Franchise District Manager - EM South at adidas Group

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization: 

• Drive Operational Excellence across the Africa Export Franchise portfolio by supporting franchise partners to deliver best-in-class retail standards, strong commercial performance, and consistent brand execution.
• Lead the implementation of franchise operating frameworks, support new store openings, and build partner capability to ensure sustainable business growth across the region. Regular in-market travel will be required to support and collaborate with Franchise Partners.

Key Responsibilities

• Take full ownership of supporting all stores across our Africa Export West Africa portfolio and support the West Africa Team achieve their commercial success.
• Work closely with Store Development Team to Project Manage the Franchise store roll-out plans and timings. 
• Ensuring all relevant parties are involved and kept up to date on progress and communication.
• Analyse relevant data to probe and challenge the status quo within stores and help guide Partners.
• Implement “House of Franchise” throughout the complete Africa Franchise portfolio.
• Address identified improvement areas, involving the Africa Teams and our Partners as needed.
• Drive continuous improvements in all store’s sales, productivity, and profitability.
• Ensure the legal and financial integrity of the stores.
• Assist Partners to schedule staff to properly serve customers, drive sales and execute tasks in all stores.
• Be a Brand Ambassador, consistently exhibiting the Brand Attitude and Values.
• Ensure proper in-store Brand execution according to established standards and directives in all stores – work closely with the Brand & VM Team to uphold standards at all times.
• Ensure all store team members are trained on Foundational and Seasonal Brand and product knowledge in all stores.
• Manage all store operations in a systematic and efficient manner, as per established policies and procedures in all stores.
• Continuously communicate with the West Africa Export Team on the tracking of new store openings.
• Ensure weekly Performance communications are shared with Partners and our Team.
• Ensure all established Visual Merchandising and In-Store Communication standards are consistently executed and maintained in all stores.
• Complete Monthly Franchise Template to present to the greater Franchise Excellence Team.
• Help establish all store operations in a systematic and efficient manner, as per established policies and procedures.
• Lead and implement all applicable loss prevention policies and procedures in all stores.
• Monitor that there is a safe and productive shopping and working environment in all stores.
• Ensure all HR policies and procedures are adhered to in all stores.
• Create a high-performance culture with Partners by setting clear expectations, analyzing performance, and giving appropriate and prompt feedback, including actively managing poor performance in all stores.
• Help develop and grow key talents within our Partners organisation who will be able for us to reach our KPI’s.
• Share best practices to drive the collective performance of all market stores.
• Complete all applicable training programs and effectively apply the learning on the job, and share all learnings and best practises to all key partners.
• Seek coaching and learning opportunities to continually improve your performance.

Key Relationships

Internal

• Africa Export Leadership Team
• Franchise Sales Team
• Retail Excellence Team in Dubai
• Brand and Visual Merchandising Teams
• Store Development Team
• Operations and Supply Chain Teams

External

• Franchise Partners
• Franchise Retail Management Teams
• Vendors and Service Providers

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong understanding of retail operations and franchise business models.
• Experience implementing retail excellence and operational standards across multiple stores.
• Strong project management and organisational skills.
• Ability to analyse performance data and translate insights into actionable recommendations.
• Effective stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong problem-solving and continuous improvement mindset.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel and reporting tools. 

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualification

• Degree or Diploma in Retail Management, Business Management, Commerce, or a related field. 
• 5–7 years' experience in a customer-focused retail or franchise environment, preferably within sports, apparel, fashion, or FMCG. 
• Minimum 3 years' experience supporting or managing multi-store retail operations. 
• Experience in franchise operations, retail excellence, store openings, and operational project management would be advantageous.