Beauty and Wellbeing Global Trends and Beauty Academy Lead

Unilever; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A global consumer goods company is seeking a Beauty and Wellbeing Global Trends and Beauty Academy Lead. In this role, you will lead the strategy and operations for beauty trends, ensuring alignment with innovation goals. You will engage with stakeholders, manage projects, and provide insights into market development opportunities. The ideal candidate has a strong background in beauty and a passion for aesthetics, alongside proven leadership experience.

Benefits

Competitive salary and pension scheme

Annual bonus and share awards

Subsidised gym membership

Flexible hybrid working arrangements

Well-being programmes

Diversity and inclusion policies

Qualifications

• Significant experience in strategy or insights.
• Experience in innovation and brand strategy development in beauty.
• Ability to translate scientific territories into actionable concepts.

Responsibilities

• Lead creation and implementation of trend strategy for B&W.
• Work closely with external agencies and internal R&D.
• Supervise and coach two direct reports.

Skills

Curiosity and passion for beauty and aesthetics

Proactive self-starter

Outstanding communicator and influencer

Business acumen and strategic thinking

Excellent project management skills

Strategic networking

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Job Title

Beauty and Wellbeing Global Trends and Beauty Academy Lead

Location

100 Victoria Embankment (London) – may also be relocated to Kingston‑upon‑Thames around early 2025, with final location to be confirmed during consultation.

About the team

The Prospective Innovation, Sustainability & Design (PISD) team connects the business group together and partners with the Marketing leadership team in key areas of Trends, Innovation, Design and Beauty Culture & Capability. In close collaboration with the Design SVP, Global CMO, Brand Leads and BU leaders worldwide, the team supports the innovation strategy for B&W marketing and drives the transformation of Unilever’s expertise in beauty.

Background / Context

As a newly formed transformational change team, we are investing significantly in building internal connection, clarity of purpose and operational excellence. Our values are built around trust, transparency, honesty and authenticity, and we actively practise the four Unilever Behaviours. We challenge the status‑quo, innovate, adapt quickly, and focus on delivering tangible impact through OKRs.

Key Responsibilities

• Foresight & Trends Strategy: Lead the creation and implementation of trend strategy for B&W and the PISD team, identifying market development opportunities and enabling the innovation team to craft innovation mixes.
• Content Development: Work closely with external agencies, internal R&D and CMI experts to create trend narratives, translating scientific and technical content into clear, actionable language for the business.
• Design & Innovation Support: Interpret macro innovation and design trends into actionable insights for haircare and skincare brands.
• Beauty Academy: Define strategy and calendar for the yearly curriculum, identify relevant beauty trends, recruit specialist agencies, and deliver learning content through face‑to‑face, virtual sessions and an online library.
• House of Beauty: Manage day‑to‑day operations of the House of Beauty building, including operationalisation, tracking and escalation to the Director.
• Leadership & Management: Supervise and coach two direct reports, manage the trends, academy and HoB budgets and forecasts, and report to the Foresight, Trends & Beauty Academy Director.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Interconnect with Brand Partners and Design Leads to shape Beauty Academy content, manage agency relationships and performance feedback.
• Reporting: Provide regular updates to senior leadership on program progress, learning metrics and trend influence.

Key Skills

• Curiosity and passion for beauty and aesthetics with deep understanding of skin/hair categories and competitors.
• Proactive self‑starter with ownership of strategy, execution and results.
• Strong ability to juggle multiple projects and priorities while demonstrating real accountability.
• Outstanding communicator, relationship builder and influencer, capable of working across cultures and influencing at all levels.
• Business acumen and strategic thinking – performance‑oriented, prioritising clearly and delivering excellence.
• Excellent project management, planning and organisational skills.
• Strategic networker who proactively seeks opportunities to expand professional connections.
• Extremely high attention to detail.

Key Experience

• Bachelor’s degree with significant experience in strategy or insights.
• Experience leading innovation and brand strategy development, particularly in beauty.
• Demonstrated ability to translate scientific territories into actionable innovation concepts.
• Personal interest in staying connected to the evolving external world and evidence of developing strategic trend content.
• Flair for beauty, fashion, art or design – connections in these fields are a plus.
• Proven track record of planning, organising and delivering large events (conferences, trade shows, corporate meetings).
• Proven ability to lead a cross‑functional team and manage multiple projects in parallel.
• Previous insights or trends agency experience preferred.
• Line‑management experience and leading through change.

About Unilever

Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of food, home and personal care products, operating in over 190 countries and reaching 2 billion consumers a day. Our portfolio includes more than 400 brands, such as Dove, Tresemme, Lynx, Lifebuoy, Persil, Ben & Jerry’s, Blue‑Marin, Marmite, The Vegetarian Butcher, Graze and many others. Faced with climate change and the need for sustainable human development, we are committed to making sustainable living commonplace.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and pension scheme.
• Annual bonus and share awards.
• Subsidised gym membership and discounted staff shop.
• Flexible hybrid working arrangements.
• Well‑being programmes, hubs and development opportunities.
• Family‑friendly policies and inclusive workplace culture.
• Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion – full and fair consideration for all applicants, with reasonable adjustments offered where needed.

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