Head of Marketplace

Forward Role; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working - 4 days in Manchester,

Your birthday off

Job summary

Forward Role has partnered with a leading homeware brand to appoint a Head of Marketplace. You will own the marketplace operation end-to-end, with responsibility for strategy, revenue and profit, led by Amazon and a portfolio of partners.

This senior role requires shaping the roadmap, commercial plans and a robust governance framework to drive profitable growth. You will report to the Group Marketing & Growth Director and build a high-performance team while steering trading calendars, stock

Qualifications

• Significant senior-level experience leading marketplace, ecommerce or digital trading in a retail business.
• Proven ownership of marketplace strategy, budgets and P&L.
• Deep hands-on knowledge of Amazon, Seller Central, retail media and operations.
• Strong grasp of marketplace economics: commissions, fulfilment, advertising and margins.
• Track record of profitable growth through range, pricing, content and media.
• Analytical skills and ability to translate data into priorities.
• Experience leading people and influencing senior stakeholders across functions.

Responsibilities

• Set the marketplace strategy with a clear channel, customer, product and investment plan.
• Own the P&L, balancing revenue, margins, ad efficiency and costs.
• Lead Amazon strategy end to end: planning, pricing, content and availability.
• Run the trading calendar across product launches, promotions and campaigns.
• Build and develop the team; manage agencies and cross-functional collaboration.

Skills

Marketplace strategy

P&L ownership

Amazon expertise

Data-driven

Stakeholder management

Job description

Forward Role has partnered with a leading homeware brand, which trades through its own website and the major marketplaces. Now it needs a Head of Marketplace to lead the next stage of that growth.

You’ll own the whole marketplace operation: strategy, revenue and profit. Amazon is the biggest piece, alongside a portfolio of established and emerging marketplace partners. You’ll report to the Group Marketing & Growth Director and lead the team and agencies that make the channel run.

This is a senior role with real breadth. Trading, operations, retail media, content, data and people all sit with you. You’ll set the roadmap, turn it into commercial plans and build an operation with the capability and controls to grow profitably.

What You’ll Be Doing

Set the Strategy

• Own the marketplace strategy, with a clear channel, customer, product and investment plan tied to the wider business
• Define the role of each marketplace: proposition, range, pricing, fulfilment model and growth targets
• Assess and prioritise new marketplace opportunities on commercial potential, operational feasibility and fit
• Give the senior leadership team clear insight and recommendations on product, stock, investment and capability

Own the P&L

• Run the marketplace P&L, balancing revenue growth, gross margin, ad efficiency, fulfilment costs, commissions, returns and charges
• Evaluate commercial agreements, commission structures, fulfilment costs and partner terms
• Lead negotiations with marketplace partners where needed

Lead Amazon

• Own the Amazon strategy end to end: commercial planning, range, pricing, content, availability, operations and account health
• Drive profitable growth through range, pricing, promotion, content and retail media decisions

Run the Trading Calendar

• Lead the marketplace trading calendar across product launches, promotions and seasonal campaigns
• Make sure stock plans line up across functions so launches and promotions land on time
• Put strong governance in place across trading, content, stock, advertising, account health and customer experience

Build the Team

• Lead, coach and develop the team, with clear ownership, objectives and performance standards
• Manage agency relationships and build cross-functional ways of working that speed up profitability

What We’re Looking For

Must-Have:

• Significant senior-level experience leading marketplace, ecommerce or digital trading performance in a commercial retail business
• Proven ownership of marketplace strategy, budgets and P&L
• Deep hands-on knowledge of Amazon, including Seller Central, retail media, content, account health and operations
• A strong grasp of marketplace economics: commissions, fulfilment, advertising, returns, deductions and contribution margin
• A track record of delivering profitable growth through range, pricing, promotion, content and media
• Strong analytical skills and the confidence to turn data into clear priorities
• Experience leading people and influencing senior stakeholders across functions

You’ll Stand Out If You:

• Have launched or scaled new marketplaces beyond Amazon
• Have negotiated commission structures and partner terms directly
• Have managed external agencies alongside an in-house team
• Bring sharp commercial judgement paired with real attention to operational detail

What You’ll Get

• Hybrid working: 4 days in the office in Manchester, 1 day from home
• Your birthday off
• The chance to shape a department that’s growing quickly