Vans: Director, Regional Merchandising, Apparel & Accessories

Vans; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 176,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Vans is seeking a Director, Merchandising, Apparel & Accessories to lead the AMER regional merchandising strategy for the Apparel and Accessories portfolio. You will collaborate with Global Product Merchandising and regional teams, translating global direction into a regional vision that informs seasonal direction and growth opportunities.

You will guide leadership across multiple functions, drive commercial performance, and develop the regional merchandising organization while reporting to the

Qualifications

• Deep merchandising experience within apparel, accessories, footwear, or a related consumer-led industry.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, linking insights to revenue, margin, inventory, pricing and sell-through decisions.
• Enterprise leadership and influencing skills, aligning Global and Regional partners and turning strategy into action.
• Proven people leadership, building teams, developing managers and driving performance.
• Experience leading Apparel and Accessories across Men’s and Women’s categories with segmentation and storytelling.
• Experience in a global brand and matrixed organization, representing regional needs to executives.

Responsibilities

• Set and lead the AMER merchandising vision and category strategy for Apparel and Accessories.
• Own the regional business strategy and performance using consumer insights and market data.
• Lead cross-functional alignment to establish seasonal priorities and go-to-market plans.
• Serve as the senior AMER voice in milestone meetings, guiding direction and storytelling.
• Lead and develop the regional Apparel and Accessories merchandising organization.

Skills

Merchandising leadership

Commercial acumen

Cross-functional leadership

People leadership

Apparel & Accessories expertise

Global brand experience

Job description

Vans is the original brand rooted in the authentic lifestyle of skateboarding. We are driven by our mission to inspire and empower everyone to live “Off The Wall” – embracing the youthful spirit of freedom, non-conformity, and relentless progression. Yesterday’s “Off The Wall” moment is today’s new normal, and at Vans, we believe in constantly outdoing ourselves. Together with our communities across the globe, our vision is to push culture forward because we believe that the pursuit of progression never ends. We are constantly inspired by the future generation of positive catalysts within our community.

So, before we get to the job details, take a minute to learn a little more about us – our values and our culture. If you can see yourself working side-by-side with a team of people who think and live “Off the Wall,” Vans just may be the place for you.

To learn more about our values and our culture, visit Vans Careers or www.vans.com.

What will you do?

A day in the life of a Director, Merchandising, Apparel & Accessories at Vans looks a little like this.

The Director, Merchandising, Apparel & Accessories leads the AMER regional merchandising strategy for the Apparel and Accessories portfolio. Working closely with Global Product Merchandising and regional Planning, Sales, Marketing, Marketplace, and channel teams, this role sets the regional category vision and translates global direction into strategies that reflect AMER consumer needs, marketplace dynamics, and business opportunities. The role provides leadership across seasonal direction, marketplace segmentation, commercial performance, and team development, and reports directly to the Head of Regional Merchandising.

Let’s break down that day-in-the-life a bit more.

• Set and lead the AMER merchandising vision and category strategy for Apparel and Accessories, translating the global product direction into a differentiated regional point of view that strengthens brand relevance and supports long-term growth across Men’s and Women’s businesses.
• Own the regional business strategy and performance for Apparel and Accessories, using consumer insights, marketplace trends, competitive intelligence, and financial results to identify opportunities, manage risks, and influence future product development and investment priorities.
• Lead cross-functional alignment with Planning, Sales, Marketing, Marketplace, Retail, Digital, and Global Product teams to establish seasonal priorities, marketplace segmentation, channel strategies, and go-to-market plans that deliver revenue, margin, inventory, and sell-through goals.
• Serve as the senior AMER voice for Apparel and Accessories in global and regional milestone meetings, providing clear strategic direction and regional feedback while influencing line architecture, product positioning, pricing, and storytelling to better serve the AMER marketplace.
• Lead and develop the regional Apparel and Accessories merchandising organization, setting clear expectations and decision rights, building strong leadership capability, and fostering a culture of consumer curiosity, collaboration, accountability, innovation, and commercial excellence.

What do you need to succeed?

We all have unique skills that we bring to work and celebrate every day. For this role, there are foundation skills you’ll need to succeed and excel. Additionally, while formal education in a related field is great to have, we are most interested in your 10+ years of experience and professional achievements.

The foundation skills you will need in this position are:

• Deep merchandising experience within apparel, accessories, footwear, or a related consumer-led industry, including ownership of complex category strategies and multi-channel businesses at a regional or comparable scale.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to connect consumer and marketplace insights to revenue, margin, inventory, pricing, and sell-through decisions and to make clear strategic trade-offs.
• Enterprise leadership and influencing skills, with a proven ability to align senior Global and Regional partners, challenge constructively, communicate a compelling point of view, and turn strategy into coordinated action across functions and channels.
• Proven people leadership experience, including leading and developing managers and teams, building organizational capability, setting a high bar for performance, and creating an inclusive and accountable team environment.
• Experience leading both Apparel and Accessories categories across Men’s and Women’s businesses, including marketplace segmentation, line architecture, channel differentiation, and product storytelling.
• Experience working within a global brand and matrixed organization, with responsibility for representing regional needs, influencing global product creation, and presenting strategy and business performance to executive leaders and key marketplace partners.

Now WE have a question for YOU.

Are you in?

Hiring Range:

$176,000.00 USD - $220,000.00 USD annually

Incentive Potential : This position is eligible for additional compensation awards that may include an annual incentive plan, sales incentive, orcommissionpotential. Specific details of the additional compensation eligibility for this position will be provided during the recruiting and interview process.

• Benefits at VF Corporation : You can review a general overview of each benefit program offered, including this year’s medical plan rates on www.MyVFbenefits.com and by clicking Looking to Join VF? Detailed information on your benefits will be provided during the hiring process.

Please note, our hiring ranges are determined and built from market pay data. In determining the specific compensation for this position, we comply with all local, state, and federal laws.

At VF, we value a diverse, inclusive workforce and we provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. All qualified applicants for employment will be considered without regard to an individual’s race, color, sex, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, medical condition, family care status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local laws. If you require accommodations during the application process, please contact us at [e-mail]. VF will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals to the extent required by applicable law.

Pursuant to all applicable local Fair Chance Ordinance requirements, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, VF will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.