only on the success of a well-known wellness retail brand but also on the lives of millions of customers, who are on a journey to improve their health.

Interested?

Holland & Barrett is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.
To express your interest, please contact Vivian Linker at vivian.linker@topofminds.com.