Vice President of Retail

COMPANY OVERVIEW:

Bethlehem Shared Services provides professional services exclusively for Cigars International, CIGAR.com, Pipes & Cigars, Thompson Cigar, Meier & Dutch, Cigarbid.com and its affiliates. We are the fastest growing cigar company in the country, and leading online and direct marketer of fine cigars, premium pipe tobaccos, luxury gifts and accessories, and more.

Our Headquarters is located in the heart of the Lehigh Valley in historic Bethlehem, PA. While our roots are in direct marketing and we have a strong e-commerce and growing brick and mortar retail presence. We have three (3) Retail locations in Pennsylvania, five (5) in Texas, three (3) in Florida and soon to be more in each of those states.

IGNITED BY CHALLENGE:

Our organization is all about creating moments of great enjoyment for smokers. This promise has made us a world-leading manufacturer of cigars and traditional pipe tobacco. When you join our company, you will be part of an industry that is constantly changing. It takes a team of quick minds to grow and thrive, even when you deliver high quality, natural products like ours. That’s why we look for smart, tenacious people who will go that extra mile.

In return, we offer you the opportunity to challenge the status quo. We’ll give you the freedom to question the way we do things and room to explore as far as your talent will take you. It is our belief that smoking tobacco involves a health risk and is habitual. Smoking is a choice made by adults, and nobody under the age of 18 should smoke. We welcome both smokers and non-smokers.

POSITION SUMMARY:

We are seeking an experienced and innovative leader with a strong customer service and sales mindset to drive our retail expansion strategy. The ideal candidate has an entrepreneurial spirit and thrives in competitive, fast-paced environment.  As the leader of the Retail Division, you are responsible for shaping our sales and service model, driving top line sales, and expanding the retail footprint.  You will set long-range plans and build fully integrated partnerships with (new sites, conversion stores, etc.) and will participate in establishing brand partnerships, priorities, standards and growth initiatives. You will build and mobilize a retail team to drive a differentiated customer guest experience, drive operational excellence and exceed organizational sales & growth goals. 

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop an understanding of the current and desired state of business, working cross functionally and with other lines-of-business as needed to develop strategies and execute operational plans to advance the business forward.
• Ensure business interactions, metrics and results exceed customer expectations (and competitive benchmarks) across all functional areas within Retail operations.
• Drive process innovation in all areas of company retail operations in order to exceed customer expectations while building efficiencies and scale across the business.
• Establish clear and concise market differentiation from competitors through operational innovations.
• Cultivate a customer centric culture.  Ensure the customer experience is constantly evolving to meet our customer’s needs and biggest business opportunities aligned with brand priorities.
• Drive the implementation of company strategies by coaching, motivating, and supporting the store management teams; ensuring there is strong adoption of and understanding of strategic initiatives.
• Monitor KPIs, cost control and inventory control (shrinkage) and develop measurable action plans to optimize growth.
• Actively search and understand market competition with focus on gaining market share.
• Demonstrate effective managerial competencies: team building, collaboration, lead change initiatives.
• Support the creation of the budget and forecast sales and expense plans by store through close collaboration with Stores Managers, Finance, Marketing, Merchandising and Human Resources.
• Promote brand awareness at the local levels, establish market/store presence, and capture competitive market share.
• Continuously monitor store management teams and provide constructive feedback, as needed.
• Work with Managers to meet and exceed revenue and expense targets and to develop efficient retail workflows.
• Identify and create action plans and build development plans for all direct reports and approve of that for all retail employees.
• Attract, recruit, and retain a high performing team; Build a talent pipeline through networking and competitive shopping.
• Ensure business interactions, metrics and results exceed customer expectations (and competitive benchmarks) across all functional areas within Retail operations.
• Drive process innovation in all areas of Company Retail operations in order to exceed customer expectations while building efficiencies and scale across the business.
• Establish clear and concise market differentiation from competitors through operational innovations.
• Cultivate a customer centric culture.  Ensure the customer experience is constantly evolving to meet our customer’s needs and biggest business opportunities aligned with brand priorities.
• Oversight and management of CigarFEST, an annual customer-facing retail focused event.
• Assist in the development of the annual budget and monitoring of expenses to ensure Retail meets financial goals.
• Monitor the performance of direct reports. Provide prompt and objective coaching and counseling. Conduct performance reviews and recommend salary increases. 

REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor's Degree required
• MBA from leading program preferred, but not required
• Must be willing to relocate to one of our retail hubs (DFW Texas, Houston Texas, Tampa Florida or preferred Lehigh Valley Pennsylvania)
• Previous tobacco industry experience preferred, but not required
• 10+ years of experience in luxury retail and/or hospitality overseeing between 10-20 locations
• Strong business acumen, highly analytical, able to present and drive ideas and initiatives
• Strong interpersonal skills with proven ability to build and maintain relationships with colleagues and vendors
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; excellent presentation skills
• Proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint
• Flexible, adaptable, reliable and able to work well under pressure;
• Extremely well organized and structured – excellent project management skills;
• Able to quickly assess and anticipate needs and provide highest quality of service
• Experience managing an annual revenue of $50 million+

BENEFITS:

We value our employees and in addition to our competitive salaries, we offer a competitive benefit package to our talented team members including:

• Comprehensive Health Care, Vision & Dental Plan
• Flexible Spending Account
• Disability Plans
• Basic & Supplemental Life Insurance
• Additional Supplemental Benefits
• Paid Vacation, Paid Time Off (PTO) days, Holidays
• 401(k) Retirement Saving Plan including a generous Company match
• Company Pension Plan

Bethlehem Shared Services, LLC.  is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.