VP Marketing - Canterbury

VP Marketing - Canterbury This role requires a visionary leader who understands how to embed brands into culture and drive measurable impact. Apply Now We’re Pentland Brands: a global family business behind some of the world’s most iconic active and lifestyle brands. We bring integrity, energy and ambition to our work, setting high standards and striving to deliver great outcomes without ego. Design rugby apparel built for strength, movement and team identity. At Canterbury, product has to do more than look good. It has to stand up to the intensity of the game, move with the player and carry the pride of the team, from training ground to match day and beyond. We are searching for an inspiring and visionary VP Marketing to lead the next chapter in the recent evolution of Canterbury. As the VP Marketing, you will shape and execute a bold, disruptive, and strategic global marketing plan that shapes and delivers our mission. You will drive brand relevance, community engagement, and consumer connection through social-first storytelling, influencer and athlete marketing, and best-in-class events and activations. Reporting to the SVP of Canterbury, this role requires a visionary leader who understands how to embed brands into culture and drive measurable impact. What you’ll be doing: Develop and deliver the global Canterbury brand marketing strategy and seasonal brand plan. Lead integrated campaigns that build brand relevance, consumer connection and commercial momentum. Oversee sports marketing, social, community, retail and brand campaign priorities so activity is joined up. Partner with Product Management, Design, GTM and Commercial teams to ensure product stories translate into market impact. Guide regional marketing execution, providing toolkits, direction and clarity while allowing appropriate local activation. Lead partner, athlete, community and cultural activation strategies that strengthen Canterbury's credibility. Use performance insight, consumer data and market feedback to optimise brand marketing activity. Lead and develop the brand marketing team, building high standards of creativity, execution and accountability. Build clear campaign, content and activation briefs that connect brand objectives, product stories, audience insight and channel requirements. Measure activity performance and capture learnings so future campaigns, community moments and retail activations continue to improve. Own the global brand marketing calendar, ensuring campaigns, content, sports marketing and community moments connect to commercial priorities. Create integrated marketing plans that bring product stories and brand positioning to life across channels. Lead global campaign briefing, asset development, toolkit creation and regional activation guidance. Use brand, consumer, campaign and channel performance data to improve marketing effectiveness. Build marketing capability and ensure clear ways of working across brand, sports, social and community activity. Partner with Product, Design, GTM and regions to ensure marketing plans support seasonal priorities. What you’ll bring: Senior brand marketing experience within sport, apparel, consumer goods, lifestyle or performance categories. Proven ability to build global brand plans and integrated campaigns across multiple channels. Strong understanding of sports marketing, community, social, retail and commercial activation. Experience leading teams and influencing across regions and functions. A consumer-first, commercially aware approach with strong storytelling capability. Confidence working with creative, PR, media, athlete, partner and agency relationships. Ability to balance global consistency with local market relevance. Strong creative judgement and commercial awareness, with the ability to balance brand-building, consumer relevance and delivery discipline. Significant brand marketing leadership experience in sport, lifestyle, apparel or consumer brands. Why Canterbury? Canterbury is the world’s original rugby brand, built on more than a century of sporting heritage, technical product knowledge and deep connection to the game. Founded in New Zealand in 1904, Canterbury creates performance kit, training apparel, casualwear and fan product for players, teams and supporters who live and breathe rugby. It is a brand shaped by strength, durability and belonging, supporting people on and off the pitch, from grassroots clubs to the highest levels of the sport. Joining Canterbury means becoming part of a team that cares deeply about rugby product and the people who wear it: how it fits, how it moves, how it performs under pressure, how it represents team identity, and how it brings players, coaches and fans together. Perks & Benefits We offer a competitive salary, discretionary bonus, hybrid working, flexible start and finish times, generous holiday allowance, product discounts, sample sales, enhanced family-friendly policies, healthcare support, gym and fitness discounts, cycle to work scheme and electric car scheme. You can find full details of our benefits and perks on our UK Benefits page . The Interview Process We want our interview process to feel clear, straightforward, and supportive. If your experience and expectations look like a strong match for the role, here’s what you can expect next: Talent Team Intro Call - A 30-minute video call with our Talent Team to get to know each other, talk through the role and your experience, and answer any questions you have. Experience Interview - A more in-depth interview (usually online) with the hiring manager to explore your skills, experience and approach, and how these align with the role, our principles, and our ways of working. Final Interview - A final in-person interview at our office, focused on deeper discussion and practical application, giving you the chance to meet more of the team and see Pentland Brands in action. “This vacancy is a newly created role as part of organisational changes. Final appointment will depend upon the outcome of consultation processes and affected employees will have priority for consideration.” Department Marketing Role Canterbury Marketing Locations Farringdon, London Remote status Hybrid Employment type Full-time