Francis Kurkdjian Junior Retail Design and Visual Merchandising Manager

About Francis Kurkdjian

Maison Francis Kurkdjian is a Parisian fragrance house founded in 2009 by master perfumer Francis Kurkdjian and Marc Chaya, renowned for translating emotion, craftsmanship and modern French elegance into exceptional scents. As part of the LVMH ecosystem, the Maison offers employees the intimacy of an entrepreneurial creative atelier with the reach and standards of a global luxury leader. Its culture values artistic excellence, precision, client devotion and collaboration across métiers, from creation and retail to communications and operations. For professionals inspired by beauty and innovation, it provides a refined environment where talent contributes to an exacting, poetic vision of contemporary perfumery.

Role & Responsibilities

• Implement the Store Design and Visual Merchandising strategy across the UK and EIRE alongside the Head of Marketing and HQ team, delivering a retail experience aligned with the global brand strategy and acting as a guardian of the Maison’s image.
• Ensure perfect execution of each project and uphold the Maison’s standards.
• Work with the Head of Marketing, Head of Commercial and KAMs to drive and implement Store Design strategy in line with global brand strategy and commercial targets.
• Lead new and refurbished counter projects, delivering to agreed budgets, timelines and execution standards.
• Communicate directly with the General Manager to secure project approvals.
• Identify potential new store locations with the Leadership team and forecast production and running costs to support ROI evaluation.
• Work with Regional Sales Managers and Account Managers to ensure designs and pop-up layouts suit the retailer, location and customer, while considering stock capacity and sales targets.
• Evaluate design elements—including materials, costs, functionality and lead times—with local agencies in line with global guidelines to support new-door launches.
• Review Store Design practices on an ongoing basis to encourage innovation, consumer interest and store profitability, sharing analysis with internal stakeholders.
• Collaborate with external Retail Design and Visual Merchandising partners and agencies to deliver consistent, high-level execution.
• Manage counter updates and maintenance issues, ensuring prompt and efficient resolution.
• Forecast budgets for upcoming Capex projects using historical data and material matrices.
• Oversee and manage the creation of supporting counter documents for retail and HQ teams.
• Work with the HQ team to create store designs that account for internal and external stakeholders.
• Manage and execute pop-ups and temporary animations in line with global brand strategy, agreed budgets and timelines.
• Control merchandising and counter-maintenance budget lines, reporting monthly to the Head of Marketing and Senior Finance Controller.
• Evaluate materials, costs, lead times and animation proposals with local agencies in line with global guidelines, uphold CSR and deliver ROI simulations.
• Collaborate with external visual merchandising retailer partners and agencies to deliver consistent, high-level execution.
• Update each door’s planogram for every campaign to ensure commercial compliance and full product display, and communicate it clearly to retail teams before launch.
• Lead campaign rollouts, including lightbox and video content updates, HQ visual merchandising orders and implementation, bespoke visual merchandising production, retailer approvals, supplier implementation and post-launch snagging.
• Work with in-store Account Managers to ensure planogram execution and NSV materials align with the planogram.
• Keep databases and trackers up to date and share them with relevant parties to provide visibility of upcoming projects.
• Forecast global visual merchandising tools and allocate them by door and activity, ensuring quantities are accurate and costs are recorded by door.
• Work with purchasing teams to evaluate supplier relationships and tender projects ahead of internal deadlines to identify cost-saving opportunities.
• Record the effectiveness of campaign launches through wrap reports, saving photos of every door and recording visual merchandising spend per door.
• Lead visual merchandising execution for training and PR events.

Qualifications

• Fluent in English.
• Strong ability to build and maintain internal and external relationships.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment with a sense of urgency.
• Proven organisational and time-management skills, strong attention to detail, and ability to implement and execute multiple projects simultaneously.
• Ability to collaborate in a cross-functional environment across departments and organisational levels.
• Proactive approach to tasks and projects, with initiative in problem-solving.
• Outstanding oral and written communication skills.
• Strong team player with a can-do attitude.
• Understanding of customer experience requirements in a department store.
• Good working knowledge of MS Office, Adobe Acrobat, PowerPoint, InDesign and Excel.
• Experience with one or more of SketchUp, AutoCAD or Revit.
• Strong technical drawing knowledge.
• Good knowledge of electrical and health and safety standards.
• Inherent interest in the luxury industry and beauty.
• Desire to build a career in Retail Design and Visual Merchandising.
• Willingness to travel across the UK and EIRE as needed.
• All applications must include a portfolio demonstrating the relevant skill sets.

Skills

Experience

3–5 years of experience in a Visual Merchandising or Store Design role; minimum 3 years.

Culture

Maison Francis Kurkdjian cultivates a refined, creative workplace where olfactory artistry, precision, and innovation are central to every role. As part of the luxury fragrance world, it offers an environment that values craftsmanship, collaboration, and a deep sensitivity to beauty, detail, and client experience.

About Cerulean

Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.