ABOUT SHINOLA

At Shinola, we make beautiful, enduring, handcrafted goods that are built to be lived in, worn out, and well-loved. Our thoughtful craftsmanship, timeless design, and spirited stories inspire our customers to live well, with confidence & joy—in a style that is uniquely their own! Because we are a growing and evolving company, each employee is a key stakeholder, making decisions every day that directly impact our overall vision and direction. At Shinola, you’ll have the opportunity to make a significant contribution at the start of what we believe will become an iconic American brand.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Wholesale Brand Ambassador Lead is responsible for overseeing Shinola’s Wholesale Brand Ambassador (WBA) program while also serving as a field representative supporting wholesale accounts that are not directly covered by a WBA. This role plays a critical part in ensuring brand consistency, strong partner relationships, and improved sell-through across Shinola’s wholesale network. The position combines people leadership, training, reporting, and hands-on field support, offering the opportunity to directly influence the success of Shinola’s wholesale business.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Wholesale Brand Ambassador Program Leadership

• Create and manage monthly WBA schedules and account visit assignments based on wholesale priority needs.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for all Wholesale Brand Ambassadors; conduct regular communication and monthly 1:1 check-ins.
• Act as liaison between WBAs and Wholesale Account Managers to ensure visit reports are completed, and follow-up actions are executed.
• Maintain a master log of WBA hours and report hours to Finance for accurate labor reallocation from Retail to Wholesale.
• Host virtual training sessions with wholesale customers when in-person visits are not feasible.
• Partner with Merchandising and Retail Training teams to adapt retail launch materials into wholesale-specific one-pagers for the sales team and wholesale partners.
• Facilitate seasonal training sessions with the Wholesale Sales Team for new product launches.
• Lead quarterly hindsight reviews, summarizing visit outcomes, wins, and opportunities.
• Pull and analyze weekly selling reports from the BIG network to track progress resulting from WBA visits and share insights with Account Managers.
• Develop and distribute wholesale-specific visual merchandising (VM) standards and provide quarterly updates.
• Monitor wholesale VM inventory levels and proactively alert the Sales Director when inventory is trending low.
• Meet bi-weekly with the Sales Director to review performance, challenges, and opportunities.

Field Support – Wholesale Account Visits (Approx. 45%)

• Travel to wholesale accounts not covered by a WBA to provide in-person brand support, including training, visual merchandising guidance, and selling support.
• Conduct store visits that may require driving, flights, and occasional overnight travel.
• Serve as Shinola’s in-market brand representative, ensuring a consistent and elevated brand experience.

Additional Responsibilities (Approx. 5%)

• Maintain and update Brandwise with newly approved wholesale accounts and attend monthly Brandwise meetings.
• Proactively flag Brandwise issues or discrepancies to the Sales Director.
• Provide on-site selling and brand support at key industry trade shows.

QUALIFICATIONS

• 3+ years of experience in retail, wholesale, brand ambassadorship, or field sales support, preferably within a premium or lifestyle brand.
• Demonstrated experience with training, visual merchandising, and in-store execution.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage schedules, reporting, and multiple stakeholders.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Comfortable analyzing selling data and translating insights into actionable recommendations.
• Proficiency with reporting systems, CRM or wholesale platforms (e.g., Brandwise), and Microsoft Office or Google Workspace.
• Ability to travel regularly, including overnight travel as needed.
• Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation required.

Note: This job description is not meant to be all-inclusive. Employee may be required to perform other duties to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.

Filson and Shinola are equal opportunity employers. We believe that every employee has the right to work in surroundings which are free from all forms of unlawful discrimination. It is our policy that all decisions involving any aspect of the employment relationship will be made without regard to race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, veteran and military status, genetic information, political ideology or any other status or characteristic protected by local, state or federal law. Discrimination and/or harassment based on any of those factors are totally inconsistent with our philosophy of doing business and will not be tolerated.

With regard to applicants or employees with disabilities, the company offers what the law refers to as "reasonable accommodation" to enable a person to perform his or her job.