Retail Director

Warner Bros. Discovery•Apply•Published 1 days ago•First seen 1 days ago

Welcome to Warner Bros. Discovery… the stuff dreams are made of.

Who We Are…

When we say, “the stuff dreams are made of,” we’re not just referring to the world of wizards, dragons and superheroes, or even to the wonders of Planet Earth. Behind WBD’s vast portfolio of iconic content and beloved brands, are the storytellers bringing our characters to life, the creators bringing them to your living rooms and the dreamers creating what’s next…

From brilliant creatives, to technology trailblazers, across the globe, WBD offers career defining opportunities, thoughtfully curated benefits, and the tools to explore and grow into your best selves. Here you are supported, here you are celebrated, here you can thrive.

Warner Bros. Discovery is a global media company and operates some of the best-known entertainment, news, and sports brands in the world. We bring people, technology, and the world's best storytellers together to drive culture and meaningful connection. We believe the enduring power of stories can open our eyes to the world, to each other, and to new and different perspectives.

Our Global Experiences division brings that creative storytelling vision to life with compelling and immersive in-person experiences. The phenomenally successful Warner Bros. Studio Tours in London, Hollywood, and Tokyo, flagship retail stores in New York and Chicago, magical Harry Potter experiences at Universal Studios Parks and Resorts worldwide, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, along with the popular Friends Experiences and more, deliver high levels of fan engagement, exceptional customer service, and creative interactivity.

The next exciting addition to this collection is Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai - The Making of Harry Potter, a completely new experience for Harry Potter fans in China. Located in the heart of Shanghai, this indoor attraction will transport visitors into the world of filmmaking, revealing production secrets through interactive experiences, showcasing stunning locations, and displaying beautifully crafted props.

Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai will be operated in partnership with Jinjiang International (Holdings) Co., Ltd, a State-Owned Enterprise, ensuring a world-class experience for all who visit.

From the phenomenally successful Warner Bros. Studio Tours in London, Hollywood, and Tokyo, to flagship retail stores in New York, Chicago and Tokyo, the next exciting addition to this collection is Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai - The Making of Harry Potter, a completely new experience for Harry Potter fans in China.

Located in the heart of the city, Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai – The Making of Harry Potter is an indoor attraction designed to transport visitors into the world of filmmaking, revealing production secrets through interactive experiences, showcasing stunning sets, and displaying beautifully crafted props.

This new attraction will deliver the Studio Tour values of exceptional customer service, experiences that exceed visitors’ expectations and the very best in Harry Potter retail.

Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai will be operated in partnership with Jinjiang International (Holdings) Co., Ltd, a State-Owned Enterprise, ensuring a world-class experience for all who visit.

Your New Role – Retail Director

Duration of role – Full Time Employee

Role Reports To – General Manager

Numbers of Subordinates – 90+

Your New Role

The Retail Director will lead the retail function for Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai (WBSTS), with accountability for retail strategy, commercial performance and day-to-day operations. The role will ensure the retail offer delivers strong commercial returns, exceptional service standards, and a safe, engaging visitor experience.

Working closely with the WBSTS Senior Leadership Team and the SVP, Retail Experiences for Warner Bros Discovery, the Retail Director will support the continued growth and success of the attraction in China.

Essential Job Functions

Retail - Operations

Ensure consistent visual identity, merchandising standards, and service procedures across all WBSTS retail environments, creating a shopping experience aligned to the WBSTS brand and IP.
Oversee end-to-end merchandise inventory management, including procurement, sales, and stock control. Optimize product launch plans and clearance activity to
improve inventory turnover and sell-through.
Partner with the Senior Leadership Team and Tour Operations to maintain a high-performing, safe, and enjoyable visitor attraction.
Work closely with the WBD Retail team, providing clear reporting on performance, incidents, risks, and required support.
Collaborate with China retail and eCommerce teams, as part of the Pan-China Retail organization, to identify and optimize sales growth opportunities for
WBSTS.
Apply local market insight and industry best practice to ensure product ranges and service delivery are locally relevant and commercially effective.
Partner with Sales, Marketing, and PR leaders to drive footfall to Studio Tour retail spaces and support retail-led PR opportunities.
Work with Health and Safety and on-site security teams to maintain a safe environment for all WBSTS staff and visitors.

Retail - Product

Collaborate with global product teams to oversee the end-to-end development of locally produced retail product collections. From consumer insight and trend identification through concept creation, sourcing, costing, and final market launch, ensuring products deliver both commercial performance and brand integrity.
Partner with global product teams to deliver innovation and assortment strategies, seasonal and exclusive ranges. Lead buying and merchandising functions in China, and work closely with Global Design, Buying, and Merchandising to create differentiated products that maximize sales, margin, and customer engagement.

Financial and Commercial

Develop and deliver the commercial retail strategy for Warner Bros. Studio Tour Shanghai, aligned to local consumer trends, market expectations, and retail sales targets.
Own retail forecasts, providing regular performance commentary and action plans to improve retail per capita spend, conversion, and EBITDA.
Develop differentiated merchandising, pricing, and promotional strategies based on visitor profiles, seasonal trading patterns, and competitor activity to maximize secondary spend.
Partner with People and Finance to optimize labor and operating budgets for Studio Tour Retail, managing costs effectively.

Leadership

Build, lead, and engage a highly skilled retail operations team.
Oversee recruitment, training, and performance management for the retail team, building talent pipelines for store management and operational roles to improve retention of critical talent.
Establish ongoing training in merchandise knowledge, visitor service, and incident response to strengthen capability, service awareness, and operational readiness across the retail team.

Education and Skills

Senior leadership experience in retail, ideally gained within major high-street retail, tourism, leisure, or FMCG environments.
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
Strong experience in retail assortment planning, buying, pricing, and inventory management.
Experience leading major projects and new retail store openings.
Proven commercial capability, including experience growing primary and secondary revenue streams.
Extensive senior-level experience driving customer service standards across large-scale or multi-site operations.
Strong track record of leading and developing management teams in a sales environment.
Strong commercial insight, data analysis, and reporting skills, with confidence presenting to senior stakeholders.
Native-level Mandarin and business-level English are required.

Working Pattern and Duty Management

This is a full-time, on-site role requiring flexibility in working hours to meet business needs.

Shanghai Joint Venture Employment:

Please note that this position is employed through Warner Bros. Discovery’s joint venture with Jin Jiang International (Holdings) Co., Ltd. The joint venture entity is Shanghai WB Jinjiang Studio Tour Co., Ltd. Successful candidates will be hired by the joint venture company and assigned to work with Warner Bros. Discovery as required for this project.

How We Get Things Done…

This last bit is probably the most important! Here at WBD, our guiding principles are the core values by which we operate and are central to how we get things done. You can find them at www.wbd.com/guiding-principles/ along with some insights from the team on what they mean and how they show up in their day to day. We hope they resonate with you and look forward to discussing them during your interview.

Championing Inclusion at WBD

Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, regardless of sex, gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, disability or any other category protected by law.

If you’re a qualified candidate with a disability and you require adjustments or accommodations during the job application and/or recruitment process, please visit our accessibility page for instructions to submit your request.