Role Purpose

The Head of Visual Merchandising will own the end-to-end store experience charter across grocery formats and brands—driving commercial VM, in-store brand storytelling, space productivity, and scalable design systems. This role will also oversee NSO (New Store Opening) design execution, ensuring consistency, speed, and differentiation across neighborhood, premium, and large-format stores. This role will require the candidate to rollout campaigns nationally in 1000+ stores.

The role sits at the intersection of design, retail operations, marketing, and commercial performance.

Experience - 18+ Years ( 15+ year in Visual Merchandising)

Education - MBA in Marketing or Relevant Design Degree

Job Location - Ghansoli Navi Mumbai ( WFO )

Key Responsibilities

1. Visual Merchandising & Brand Experience

Define and evolve VM strategy and guidelines for each brand, aligned to distinct CVPs (value-led, premium neighborhood, fresh-first).

• Own store zoning, planogram principles, sightlines, adjacencies, and traffic flow to maximize conversion and basket value.
• Drive seasonal, festive, and campaign-led VM storytelling across windows, entrances, power aisles, and focal bays.
• Ensure execution excellence across categories—fresh, FMCG, staples, private labels, and impulse.

2. NSO (New Store Opening) Ownership

• Lead end-to-end VM & experience readiness for NSOs, from concept to launch.
• Partner with projects, architects, and store planning teams on spatial layouts, structural elements, and customer journey design.
• Oversee fixtures, props, graphics, signage, in-store communication, and navigation systems.
• Build repeatable NSO playbooks to enable faster rollout with consistent quality across cities and formats.

3. Technical & Design Leadership

• Strong command over store layouts, bay logic, fixture design, materials, lighting basics, colour theory, and typography.
• Ability to read and influence GFCs, CAD drawings, elevation plans, and mockups.
• Own VM cost optimization, material standardization, and vendor rationalization without compromising brand experience.
• Leverage data (sales density, heat maps, category productivity) to refine VM decisions.

4. People, Capability & Governance

• Lead, mentor, and scale a central VM COE and regional VM teams.
• Build strong cross-functional alignment with marketing, category, supply chain, operations, and projects.
• Establish VM audit frameworks, SOPs, and training modules for store teams.
• Drive a culture of design thinking, experimentation, and commercial accountability.

5.Leadership & Behavioral Expectations

• Strategic thinker with hands-on bias—comfortable both defining vision and walking stores.
• Strong influence without authority across multiple brands and formats.
• High aesthetic sensitivity combined with commercial acumen.
• Ability to manage scale, speed, and ambiguity in a high-growth retail environment.
• Inspires teams, vendors, and partners through clarity, high standards, and creative confidence.

Requirements added by the job poster

• 10+ years of Retail experience

• 15+ years of experience in Marketing

• 10+ years of work experience with Cross-functional Team Leadership

• 15+ years of work experience with Budgetary Responsibilities

• 15+ years of work experience with Visual Merchandising