Retail Brand Manager

SCOPE AND PURPOSE: The Retail Brand Manager is responsible for developing, executing, and owning the marketing strategies that strengthen Valley Wide Cooperative's retail presence, drive customer engagement, and support sales growth across the retail business unit. This position serves as the primary connection between Marketing and Retail Operations, ensuring a consistent and compelling customer experience across all retail locations.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS AND STANDARDS:

• Function: The position of Retail Brand Manager is of great significance to Valley Wide Cooperative. The Retail Brand Manager is responsible for developing, executing, and owning the marketing strategies that strengthen Valley Wide Cooperative's retail presence, drive customer engagement, and support sales growth across the retail business unit. This position serves as the primary connection between Marketing and Retail Operations, ensuring a consistent and compelling customer experience.

The Retail Brand Manager works closely with retail leadership, category managers, store managers, and vendor partners to implement promotional campaigns, merchandising programs, community engagement initiatives, and customer-focused marketing programs that support Valley Wide's overall purpose, values, vision and the retail business unit’s strategic objectives.

Position Evaluation: Along with attitude and policy compliance, position will be evaluated according to results and outcomes achieved for Organizational, Departmental, and Individual targets and goals. These targets and goals will change regularly, usually on an annual basis.

II. Job Summary:

• Location: Corporate Office, Nampa, Idaho
• Travel Required: Up to 50%

These are the basic requirements of the position and must be performed competently.

Brand Management & Customer Experience

• Develop, implement, and maintain Valley Wide brand standards across all retail locations.
• Ensure consistent use of branding, messaging, signage, visual merchandising, and customer-facing communications.
• Conduct regular store visits to evaluate brand presentation and customer experience.
• Identify opportunities to enhance store environments and strengthen brand perception.
• Manage retail branding initiatives, including store refreshes, signage programs, fleet branding, and facility appearance standards.
• Champion a consistent brand experience across all customer touchpoints.
• Utilize the eComm, Rewards and CRM platforms to create an optimum digital customer experience.

Retail Marketing & Promotions

• Develop and execute annual retail marketing plans aligned with the goals and seasonal sales opportunities.
• Coordinate promotional campaigns supporting seasonal business priorities, product launches, category initiatives, and sales growth objectives.
• Create and manage marketing calendars that support seasonal business priorities.
• Work with category managers and vendor partners to maximize promotional opportunities and co-op advertising programs.
• Coordinate marketing support for major retail events including spring lawn and garden season, chick days, customer appreciation events, Black Friday promotions, and holiday campaigns.
• Ensure successful execution of campaigns across digital, social media, email, print, radio, and in-store channels.

Merchandising & Store Support

• Collaborate with category managers and retail operations teams to support merchandising and product launch initiatives.
• Develop and distribute point-of-sale materials, signage packages, promotional displays, and customer communications.
• Monitor retail trends, competitor activity, and consumer purchasing behaviors.
• Recommend strategies to increase customer traffic, basket size, and customer loyalty.
• Support store teams with marketing resources and execution tools needed for successful promotions.

Analytics & Performance Measurement

• Track and evaluate the effectiveness of retail marketing campaigns and promotional programs.
• Analyze sales performance, customer engagement metrics, and marketing ROI.
• Prepare reports and recommendations for marketing and retail leadership.
• Identify trends and opportunities to improve campaign performance and customer acquisition.
• Manage project budgets and ensure marketing resources are utilized efficiently.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Serve as the primary marketing liaison to retail operations teams.
• Collaborate with store managers, category managers, energy leadership, member relations, and executive leadership.
• Develop strong relationships with vendors, agency partners, printers, and media representatives.
• Communicate marketing strategies, timelines, and expectations to stakeholders throughout the organization.
• Support special projects and strategic initiatives as assigned.

ESSENTIAL JOB QUALIFICATIONS/PREREQUISITES:

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, Business Administration, Communications, Retail Management, or a related field preferred.
• Equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.

Experience

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in brand management, retail marketing, marketing communications, or related field.
• Experience supporting multi-location retail operations preferred.
• Proven success managing marketing campaigns from planning through execution.
• Experience in farm and ranch retail, consumer retail, cooperative organizations, or related industries preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong knowledge of retail marketing, branding, and customer experience principles.
• Understanding of merchandising, promotional planning, and retail sales strategies.
• Excellent project management and organizational skills.
• Strong written, verbal, and presentation communication abilities.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience with Microsoft 365, digital marketing platforms, social media tools, and marketing analytics.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to build relationships and collaborate across departments.
• Self-motivated with exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to balance strategic planning with hands-on execution.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze sales and customer data to influence marketing decisions.
• Knowledge of agricultural retail, farm & ranch, hardware, lawn & garden, energy, or cooperative business models.
• Experience leveraging vendor co-op advertising funds and partnerships.
• Experience with CRM, loyalty, eCommerce, and customer engagement platforms.
• Experience managing multi-location retail brands.
• Uses data and customer insights to continuously improve performance.
• Delivers high-quality campaigns on time and within budget.
• Drives measurable growth in traffic, customer engagement, and sales.
• Improves consistency of the Valley Wide brand across locations.
• Builds strong partnerships with retail leadership and store teams.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Success in this role may be measured by:
• Retail sales growth across supported business units.
• Promotional campaign performance and return on investment.
• Brand standards compliance across retail locations.
• Customer engagement and loyalty metrics.
• Store traffic and conversion improvements.
• Vendor participation and co-op marketing contributions.
• On-time and on-budget project execution.
• Increased awareness and positive perception of the Valley Wide brand.
• Successful execution of community engagement programs and events.