Fashion Europe Visual Merchandising Director
Chanel · Paris
At CHANEL, Fashion Retail is where the creative vision of the Maison comes to life: in every boutique, every window, every silhouette, every product story and every client encounter.
Visual Merchandising plays a defining role in shaping this experience. It translates the energy of each Fashion collection into a singular, desirable and emotionally resonant retail expression—ensuring that the image of the House is consistently elevated while remaining meaningful to clients across diverse European Markets.
As Visual Merchandising Director, Europe – Fashion, you will hold end-to-end accountability for the Visual Merchandising strategy, governance, execution excellence and capability development across Europe.
Reporting to the Head of Fashion Europe, you will set the direction for the European VM function, ensuring the right balance between Global creative intent, regional coherence, local relevance and operational feasibility.
You will lead the Europe VM team and animate the wider VM community across Markets. In close partnership with Global Visual Merchandising, Image teams, as well as Europe Fashion Leadership team. You will turn the Fashion vision of the House into elevated boutique experiences across Europe.
WHAT IMPACT YOU WILL HAVE
Bringing the artistic direction of the House to life in-store
- Being an ambassador of CHANEL's style, serving as the interface between the House's artistic direction and the needs of the retail teams to inspire local clientele
- Overseeing the adaptation of global VM designs to local windows and commercial spaces, supervising window design propositions and optimizing the use of commercial space
- Ensuring all interpretations and modifications of initial concepts are communicated and reported to the Global VM office
- Reviewing the quality of implementation of window displays and merchandise presentation for each of the six fashion collections per year
- Leveraging local tastes, stock availability and performance data to maximize the commercial contribution of displays
Orchestrating and equipping the European VM community
- Being the primary communication channel between the Global VM office and country visual merchandisers, ensuring two-way feedback on regional needs
- Anticipating and responding to markets' needs while maintaining global consistency, creating adapted regional guidelines where relevant
- Providing creative direction and technical assistance for all boutique installations throughout the region
- Educating and equipping markets with all necessary knowledge and tools to execute the highest standards of visual merchandising — including a structured welcome and ramp-up for newly appointed local visual merchandisers, and a clear transmission of each new collection's creative intent, styling principles and execution standards
- Deepening the image and business acumen of the community, so that creative choices are consistently connected to the client journey and commercial performance
- Participating in buying sessions to ensure boutiques across the region receive the product selection reflecting the image standards and studio vision of each collection
Driving décor production, events and operational excellence
- Overseeing the production of all window décor, in-store propositions and any items related to product presentation, to the highest quality standards and within global guidelines
- Strengthening the Events dimension of our décor capability: scaling the team's ability to design and produce special event décor with Regional Marketing & Events, and formalizing ways of working, lead times and cost frameworks for a growing volume of solicitations
- Respecting each market's budget while securing the best quality contractors, materials and suppliers at the best price, seeking multiple quotations for each installation
- Supervising shipment procedures for all décor and VM tools, creating installation guidelines and overseeing the installation of window décor across the region
- Building long-lasting partnerships with suppliers and contractors in respect of CHANEL's values and Code of Conduct, and advancing re-use, recycling and plastic-free materials in VM assets
- Lead the governance of VM investments and budgets, ensuring resources are allocated to the initiatives with the greatest impact on image, client experience and business priorities.
Creating synergies across métiers
Establishing a structured partnership with the Watches & Fine Jewellery VM team ensuring a coherent client journey and a unified brand expression within the Fashion boutiques.
- Aligning décor approaches, calendars, standards and budgets where pooling creates quality or efficiency gains
- Working closely with Store Planning, Image, Product Merchandising and Architecture on new openings, renovations and Premium Boutique projects
Leading, developing and energizing the teams
- Managing and developing the regional VM Office team, setting the organization, priorities and standards, and shaping how new capabilities — notably learning and transmission — are best embedded within it
- Leading transversally the VM Managers of the local markets through influence, clarity of standards, coaching and community animation
- Engaging and energizing the visual merchandising teams across the region, empowering them to constantly elevate the client journey
- Contributing, as a member of the Fashion Europe Management Committee, to the collective leadership and strategic decisions of the métier in the region
WHAT YOU WILL BRING
- Significant experience (typically 12+ years) in Visual Merchandising within luxury, fashion or premium retail, including solid regional or multi-market exposure
- A proven track record across both creative/design and production/décor scopes, including supplier and budget management
- Demonstrated experience leading teams and influencing a distributed community of local managers without direct reporting lines
- Experience contributing to a leadership or management committee, and comfort operating at a strategic level
- Exposure to event décor, and an appetite for developing and transmitting expertise within a community
- Fluent English is required; French and/or an additional European language is appreciated
- Availability to travel frequently across Europe
WHAT CHANEL CAN OFFER YOU
- A broad scope. Full leadership of Fashion Visual Merchandising for Europe — creative direction, décor production, events and community animation — across all markets in the region.
- A strategical position. Membership of the Fashion Europe Management Committee, contributing to the strategy of the métier well beyond the VM perimeter.
- A team to grow. 8 talented people at regional level and a Europe-wide community of VM Managers to inspire, develop and connect.
- A culture that invests in people. At CHANEL, we are focused on creating an inclusive culture that nurtures personal growth, contributing to collective progress. We believe the uniqueness of everyone increases the diversity, complementarity, and effectiveness of our teams. We strongly encourage your application, as we value the perspective, experience and potential you could bring to CHANEL.
- The meaning of the House. The resources, craftsmanship standards and supplier partnerships required to deliver the highest quality of execution — and a sustainability agenda you will help advance.