Head - Fashion Brand (Merchandising & Business)

LOCATION

Delhi

EXPERIENCE

Minimum 5 years

COMPENSATION

Negotiable, based on capability and relevant experience

Role Overview

Sonalika is establishing a new premium fashion brand as a startup venture within the Sonalika Group, with an intended focus on international markets, including Europe.

We are looking for an entrepreneurial fashion skilled who can take ownership of the brand as its Business/HOD lead and work directly with senior management in building the venture from the ground up.

This is a zero-to-one role. The business is at an early stage and will initially operate with a lean team and limited functional layers. The selected candidate should therefore be comfortable working across multiple areas rather than operating within a narrowly defined role.

The incumbent will be expected to combine business strategy, merchandising, product planning, sourcing, commercial planning, brand development and execution while gradually building the processes, partnerships and team required as the business scales.

The role requires a high level of ownership, adaptability and hands-on involvement. The individual should be equally comfortable developing a business plan, working with vendors, reviewing products, analysing commercials, coordinating launches and presenting recommendations directly to management.

Key Responsibilities

Business & Brand Strategy

- Develop and execute the business plan and launch roadmap for the new fashion venture.
- Work directly with senior management to define the brand proposition, target customer, market positioning and growth strategy.
- Conduct consumer, competitor, market and fashion-trend research to identify commercial opportunities.
- Develop seasonal, annual and longer-term business and product plans.
- Support budgeting, revenue planning, margin management and other commercial decisions.

Merchandising & Product Planning

- Own merchandising strategy, assortment planning, range architecture, category mix and seasonal product calendars.
- Identify commercially viable products based on market trends, customer requirements and brand positioning.
- Coordinate collection development from concept and range planning through sampling and production.
- Work closely with designers and external partners to balance creativity, brand identity and commercial viability.
- Determine product pricing considering sourcing costs, positioning, margins and market benchmarks.

Sourcing, Production & Supply Chain
- Identify and develop suppliers, manufacturers, fabric vendors and other business partners.




- Lead negotiations relating to costing, quality, quantities, production timelines and commercial terms.
- Coordinate sampling and production to ensure adherence to approved designs, quality standards and schedules.
- Establish quality benchmarks for materials, construction, fit, finishing and product consistency.
- Support inventory and production planning based on commercial requirements.

Go-to-Market & Commercial Development
- Develop the go-to-market strategy for product and collection launches.
- Work across branding, marketing, product presentation and customer communication as required.
- Contribute to development of suitable sales and distribution channels, including online, retail, institutional and international opportunities.
- Identify collaborations, partnerships and other opportunities that can support brand growth.

Hands-on Startup Execution
- Work across functions wherever required during the initial stage of the venture.
- Take ownership of activities that may ordinarily sit across separate merchandising, sourcing, product, business and strategy teams.
- Solve execution gaps independently instead of relying on established structures or large support teams.
- Build processes, reporting systems and ways of working as the business develops.
- Remain closely involved in day-to-day execution while simultaneously working on long-term strategy.

Business Performance

- Monitor sales, margins, product performance, inventory movement and customer response.
- Analyse performance by product and category and convert insights into business decisions.
- Track plans against actual performance and recommend corrective actions.
- Develop MIS and performance indicators for regular management review.

Team & Stakeholder Management
- Function as the HOD/business owner for the fashion vertical.
- Operate initially with a lean team, external partners and shared organizational resources.
- Build and structure the team progressively as the business scales.
- Coordinate across design, merchandising, sourcing, production, marketing and sales.
- Present business plans, collections, commercial analysis and recommendations directly to senior management.




- Undertake domestic and international travel as required for business purposes.

Candidate Profile

- Minimum 3 years of relevant industry experience in fashion merchandising, apparel business, fashion brand management, buying, product development or a related commercial fashion role.
- Demonstrated understanding of the end-to-end fashion business or product lifecycle.
- Strong understanding of merchandising, range planning, sourcing, product development, manufacturing and quality.
- Commercial understanding of costing, pricing, margins, inventory and sales planning.
- Strong vendor-development and negotiation capabilities.
- Comfortable working in a startup-style environment with ambiguity, evolving responsibilities and limited initial resources.
- Willingness to handle multiple responsibilities simultaneously rather than operate within a narrowly defined functional role.
- High ownership mindset with the ability to independently drive activities from idea to execution.
- Ability to work closely and directly with senior management and convert strategic direction into execution.
- Strong planning, analytical, decision-making and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to build teams, processes and systems as the business scales.
- Strong communication and presentation capabilities.
- Exposure to premium fashion, international markets or European customers will be preferred.
- Prior experience in launching or scaling a brand, category, product line or business vertical will be an advantage.

Educational Qualification

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Fashion Management, Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Design, Apparel Management, Fashion Technology, Business Management or a related discipline.

Candidates from NIFT or other reputed institutions will be preferred; however, demonstrated business capability, industry experience and ownership of commercial outcomes will receive primary consideration.

What the Role Offers

This is not a conventional role within an already established fashion organization.

The selected candidate will join the venture at its startup stage and work with a lean team while helping create the business structure, processes, product strategy and commercial model from the ground up.

- High ownership over the development of the fashion business.
- Direct exposure to and interaction with senior management.
- Opportunity to work across strategy, merchandising, sourcing, product, commercial planning and execution.
- Ability to influence how the brand, team and operating model are built.
- Significant scope to grow with the business as the venture scales.

📌 Head - Fashion Brand (Merchandising & Business) (Delhi)
🏢 Sonalika Tractors International
📍 Delhi