Retail Marketing Specialist - Store Development & In-Season Management (Maternity Cover)

Reports to: Retail Marketing Manager

Fixed-term contract until February 2027

EMEA HQ, Geneva, Switzerland

‍ Hybrid mode (2 days/week home-office)

Start date: at the earliest convenience

OUTGROWN YOUR OWN BACKYARD? COME PLAY IN OURS.

At Columbia Sportswear, we’re as passionate about the outdoors as you are. And while our gear is available worldwide, we’re proud to be based in the Pacific Northwest, where natural wonders are our playground.

Every product we make and every task we undertake is inspired by the famous words of our founder Gert Boyle: “It’s perfect. Now make it better.” As pioneers of relentless improvement, we are constantly evolving

Discover a world of diversity within our team of 700+ across 13 European countries, united by the common goal of elevating Columbia to the pinnacle of outdoor brands in Europe. Our omnichannel approach seamlessly integrates Columbia and Sorel brands' engaging in-store and online experiences.

Nestled at the heart of the Alps in Geneva, Switzerland, our European headquarters hosts the Executive Committee, go-to-market functions, and Planning and Logistics teams. In Schiltigheim, near Strasbourg, our shared services center thrives with over 100 professionals managing Finance and Operations/Customer Service. Our distribution center in Cambrai ensures swift delivery to customers, while our 35+ Columbia stores adorn major European outlet centers. Finally, the Sales and Trade Marketing teams are displayed in 3 regions across Europe, close to their customers and markets.

We believe the outdoors is ours to protect and strive to keep our planet healthy. We believe in empowering people to experience the outdoors to the fullest.

And we believe in you.

ABOUT THE POSITION

We are looking for a Retail Marketing Specialist to join our European team in Geneva, supporting the development and execution of our retail concepts and seasonal guidelines across Europe.

This is a temporary role (maternity leave cover), combining two key dimensions: developing new retail spaces and ensuring our campaigns are consistently brought to life in-store throughout the season.

You will play a central role in shaping how our brand comes to life in physical retail environments — from store openings and retail design to the implementation of seasonal activations and ongoing retail initiatives across our network (partner stores and wholesale customers).

You will be involved in:

• Opening new stores (with a strong focus on Partner Stores) and contributing to their design and layout
• Shaping the in-store experience, including customer flow, product zoning and visual impact
• Developing and supporting the execution of seasonal retail guidelines, ensuring consistency and relevance across markets
• Supporting local teams across Europe to adapt and implement retail concepts in their specific environments

HOW YOU’LL MAKE THE DIFFERENCE

Drive store openings & retail expansion

You will be a key partner in new store openings, working closely with construction and cross-functional teams to bring our retail concepts to life.

• Contribute to the design and layout of new stores
• Ensure the customer journey and product storytelling are optimized
• Support flagship and high-visibility projects (including major cities)

Shape the retail experience

You will bring a consumer-first perspective to how our stores are designed and experienced.

• Define how customers navigate and interact with the space
• Bring a strong consumer-first perspective to store design
• Translate brand guidelines into coherent retail concepts

Support and elevate seasonal retail marketing executions across Europe

You will be a go-to expert for retail topics across Europe, supporting local teams in the ongoing development and execution of their retail projects.

• Provide hands-on guidance on seasonal retail marketing executions across a variety of formats, including windows, shop-in-shops, soft shops and other in-store activations
• Support local teams in adapting concepts to their specific retail environments, constraints and maturity levels
• Help maximize space productivity, product visibility and overall in-store experience
• Act as a reference point to solve concrete retail challenges, bridging the gap between guidelines and real-life implementation
• Ensure consistency of our retail campaigns while enabling pragmatic, market-specific solutions

Translate seasonal guidelines into real store environments

• Turn retail guidelines into concrete, workable store layouts
• Work with floor plans to adapt designs to real-life constraints
• Make pragmatic decisions to ensure feasibility and efficiency
• Bridge the gap between ideal concepts and operational reality

YOU ARE

• Experienced in retail development / store design / retail marketing
• Comfortable working from floor plans to physical execution
• Able to visualize and design a customer journey within a store
• Someone who combines creative thinking with operational pragmatism
• Confident in interacting with multiple stakeholders across Europe
• Proactive, solution-oriented, and able to bring structure in complex projects

YOU HAVE

• At least 5 years of experience within a brand environment with strong retail exposure
• Hands-on experience in store development, retail design or similar roles
• The ability to read and interpret floor plans
• A strong understanding of consumer behavior in physical retail
• Experience working on store openings or retail transformation projects
• Strong communication skills and the ability to influence and guide others

PERKS & BENEFITS

Significant discounts on Columbia and Sorel products

Soft mobility policy (Geneva office only)

🧘‍♀️ Pilates and yoga classes on our premises, and running groups or sports activities

Unlimited access to LinkedIn Learning

A monthly Learning Hour for training, discovery and learning

‍ Unlock your potential: access to in-house training courses (feedback, leadership, Insights®...)

DEI initiatives to exchange and strengthen our involvement around these themes

ABOUT THE CULTURE

• At Columbia Sportswear, we value an inclusive and open culture that emphasizes the absence of barriers between team members. We are committed to fostering a sense of belonging by encouraging personal connections at all levels, which creates a cohesive and supportive work environment.
• Team members serve as ambassadors for our brand, finding motivation in being part of an organization dedicated to activities they are passionate about. This dedication reflects our commitment to building a team that takes pride in our products and values.
• We offer the opportunity to work for a US-based company within a multicultural environment, where your job has an impact across different countries.
• Our "Always Be Learning" culture of continuous learning enables our employees to identify and develop skills that will enable them to continue to grow within the company.
• "Unlock Your Potential" is the spirit that characterizes our vision of employees' development: to offer them opportunities to grow, in their job, in their team or even to change jobs completely. We grow our people to grow our business.

To learn more about us and our culture, visit our page on Welcome To The Jungle: https://bit.ly/49bl1i5

ABOUT THE HIRING PROCESS

1️⃣ Ready to unlock your potential at Columbia Sportswear Company? Apply now to help us connect active people with their passion! The hiring team will review your application in the following weeks.

2️⃣ If your application is selected: a 30-45mn introductory interview with our Talent Acquisition Team to talk about yourself, your motivations and the role

3️⃣ Interview with the hiring manager

4️⃣ Interview with the main stakeholders with case study presentation

5️⃣ Your unique strengths align perfectly with our team: we are thrilled to extend you an offer!

This job description is not meant to be an all-inclusive list of duties and responsibilities, but constitutes a general definition of the position's scope and function in the company.