Chief Marketing Officer

South End Partners; Toronto; On-site; CAD 220,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

South End Partners is seeking a seasoned Chief Marketing Officer to lead and scale the global marketing function. You will own brand, performance, lifecycle, content, and creative, reporting to the CEO, with mandate to build infrastructure for serious global growth.

The ideal candidate combines data-driven execution with cross-functional leadership, thrives in fast-paced entrepreneurial settings, and has a track record of growing premium consumer brands across DTC, marketplace, and wholesale

Qualifications

• Data-driven operator with strong cross-functional partnership.
• Proven track record scaling premium consumer brands across DTC and omnichannel environments.
• Balance between brand and performance marketing at senior levels.
• Experience leading high-performing marketing teams in high-growth, entrepreneurial settings.
• Deep understanding of the full digital marketing ecosystem: paid, owned, and earned channels.
• Analytical mindset with marketing measurement, attribution, and reporting.
• Experience supporting global distribution across DTC, marketplace, and wholesale.
• Global market experience (EMEA, APAC, LATAM) is a strong asset.
• Genuine affinity for sport, performance, or premium lifestyle brands.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end marketing organization across brand, content, performance, social, and CRM.
• Build and develop a high-performing team with clear ownership and execution standards.
• Collaborate with the executive team on growth strategy and cross-functional decisions.
• Define and evolve global brand positioning across core and adjacent categories.
• Lead brand storytelling and ensure consistency across launches and partnerships.
• Own customer acquisition strategy across paid and organic channels; optimize CAC/ROAS.
• Drive marketing measurement frameworks, dashboards, and reporting across acquisition, retention, and brand.
• Manage the full marketing budget with a focus on ROI and scaling.
• Lead lifecycle marketing across email, SMS, and loyalty programs for retention and LTV.
• Develop content strategies across digital, social, and brand channels; lead creative direction.
• Grow athlete and influencer ecosystems to connect with the community.
• Partner with eCommerce and data teams to align traffic, conversion, and retention.

Tools

Shopify

Amazon

Klaviyo

Okendo

Job description

This is a rare opportunity to step into a CMO seat at a growing, purpose-built brand that has earned credibility in one of the most passionate and loyal consumer communities in the world. Founded on the principles of performance, craft, and innovation, this company has spent nearly two decades building a dominant position in its category, growing from a challenger brand into a globally recognized and trusted name.

The brand is at an inflection point. Distribution spans DTC, marketplace, and wholesale channels across global markets; with strong brand equity and a loyal customer base already in place. What's next is scale: expanding into adjacent categories and global markets, deepening customer relationships, and building the marketing infrastructure to support serious global growth. The incoming CMO reports directly to the CEO, and will own the full marketing function across brand, performance, lifecycle, content, and creative; with the mandate to build and scale.

The ideal candidate is a data-driven operator and strong cross-functional partner. This individual thrives in fast-paced, entrepreneurial environments and is motivated by building brands with purpose, performance credibility, and global growth potential.

Key Responsibilities

Build and Lead the Global Marketing Function:

Own the end-to-end marketing organization, defining structure, capability, and ways of working across brand, content, performance, social, and CRM

Build and develop a high-performing team, establishing clear ownership, accountability, and execution standards

Act as a key member of the executive team, contributing to company-wide growth strategy and cross-functional decision-making

Brand Strategy and Positioning:

Define and evolve the company's global brand positioning across core and adjacent categories

Ensure consistent brand expression across all customer touchpoints, from product launches to athlete partnerships

Lead brand storytelling and drive cultural relevance with engaged, passionate communities

Performance Marketing, Analytics and Budget:

Own customer acquisition strategy across paid and organic channels, including paid social, search, affiliates, and influencer

Optimize CAC, ROAS, and channel efficiency while scaling new customer growth globally

Own marketing measurement frameworks, dashboards, and reporting across acquisition, retention, and brand metrics

Manage the full marketing budget, balancing brand investment against performance spend with a clear focus on ROI

Drive data-led decision-making and establish a culture of testing and continuous optimization

Lifecycle and Retention Marketing:

Own CRM strategy across email, SMS, and lifecycle automation, with a focus on segmentation, personalization, and retention

Lead the customer loyalty programme and drive repeat purchase behaviour and LTV improvement

Partner closely with eCommerce and data teams to ensure seamless integration between traffic, conversion, and retention

Content, Creative, and Community:

Own content strategy across digital, social, and brand channels and lead creative direction and asset development

Build a scalable content engine that serves both performance and brand objectives

Develop and grow athlete and influencer ecosystems that authentically connect with the community

Qualifications & Experience

10+ years in senior marketing leadership, with a proven track record scaling premium consumer brands across DTC and omnichannel environments, ideally globally

Demonstrated ability to balance brand and performance marketing at a senior level, with fluency in both disciplines

Experience building and leading high-performing marketing teams in high-growth, entrepreneurial settings

Deep understanding of the full digital marketing ecosystem: paid, owned, and earned channels

Strong analytical mindset with hands-on familiarity with marketing measurement, attribution, and reporting

Experience supporting global distribution across DTC, marketplace, and wholesale channels

Global market experience (EMEA, APAC, LATAM) is a strong asset

Familiarity with Shopify, Amazon, Klaviyo, and Okendo is a strong plus

Genuine affinity for sport, performance, or premium lifestyle brands is a strong plus

Commercially driven with the ability to translate brand investment into measurable business outcomes

Equally strong in strategic thinking and hands-on execution; comfortable operating at both levels in a leaner organization

A builder by nature: drawn to creating structure, process, and capability where it doesn't yet exist

Strong cross-functional communicator who earns the trust of product, eCommerce, and executive stakeholders

Data-literate and rigorous in approach, with the judgment to act decisively on imperfect information

Authentic connection to community-driven, performance-oriented consumer culture