Head of Brand

Bensons for Beds; Huntingdon; On-site; GBP 95,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Bensons for Beds is seeking a strategic Head of Owned Brands to reset brand strategies for Slumberland, Staples, eve sleep and Simply by Bensons, and to shape go-to-market plans across channels. You will partner with the Director of Owned Brands and central Marketing to drive differentiation and commercial growth.

You will lead cross-functional teams across marketing, merchandising, manufacturing, PR and agencies, translate insights into campaigns, and own the budget, ensuring a cohesive

Qualifications

• Experience developing and repositioning brands and launching new brands.
• Ability to create campaign briefs with specialist marketing teams and agencies.
• Strong understanding of retail marketing, stores, and multichannel customer engagement.
• Expertise across channels including in-store, digital, social, PR and ATL.
• Strong commercial awareness linking brand activity to financial performance.

Responsibilities

• Leads the development and evolution of the Owned Brand architecture and positioning across the full portfolio, resulting in an inspiring and differentiated proposition for Bensons and broadening our appeal.
• Leads strategic repositioning initiatives for Owned Brands, managing external agencies and engaging internal stakeholders to successfully deliver brand (re)launches.
• Leads the annual Owned Brand Planning process, bringing together customer insight, category strategy, product roadmaps, marketing plans and commercial objectives to create clear annual growth plans for each brand.
• Acts as the senior marketing representative for Owned Brands, partnering closely with the Marketing Director and specialist Marketing teams to ensure resources, capabilities and investment are aligned to Owned Brand growth priorities.
• Leads the development of integrated Owned Brand marketing strategies, priorities and objectives, ensuring marketing activity is grounded in customer insight, aligned to brand strategy and focused on delivering commercial growth and brand equity.
• Translates Owned Brand strategies into clear marketing objectives, campaign briefs and annual activity plans, working with the central Marketing function to develop and execute effective multi-channel customer marketing programmes to deliver the desired brand and commercial outcomes.
• Champions a consistent end-to-end brand experience across all customer touchpoints, ensuring customer-facing communications, product presentation and brand execution remain aligned with approved brand strategies.
• Owns the budget for Owned Brand brand development and marketing initiatives, recommending and prioritising investment across brands, campaigns and initiatives to maximise return on investment and support strategic growth priorities.
• Works closely with the Owned Brand Product Development team, ensuring product pipelines align with brand strategy and market positioning, and new products are clearly structured, named and positioned in line with brand strategy.
• Leads the strategy for Licensed Brands, identifying partnership opportunities aligned to customer segments, market trends and competitive gaps, developing go-to-market and activation plans.
• Leads regular Brand Performance Reviews, evaluating commercial, customer and marketing performance to identify opportunities, risks and corrective actions.
• Acts as a brand champion across the organisation, ensuring internal teams understand, align to, and consistently execute against Owned Brand strategies and guidelines.

Skills

Cross-functional leadership

Brand strategy development

Stakeholder management

Analytical mindset

Agency management

Job description

This role sits at the centre of a critical business priority to unlock the full potential of Bensons’ Owned Brands. This includes four current core Owned Brands: Slumberland, Staples, eve sleep and Simply by Bensons; potential new brand developments, as well as future licensed brand partnerships. Working closely with the Director of Owned Brands, the role will help reset brand strategies and frameworks, ensuring clarity, differentiation and competitiveness in a complex market. The role is responsible for developing brand strategies, annual brand plans, marketing priorities and campaign briefs for the Owned Brand portfolio. Working in partnership with the central Marketing function, the role ensures marketing activity is aligned to brand objectives and successfully delivered across all relevant customer channels.

The role requires strong cross-functional leadership, bringing together marketing, merchandising, manufacturing, PR and external agencies to deliver cohesive brand strategies and brand activation plans that translate into commercial success.

Areas of Responsibility

• Leads the development and evolution of the Owned Brand architecture and positioning across the full portfolio, resulting in an inspiring and differentiated proposition for Bensons and broadening our appeal.
• Leads strategic repositioning initiatives for Owned Brands, managing external agencies and engaging internal stakeholders to successfully deliver brand (re)launches.
• Leads the annual Owned Brand Planning process, bringing together customer insight, category strategy, product roadmaps, marketing plans and commercial objectives to create clear annual growth plans for each brand.
• Acts as the senior marketing representative for Owned Brands, partnering closely with the Marketing Director and specialist Marketing teams to ensure resources, capabilities and investment are aligned to Owned Brand growth priorities.
• Leads the development of integrated Owned Brand marketing strategies, priorities and objectives, ensuring marketing activity is grounded in customer insight, aligned to brand strategy and focused on delivering commercial growth and brand equity.
• Translates Owned Brand strategies into clear marketing objectives, campaign briefs and annual activity plans, working with the central Marketing function to develop and execute effective multi-channel customer marketing programmes to deliver the desired brand and commercial outcomes.
• Champions a consistent end-to-end brand experience across all customer touchpoints, ensuring customer-facing communications, product presentation and brand execution remain aligned with approved brand strategies.
• Owns the budget for Owned Brand brand development and marketing initiatives, recommending and prioritising investment across brands, campaigns and initiatives to maximise return on investment and support strategic growth priorities.
• Works closely with the Owned Brand Product Development team, ensuring product pipelines align with brand strategy and market positioning, and new products are clearly structured, named and positioned in line with brand strategy.
• Leads the strategy for Licensed Brands, identifying partnership opportunities aligned to customer segments, market trends and competitive gaps, developing go-to-market and activation plans.
• Leads regular Brand Performance Reviews, evaluating commercial, customer and marketing performance to identify opportunities, risks and corrective actions.
• Acts as a brand champion across the organisation, ensuring internal teams understand, align to, and consistently execute against Owned Brand strategies and guidelines.

Desired Experience

• Experience developing brand strategies, including brand repositioning initiatives and new brand development.
• Experience in developing campaign briefs whilst working through specialist marketing teams and agency partners.
• Strong understanding of retail marketing, including the role of stores in delivering brand experience, customer engagement and commercial performance.
• Expertise across marketing channels including in-store, digital, social, PR and ATL.
• Strong commercial awareness, with ability to link brand activity to financial performance.
• Experience working cross-functionally with product, buying, merchandising and manufacturing teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
• Analytical mindset, with experience using data and insights to inform decisions.
• Experience managing agencies and creative processes.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Highly collaborative, proactive and results-driven.