Area Manager - Cotton On South Africa ( KZN South Region )

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Be Who You Are. Love What You Do.

We’re an Aussie brand with our feet on the ground and our heart in our people.

 Benefits

· Monday – Friday working weeks and flexible working options available to support what’s important to you

· Local and Global career growth – progress your career across our 7 Brands within the Group

· 50% off Cotton On Group Brands | Cotton On, Cotton On Body, Cotton On Kids, Rubi Shoes, Typo, Factorie and Supre

· Wellness support 24/7 – mental health, relationships, family + more

· Discounts for you and your family - medical, travel, financial + more

· Paid Parental Leave program – helping parents return to the workplace

The Role

This is a role for a commercially sharp, people-obsessed retail leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment and is passionate about delivering outstanding customer experiences through people. 

As Area Manager, you will be accountable for the performance, culture, and customer experience across your store portfolio.

You will lead a team of store managers and collaborate with Visual Merchandising and Merchandise partners to drive the performance of your area, while championing the Cotton On Way across every store in your area.

Key Responsibilities 

Leadership & Culture

• Lead and embed the Cotton On Way, building a team of Store Managers who are engaged brand and product ambassadors

• Understand your team's individual motivators and development needs to drive wellness, engagement, and succession

• Set clear expectations, review performance, provide meaningful feedback, and follow up using the Group Performance Framework

• Foster a safe, supportive environment in alignment with our Safety Matters Framework

Commercial Performance

• Drive performance across all people, customer, and financial initiatives with a focus on continuous improvement

• Maintain a working plan with clear success measures across People, Customer, and Financials for each of your stores

• Own and drive your team's High-Performance Activities (HPAs) to focus on what matters most

• Inspect stock health and drive compliant loss prevention and inventory management

• Unlock productivity and efficiencies in your operating rhythm

Collaboration & Insight

• Partner with VM and Merchandise teams to review business performance, execute brand direction, and provide customer and store insights

• Provide your manager with timely, quality insights on everything your team needs in order to deliver a seamless customer experience across your area

Skills and Experience

• Proven experience in a multi-site retail leadership role

• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to analyse data and translate it into action

• A genuine passion for people leadership, including coaching, developing, and inspiring high-performing teams

• Exceptional communication and collaboration skills across all levels of a business

• A customer-obsessed mindset with a deep understanding of retail operations

• The ability to manage change confidently and lead your team through ambiguity

• Curiosity, problem-solving ability, and a drive for continuous improvement

• Sound knowledge of retail product and brand DNA

   

   

 Who are we?

A diverse team of 20,000 around the world who love to think Big and have fun along the way. We develop, reward and recognize our team members, so they can feel empowered to reach their full potential. We know life’s more fun when you’re free to be you and our team bring their point of difference, making us into the unique global retailer we are today.

Being You can take you places at the Cotton On Group. Join us and let’s do good things together.

At Cotton On, we are focused on building a culture centered in belonging, and we are committed to creating workplaces where each individual can show up as their whole self, having an equal opportunity to succeed with us. 

From Australia to the world - The Cotton On Group (known in-house as COG) is Australia's largest global retailer. With 7 brands, 19 countries, 1500 stores and counting; we exist to make a positive difference in the lives of everyone we touch. Our people are optimistic, innovative and highly motivated; they share a genuine belief in themselves and others and they aren't afraid to think big.