Global Senior Product Innovation Manager - Luxury Fragrance & Home Category
12 month FTC
KJ Talent & Partners are delighted to be exclusively partnering with our client in the search for a Product Innovation Manager to play a key role in influencing and bringing to life its Fragrance & Home category.
This truly remarkable global luxury brand has enjoyed phenomenal growth to date and has further global expansion plans. One of the world’s most desirable luxury brands, our client is a pioneer in bringing exciting, category disrupting luxury skin care, fragrance, and haircare to market. Our client does not test on animals and all products are vegan. The brand is also on a journey to reduce its footprint on the planet that so generously sustains us. Progress so far has resulted in B CorpTM certification.
Throughout its growth, the brand has maintained a true SME culture at its heart. In this role, you can be sure that you will be heard a trusted voice of product expertise across the business. You’ll be able to execute ideas quickly and really feel like you’re moving the needle – no red tape!
This demanding role offers highly rewarding long-term opportunities for an individual with confidence, gravitas, and an ability to calmly think on their feet to perform well under pressure within a rapidly evolving working environment.
Reporting to the Senior Manager, Product Innovation, Fragrance & Home, you will bring a balance of creativity, strong project management skills; commercial acumen and a passion for fragrance aroma development and evaluation to create products that are undeniably of the brand.
If you are a product expert and fragrance enthusiast with a passion for innovation, and the ability to think differently to translate trends and market opportunities into product innovation, then this is an ideal role.
Responsibilities:
* Actively seek, synthesise, and share market insights, product trends and innovation
* Support cross-functional teams with product line reviews, making recommendations for product improvement, reformulation, and reinforcement opportunities
* Input to perfumers, fragrance houses, and / or R&D on reformulation opportunities for enhanced efficacy and /or repositioning
* Make the most of forced reformulations by working with R&D to understand the further improvements and elevations that can be driven
* Drive and actively contribute to cross-functional ideation sessions for new product opportunities in line with category strategic frame.
* Work with Senior Manager, Product Innovation to support the product innovation strategy and articulation of olfactive territory, in line with category strategic frame.
* Partner with R&D to identify formula and ingredient opportunities to increase key sustainability metrics and measure and report on product portfolio sustainability gains and improvements
* Ensure feasibility and profitability and manage legal aspects of product development
* Make fact-based recommendations for product range rationalisation
* Prepare comprehensive briefs for R&D, fragrance houses, and Operations on product benefits, claims, ingredients of interest and sensorial features, including definition and delivery of brand-aligned desired claims and visuals
* Identify relevant existing claims to support a new story or approach to existing formulations and opportunities for new and additional claims and testing to support re-animation and communication
* Partner with Marketing, Sustainability and Product Communication teams to support sustainability communication
* Collaborate with Marketing, Product Communications and R&D to identify relevant angles for product animation
* Review product label copy, PDPs and press releases from product formula perspective
* Support development of training and communications for Product Consultants
Experience & skills required:
* Extensive global experience in creating successful, innovative products and formulations
* ‘Hands-on’ product development experience, from concept ideation to execution
* Proven product concept development and briefing skills
* Formulation expertise; sound technical capability in the assessment and validation of fragrance and / or other cosmetic formulations
* International work experience for global, multi-channel business
* Strong understanding of zone and market needs, nuances, product preferences, and practices
* Strong project management experience within consumer goods and / or beauty industry
* Experience in collaborating with cross-functional teams across geographies; driving positive engagement and innovative thinking, and leading from within the team
* Strong understanding of product development capabilities across packaging, décor; and retro planning
* Scrupulous attention to detail
* Well-honed communication skills
* Proactive problem-solving capability
* Experience managing cost / budget, scope, schedule and risk
* Degree qualification in business, science or marketing (fragrance evaluation, science, and / or technical communication qualification highly regarded)
The nature of this role requires flexibility in working arrangements to accommodate work across multiple regions and time zones.