Brand Director

White Stuff was established in 1985 through a simple idea. That idea grew into a brand with shops and concessions across the UK and internationally, selling women’s and men’s clothing and accessories. Our original prints (designed in house), intricate details and considered design touches reflect our personality and make us subtly distinctive.

Our people are at the heart of our brand, constantly moving and driving us forward. We’re sociable, talented and like minded; we’re not hierarchical or political in how we do business. We encourage entrepreneurial ideas and accountability at all levels.

Having rebranded in 2021; we are now entering an exciting chapter. Our ambition is bold: to be become the most influential British lifestyle brand by 2030. This role sits at the very heart of making that happen.

 

Who you are:

You are a brand leader with the creative vision and strategic authority to drive a step-change in how White Stuff is seen, felt and talked about. You know what it takes to broaden a brand’s appeal without diluting its soul, and you have the craft to translate brand strategy into visual direction and communications that generate genuine cultural cut-through.

You will have a track record of building brand fame; creating work that people notice, share and remember. You will be equally confident shaping long-term strategy with senior stakeholders as you are inspiring a marketing and creative team and holding the standard on executional quality. You will bring solid marketing rigour and experience, strong aesthetic sensibility and deep experience of advertising and campaign development across channels

Primary objective of the job:

White Stuff rebranded in 2021 and is now entering a new and ambitious stage of its brand journey. The Brand Director will work in close partnership with the group’s Chief Brand Officer and White Stuff’s Product Director to set the visual direction of the brand and lead all marketing and advertising activity; with a clear mandate to significantly broaden White Stuff’s appeal and build meaningful brand fame.

· This is a senior leadership role with end-to-end accountability for how the brand looks, sounds and shows up in the world. The Brand Director will ensure that every brand expression – from campaign to product story, from digital content to in-store experience, from membership to promotions, is coherent, distinctive and actively advancing our ambition to become the most influential British lifestyle brand by 2030.

What you’ll be doing:

Brand Vision & Visual Direction:

• Work in close partnership with the Chief Brand Officer and Product Director to define and evolve the visual direction of the White Stuff brand, ensuring it is progressive, distinctive and aligned to our 2030 ambition.

• Build on the foundations of the 2021 rebrand to take the brand into its next chapter; sharpening the visual identity, elevating creative standards and ensuring the brand feels both fresh and authentically White Stuff.

• Set and steward the creative and aesthetic direction across all brand touchpoints, from campaign imagery and art direction to seasonal storytelling and content across advertising, stores, digital and concessions.

• Champion the brand internally, ensuring every function understands and actively upholds White Stuff’s identity, tone of voice and visual standards.

• Establish the frameworks and guidelines that govern how the brand is expressed, giving teams the confidence to move quickly without sacrificing quality or coherence

Marketing, Advertising & Brand Fame:

• Lead the development and delivery of all marketing and advertising planning and activity, with a clear focus on broadening White Stuff’s appeal and building the brand’s cultural presence and fame.

• Drive the creative ambition of the brand’s campaigns – setting a higher bar for what White Stuff’s visual direction and tone of voice, and finding new ways to reach and resonate with a wider audience.

• Own the annual brand and marketing calendar, including seasonal launches, brand activations, paid media campaigns and editorial activity, with clear and measurable commercial and brand health goals.

• Sharpen the community focus of the brand and marketing team, getting more customers actively involved in White Stuff via our stores, teams, events and Membership offering.

• Build and manage high-performing relationships with creative, media and production agencies, acting as the senior brand client and holding partners to the highest standards.

• Develop a sophisticated approach to media and channel strategy with internal teams and agency partners that gets the brand in front of the right people, in the right places, in a way that builds lasting brand equity

Product & Commercial Alignment:

• Work as a strategic partner to the Product Director to ensure brand direction and product strategy are mutually reinforcing – building a compelling and consistent brand story from product development through to customer-facing communications.

• Translate product evolution, category growth and new market opportunities into clear brand positioning and campaign strategies that resonate with existing customers and attract new audiences.

• Contribute to White Stuff’s international brand strategy, ensuring the core identity translates effectively across markets while remaining locally relevant.

• Drive accountability across all brand investment, with clear frameworks for measuring brand health, campaign effectiveness, audience reach and return on marketing spend.

Broadening Brand Appeal:

• Lead the strategic thinking on how White Stuff expands its audience; identifying new customer segments, cultural moments and brand partnerships that can accelerate reach without compromising brand integrity.

• Develop insight-led propositions that speak to a broader range of customers, ensuring brand activity is as relevant to those who don’t yet know White Stuff as it is to those who love it.

• Build a social and digital brand presence that earns attention, grows community and positions White Stuff as a genuinely influential voice in British lifestyle and fashion.

• Explore and develop brand collaborations, cultural partnerships and earned media opportunities that build fame and introduce the brand to new audiences.

Customer Experience & Advocacy:

• Ensure the brand promise is consistently delivered across every customer touchpoint; from campaign to store to digital; creating experiences that turn customers into genuine advocates.

• Develop a customer promise that activates the right behaviours across every function of the business and brings the brand to life at every interaction.

• Partner with customer service and retail teams to drive NPS and embed a customer-centric culture throughout the organisation.

Studio production:

• Oversee the White Stuff Studio team, delivering all in-house production for Ecommerce assets and supporting across social content and campaign shoots.

• Ensure the team have clear guidelines and are delivering work that consistently progresses the brand’s look and feel, as well as producing all assets on time and within budget.

• Develop the studio capability and output beyond Ecommerce to better support the brand ambition and channel needs.

Leadership & Team:

• Lead, inspire and develop a high-performing brand marketing, content and creative team, building a culture of ambition, creative excellence and commercial accountability.

• Act as a senior leader within the business, contributing to broader strategy and representing the brand perspective at the most senior level.

• Create conditions where talented, creative people do the best work of their careers.

What you’ll need:

· A proven track record as a senior brand leader with demonstrable experience of setting distinctive and desirable visual direction and driving a step-change in a brand’s creative output and cultural presence.

· Strong experience developing and overseeing advertising and integrated marketing campaigns that have delivered both commercial results and genuine brand fame.

· Deep creative sensibility and aesthetic confidence; you know what great looks like and you have the conviction to push for it.

· Experience of broadening brand appeal and growing audiences, ideally within a lifestyle, fashion or consumer brand context.

· A strong understanding of the relationship between brand and product strategy, and how to ensure the two tell a single, coherent story to the customer.

· Experience working at a senior level with creative and media agencies, with the gravitas to inspire ambitious work and the rigour to hold partners accountable.

· International brand experience, with the ability to adapt brand thinking across markets while maintaining a strong and consistent identity.

· Outstanding communication and influencing skills, with the credibility to drive alignment at leadership level and represent the brand externally.

· Experience leading and developing talented brand and creative teams within hands-on, entrepreneurial environments.

· A thorough command of the full marketing mix; from brand campaigns and content to paid media, social and in-store, with a strong instinct for where to invest for maximum impact.

· A genuine affinity with the White Stuff brand; its character, its aesthetics, its customers and its ambition.

What we will offer you:

As a Brand Director at White Stuff you will be entitled to an array of great benefits, some of which include:

• Hybrid working

• Annual bonus opportunity

• Up to 30 days holiday per annum, plus bank holidays

• 2 extra (paid!) days off per year to volunteer in the local community

• 50% discount

• Subsidised BUPA Dental Insurance

• Healthcare cash plan and Life Assurance

• Interest free season ticket loan

• Pension Contribution

We are committed to creating an environment where we can all be proud to work and be ourselves. Part of this commitment is being an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, and age.