Hiring: Business Head - Product & Design (Kidswear)

Location: Gurgaon

About the Role

We are looking for an accomplished Business Head - Product & Design to lead the end-to-end product strategy, merchandising, sourcing, buying, and design functions for a leading kidswear brand.

This is a high-impact leadership role responsible for shaping the product vision, driving category growth, building differentiated collections, and delivering strong commercial performance across the business.

The ideal candidate will combine deep merchandising and planning expertise with strong product intuition, design sensibility, and commercial acumen.

You will play a critical role in defining product direction, strengthening sourcing capabilities, optimizing inventory productivity, and building a scalable product organization.

Key Responsibilities

Product Strategy & Category Leadership

- Define and drive the overall product strategy aligned with business objectives, market opportunities, and consumer trends.

- Build and scale high-performing product categories across kidswear and related children's product segments.

- Develop long-term category growth plans, assortment strategies, and product roadmaps.

- Identify emerging market opportunities and translate consumer insights into commercially successful products.

Merchandising & Range Planning

- Lead merchandise planning, assortment architecture, pricing strategy, and category management.

- Develop seasonal product plans and ensure alignment with revenue, margin, and inventory objectives.

- Drive range planning decisions based on consumer demand, trend analysis, and business performance.

- Optimize category productivity through effective product mix, inventory planning, and lifecycle management.

Buying & Sourcing Excellence

- Lead product buying and sourcing strategy across domestic and international vendor ecosystems.

- Build strong partnerships with suppliers, manufacturers, and sourcing partners to ensure quality, cost efficiency, and timely delivery.

- Negotiate commercial terms and drive sourcing efficiencies while maintaining product quality standards.

- Continuously identify opportunities for innovation, value engineering, and supply chain optimization.

Product Design & Development

- Provide strategic direction to product design teams and ensure alignment with brand positioning.

- Drive the development of differentiated, trend-relevant, and commercially viable collections.

- Ensure strong design aesthetics while balancing customer preferences, pricing, and profitability objectives.

- Collaborate closely with design, merchandising, sourcing, and marketing teams throughout the product development lifecycle.

Business Planning & Commercial Performance

- Own category-level business performance, including sales, margins, inventory health, and profitability.

- Monitor product performance and implement corrective actions to maximize business outcomes.

- Establish KPIs and performance frameworks across product, merchandising, and sourcing functions.

- Drive data-backed decision-making and continuous business improvement initiatives.

Leadership & Team Development

- Build, mentor, and lead high-performing teams across product, design, sourcing, merchandising, and planning.

- Foster a culture of accountability, innovation, collaboration, and execution excellence.

- Drive organizational capability building and succession planning within the product function.

- Act as a strategic partner to senior leadership on growth and expansion initiatives.

Required Skills & Experience

- 12+ years of experience in Product Management, Merchandising, Buying, Sourcing, or Category Leadership roles.

- Strong experience within Kidswear, Children's Products, Apparel, Fashion Retail, or Lifestyle brands.

- Proven expertise in product buying, sourcing, merchandising, and category management.

- Deep understanding of range architecture, assortment planning, and seasonal merchandise calendars.

- Strong design sensibility and ability to balance creativity with commercial outcomes.

- Experience developing and scaling product-led businesses or categories.

- Strong understanding of consumer behavior, fashion trends, and retail dynamics.

- Excellent business planning, analytical, and decision-making capabilities.

- Proven experience managing cross-functional teams and large product organizations.

- Strong stakeholder management, negotiation, and leadership skills.

Preferred Experience

- Exposure to international brands, global sourcing markets, and international retail practices.

- Experience managing multi-category product portfolios.

- Understanding of omnichannel retail and D2C business models.

- Experience working in high-growth consumer brands or retail organizations.

- Exposure to global fashion trends, product innovation, and sustainable sourcing practices.

Educational Qualifications

- Bachelor's degree in Fashion Management, Design, Retail Management, Business Administration, or a related discipline.

- MBA, NIFT, Pearl Academy, or equivalent qualifications will be an added advantage.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a commercially driven product leader with a strong merchandising and planning foundation, exceptional product instincts, and the ability to build compelling consumer-led collections.

You should be equally comfortable driving strategic business decisions, leading creative teams, and delivering measurable commercial outcomes while building a world-class product organization