Brand Manager, Skincare - 1 year FTC

Founded in Japan in 1887, Kao is passionate about making a difference in people’s lives with our high-quality products and services to create a Kirei Life for all – a beautiful life that respects the needs of our consumers and customers as well as the planet. We never compromise on quality and craft our products with care for the consumer and the environment. As a company driven by purpose and strong corporate values, we pride ourselves to be listed among the World´s Most Ethical Companies since 16 consecutive years. Our corporate philosophy, the Kao Way, guides us in everything we do – acting with integrity, courageously driving innovation, and treating each other with trust and respect.

The role:

Focused on delivering the growth aspirations for the UK Skincare Portfolio (Bioré & Curél), reporting into the UK Senior Brand Manager The role offers great opportunities across the full marketing mix, including managing product innovation and brand communications for the UK. Working closely with different functions at local, EMEA and global levels, the Brand Manager will work on tailored retailer plans for each brand, regular data analysis, as well leading all Brand Communications channels.

Although office based within the UK London office, this role requires a moderate degree of travel within the UK to visit, meet with and present to our retailer partners and and sometimes outside of the UK when working internally with Global and EMEA partners.

What you will do:

• Brand Communications: Lead the communications strategy for Bioré and Curél UK, overseeing the creation of all assets (media, social and PR), manage media campaigns, PR activations, and social.This includes: day-to-day agency account management including planning, executing and evaluating all media, PR and influencer activities.
• NPD: Leading the innovation process for all Bioré and Curél NPD, collaborating with multi-functional teams throughout Stage Gate to in-market launch. Providing continuous feedback to Local, Regional and Global teams throughout the process.
• Portfolio Management: Manage the Bioré and Curél product portfolio strategy, providing recommendations on the current and future roles for key products and ranges.
• Retailer: Develop tailored retailer plans in collaboration with Shopper Marketing and the Commercial Teams to unlock growth. Management of monthly brand meetings with High St/Pureplay and Grocery teams. Working closely with the Shopper Marketing Team and providing brand stewardship of all point of sale and .com content.
• Analysis: Regular data analysis (EPOS, Circana, Kantar) to keep on the pulse of performance to regularly update internal teams and work on monthly brand performance updates to global marketing and Japanese leadership.
• Insights: Regularly research and update the local, EMEA and Global teams on the competitor landscape and keep on the pulse of latest industry trends & innovations to inspire the NPD pipeline. Be the Skincare team brand communications expert - attending industry events, talks and reading topical articles - sharing insights and inspiration with the wider team.
• Brand Design: Work closely with UK graphic designer and relevant design agencies, pushing them to develop exceptional content and meet KPIs & deadlines.

What you will need:

• BSc/BA hons degree or equivalent
• Experience in FMCG: 4+ years’ experience, ideally in beauty/skincare categories but not essential.
• Experience in brand marketing - including social media, content creation, and PR. Working with influencers would be advantageous.
• Experience working within an agency or managing agency partners to deliver best in class plans within budget.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and presentation skills
• Proficiency using Microsoft Excel, Powerpoint and Word - Necessary
• Experience with Circana, Kantar or Nielsen reporting and analysing business and competitive trends.
• Experience with social media planning tools, such as Planoly.

How we work:Having been selected among the World´s Most Ethical Companies for 16 consecutive years, we are a company with a purpose and strong corporate values. We never compromise on quality and craft our products with care for the consumer and the environment. At Kao, each employee can actively shape their job and their career. We work collaboratively to achieve our common goals, always aiming to deliver the best for our customers.

What we offer:A friendly and flexible work environment with competitive salaries, benefits package, ongoing development and the opportunity to enhance your skills and deliver tangible results. At Kao your voice will be heard. Your opinion really counts. We believe that change comes from taking opportunities into your own hands, so we value and reward entrepreneurial thinking and innovation.

Hiring Process: Kao embraces the diversity and the individual personalities of its people because we believe it is diversity that makes us strong. This is why we welcome applications from all areas of the global community.

Want to learn more: If you feel you are as unique as our products and want to find out why 33,000 people across the globe opted for a career with us please visit our Americas website (https://www.kao.com/americas/en/) or EMEA website (https://www.kao.com/emea/en/)

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