Design Director jobs at Adidas in Italy

: adidas Brand

: BU Originals, Basketball &

Direct Reporting Line: VP Design / Sr Design Director

Indirect/secondary reporting line:

: Germany

Number of Personnel Managed: min. 2

Cost Center/Budget and/or Revenue Responsibility: ….

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:

• Develop and direct industry leading creative solutions for concepts and categories, to create a highly relevant, desirable and clear adidas brand image, from sell in to sellout (consumer-facing)
• Lead and manage the internal creative team to achieve worldclass results

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the Creative development for multiple concepts or categories across multiple consumer touchpoints, from 2D to retail to digital
• Develop concepts and creative strategies that fulfill objectives of category, concept, brief
• Collaborate with Product Design team to ensure holistic storytelling
• Collaborate with cross-functional team members to ensure consumer- and brand focus
• Set priorities, creative and assignment-related, of team
• Lead the execution of creative strategies to ensure end to end creative excellence, from sellin to sellout (consumer-facing)
• Direct variety of creative resources (agencies, freelancers, writers, photographers, etc) on creative execution to ensure holistic creative excellence
• Review and approve production stages of creative execution
• Maximise results within given budget and timeframes
• Participate in creation of annual and long-term Creative Direction strategies
• Present and communicate creative solutions with clarity, effectively selling in ideas to variety of stakeholders
• Identify opportunities of improvement and change, and initiate own proposals/projects
• Seek out new Design resources that can deliver world class results

Key Relationships:

• Design Directors, Creative Directors
• Product Designers
• Brand Communications
• Retail, C2C
• Product Teams
• External Agencies and Art/Creative Directors
• External Creative Resources

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• IT skills: Excel, Word, PowerPoint: advanced /Outlook
• Design apps: expert
• Strong visual and verbal skills with the ability to create impactful/exciting visuals
• Language: English: excellent

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications:

• Under-graduate level Design education or combination thereof
• Solid education and advanced experience in the creative development of communication tools
• At least 10 years experience in Sporting Goods/Fashion Industry or Design on managerial level
• 3 years personnel management experience
• Proven experience with the entire design process (project scope and time planning, design steps, production/execution of design solution, pre-press processes)
• Passion for adidas and it’s mission
• Passion for sports, culture, design

PURPOSE & OVERALL RELEVANCE FOR THE ORGANISATION

• Be responsible for the end-to-end planning and allocation of our Global Statement businesses, leading merchandise planning, go-to-market planning and volume allocations
• You become the central point for allGlobal Statement businessesorchestrating industry-leading Statement planning & execution with consumer focus.
• Focus on elevating our impact to the consumer of both OG and Brand priorites. Ensuring Statement is maximizing impact in the seed, ingnite, scale model.
• As part of your responsibilities for merchandise planning,you will deliver a range architecture and merchandising framework for Statement businesses in line with our Inline plans / franchises to ensure Statement enables to scale our Brand
• As part of your responsibilities for go-to-market planning, you will own the relevant Global Statement go-to-market process, incl. sell-in tools and roll-out plan
• Your work includes close collaboration with Markets on both insight and input, but also to delivery relevancy and impact on sell-in across Statement
• As part of your responsibilities for volume allocations, you will lead the distribution and allocation strategy to deliver Statement in the most impactful way
• For that, you will work closely with the functional business leads in Global Sales, Markets, and Global Supply Chain on strategy, process, planning, and allocation
• This requires to connect X-functionally and X-pyramid to create the most connected Brand in culture
• Moreover, you will be involved in developing holistic data & insight solutions to supportStatementprocesses across planning, creation, allocation and stock management
• In summary, you will drive our Statement business end-to-end across concept creation to landing / monitoring sell-in and sell-out, and executing holistic concept readiness for Statement projects

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Statement planning & end-to-end Statement process leadership

• Build a holistic Statement framework to support Statement planning and process both from a range architecture, franchise and go-to-market planning perspective
• Enable successful sell-in and sell-out of Statement concepts according to Statement objectives / targets; monitor execution to achieve consistency in execution across markets / channels
• Support definition of both Brand and BU Marketing calendar linked to relevant Statement moments
• Plan and execute a globally consistent Statement Calendar
• Secure holistic concept-readiness and Statement OTIF towards key milestones, examples include MPSO, Handover, GTMFC, Fashion Sales Launch and Sell-in
• Orchestrate Statement process across global BU functions to secure cross-functional collaboration & execution for Statement projects create by, examples include Product Marketing, Brand Comms and EIM
• Develop interaction with the Data & Analytics team and process to support globally mandated Statement range and allocations

Statement distribution and allocation leadership

• Lead Statement distribution across all markets, channels and towards Global key retailers
• Drive Statement allocation centrally planning across all markets, channels and towards global key retailers
• Enable successful sell-in / sell-out of Statement concepts according to Statement objectives / targets; monitor execution to achieve consistency in execution across markets / channels

Statement as a data-led buiness

• Integration into dedicated global Data & Analytics team to support Statement processes
• Central point for insights to shape and define the most impactful GTM approach by linking all consumer touchpoints and interpreting data into action
• Drive Business conversations with respective market teams (Market BU, CtC teams)
• Drive BU distribution topics across markets (accounts, timing, channels, volume allocations)
• Drive market insights into the BU to support decision-making (e.g. sales analysis, consumer insights, GTM planning )

Statement to connect the Brand with culture and scale franchise heat

• Articulate the Brand priorities (incl. link to key franchises) and seasonal go-to-market plan to ensure Statement to scale the Brand

• Drive end-to-end collaboration with BU teams to develop comprehensive Statement plans reflecting story x product x availability
• Ensure aligned Statement calendar to halo BU calendar and icon franchise management

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

• BU SLT, Product Marketing, Brand Marketing, EIM
• Global Functions:Global Sales, Global eCom, Global OR, Brand Strategy, Consumer Insights
• Markets:Market MDs, Brand Directors, BU Heads, Market Sales
• Finance, Operations and other related functions

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

• Proven level of strategic thinking and leadership at a senior level
• Proven business acumen, understanding of business realities across markets and distribution channels
• Merchandising and retail expertise is of advantage
• Strong understanding of brand building and consumer perspective, combined with strong analytical skills
• Strong influencer and natural collaborator
• Strong written and verbal communication skills as well as presentation skills
• Proven ability to serve as a senior spokesperson for the brand when / where needed
• Experience in working in a global structure, ideally experience on both global and market
• Workign knowledge of global streetwear consumer and statement landscape both of partnerhsips and WHS.

REQUISITE EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE / MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• 6 years + proven success in leadership role influencing others through teaching, guiding and persuading
• 10+ years of relevant work experience in a global and / or local marketing / business role
• Functional industry experience in either Brand or business management

He/she will be responsible for

• Developing adidas kids brand VI, creative concept, and consistently evolve.
• Developing innovative advertising and new media strategies, along with actionable programs to enhance brand impact.
• Leading the end-to-end planning, development, and execution of integrated adidas communications campaigns across online and offline channels.
• Directing and collaborating with agencies and internal teams to optimize brand and product visibility, ensuring seamless integration with broader marketing initiatives

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning & Campaign Execution

• Develop adidas kids brand VI, creative concept, and consistently evolve.
• Develop integrated advertising, digital, and retail marketing strategies to position adidas Kids as an innovative, inspirational brand across all touchpoints.
• Lead E2E execution of campaigns—from digital activations (social) to seasonal grassroots programs (Summer/Winter Camps)—ensuring alignment with global/local marketing plans.
• Leverage global/local ambassadors, KOLs, and events to authentically connect with kids and parents through storytelling.
• Drive in-store concept development, visual merchandising (VM), and retail marketing to elevate brand experience and commercial performance.
• Identify emerging trends in kids’ sector, digital platforms, and co-branding opportunities to keep adidas at the forefront.

Operational & Team Leadership

• Oversee sourcing of locally produced campaign materials, ensuring cost efficiency without compromising quality or brand standards.
• Ensure legal compliance in trademark and logo usage across all communications.
• Manage agency and vendor relationships, driving innovative and creative execution.
• Brief Creative Services to ensure retail presence aligns with brand vision.

Budget & Financial Oversight

• Develop and manage monthly category budgets, balancing brand and commercial priorities.
• Optimize spending, negotiate vendor contracts, and provide budget forecasts for future campaigns.

Process Optimization & Performance Tracking

• Implement efficient planning and execution processes to maximize brand and product visibility.
• Track Brand Communications KPIs, ensuring timely and high-quality execution.
• Maintain inventory and distribution systems for campaign materials.
• Conduct post-campaign evaluations, analyzing performance and consumer perception shifts.
• Ensure seamless cross-functional collaboration with PR, Retail, Sales, and Creative teams.

Key Relationships:

• BU
• Channels (Franchise, eCOM, OR)
• Brand Comms SP& SS teams
• Sports Marketing team
• Global Brand Communication Team

Core Competencies & Experience:

Leadership & Influence

• Proven ability to lead teams, develop talent, and drive cross-functional collaboration.
• Strong strategic thinking with the ability to translate vision into actionable plans.
• Persuasive communicator with negotiation skills and the ability to influence stakeholders.

Business & Project Management

• Expertise in managing complex projects, optimizing processes, and delivering results under tight deadlines.
• Adept at budgeting, risk assessment, and decision-making to maximize ROI.

Marketing & Brand Strategy

• Deep conceptual understanding of marketing as a brand-building tool, with a keen eye for creative direction.

• Passion for the Kids category and the ability to translate insights into impactful brand strategies for China.

Personal Attributes

• High integrity, resilience, and a solutions-driven mindset.
• Open minded with growth mindset.
• Exceptional relationship management with empathy and collaboration at the core.
• Detail-oriented multitasker who thrives in fast-paced environments.
• Willingness to take calculated risks to drive innovation and growth.

Minimum Qualifications:

Experience & Industry Knowledge:

• 12+ years of experience in advertising, communications, or brand marketing with a leading international brand.
• Proven track record in advertising, PR, and Creative Services, with specific experience in the China market.
• Deep understanding of the Kids category and the global sports/fashion/lifestyle industry. Passion for sports and active participation is a plus.

Marketing & Business Acumen:

• Strong background in brand/category marketing, trade marketing, or sports marketing (China experience preferred).
• Exceptional presentation, organizational, and project management skills.

Education & Technical Skills:

• University degree or higher, preferably in Marketing, Communications, or a related field.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint); basic Outlook skills.
• Fluent in English and Mandarin (written and spoken). Native Mandarin proficiency is preferred.

Personal Attributes:

• Passionate about sports and the active lifestyle, with a keen interest in youth culture and trends.