Manager, Partnerships – Chalhoub Group

Chalhoub Group’s seven-decade history as a partner and creator of luxury brands across fashion, beauty, jewellery, watches, eyewear, and art de vivre depends heavily on the strength of its brand partnerships, since the group operates largely as a distributor and retail partner for international luxury houses in the region. A Manager of Partnerships is responsible for developing, managing, and growing these relationships, working to align Chalhoub’s regional retail and distribution strategy with each partner brand’s global standards and commercial goals.

The day-to-day work involves acting as the primary relationship point of contact for one or more brand partners, coordinating on commercial planning, marketing initiatives, and retail execution to make sure the brand’s regional presence meets its global standards, and identifying opportunities to grow the partnership, new store openings, category expansion, or deeper commercial collaboration. Because luxury brand partners are protective of their brand identity and standards, this role requires genuine sensitivity to brand guidelines alongside the commercial negotiation skills needed to advocate for Chalhoub’s regional interests.

Success in this role depends on balancing two sometimes competing priorities: representing the brand partner’s global standards faithfully, while also pushing for the commercial terms and strategic flexibility Chalhoub needs to run a profitable regional operation.

This suits an experienced relationship or business development professional with luxury retail or brand management experience who’s comfortable operating diplomatically between a global brand partner’s expectations and a regional distributor’s commercial realities.

Chalhoub Group's business model depends fundamentally on maintaining strong, trusted relationships with the international luxury brands it distributes and retails across the region, which makes partnership management a core commercial function rather than a purely relationship-maintenance role. A Manager of Partnerships who manages a brand relationship well protects and grows a revenue stream that could otherwise be at risk if the brand partner became dissatisfied with regional execution or considered switching distribution partners, a real risk in a competitive luxury distribution market. Because luxury brands are highly protective of their global positioning, a partnerships manager who ensures consistent brand execution across the region also protects the brand partner's trust in Chalhoub as a distributor capable of maintaining premium standards, which is often the deciding factor in whether a brand expands its partnership or looks elsewhere. Identifying and executing on partnership growth opportunities, new store formats, category expansion, deeper marketing collaboration, directly expands Chalhoub's revenue from that brand relationship, making this role a genuine growth driver rather than just a maintenance function. Given how central brand partnerships are to Chalhoub's overall distribution and retail business, strong performance in this role has ripple effects across the group's broader relationship with the international luxury sector, since word travels within a relatively close-knit global luxury industry about which regional partners execute well.

Managing partnerships with major international luxury brands builds a distinctive and highly valuable skill set: the diplomatic sophistication to represent a global brand's standards faithfully while still advocating effectively for regional commercial interests, a genuinely advanced relationship management capability that few roles develop as directly. That skill, balancing brand fidelity with commercial pragmatism, transfers well to any role involving complex external stakeholder management, from franchise management to strategic alliances to international business development. Working within Chalhoub Group, one of the region's most established and respected luxury goods distributors with a seven-decade track record, also provides genuine exposure to how the international luxury industry operates in practice, relationships that often prove valuable throughout a career in luxury retail, brand management, or business development. The role's blend of relationship management, commercial negotiation, and brand strategy builds a well-rounded skill set that's increasingly valued as luxury and premium brands continue to expand into new regional markets. People who build a strong track record managing brand partnerships at this level often progress into Senior Partnerships, Director of Brand Relations, or broader commercial leadership roles within Chalhoub, or move into regional or global roles with the luxury brands themselves, given the genuine cross-industry credibility that comes from having managed those relationships from the distribution side.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field; MBA is a plus
• Significant experience in partnership management, business development, or brand management, ideally within luxury retail or FMCG
• Strong negotiation and relationship management skills with sophisticated, brand-conscious partners
• Understanding of luxury brand standards, positioning, and retail execution requirements
• Strategic thinking to identify and develop partnership growth opportunities
• Excellent cross-cultural communication skills for working with international brand partners
• Comfortable balancing partner brand guidelines with regional commercial objectives