Brand Relationship Manager

About the Job

Powered by People (PBP) is seeking a driven Brand Relationship Manager to join our Sales Team who is passionate about independent brands, retail, and the rapidly evolving retail landscape. This individual has a natural curiosity for discovering emerging brands, an eye for great products, and an enthusiasm for connecting businesses with opportunities to grow.

You will thrive on discovering new brands, understanding what makes them unique, and identifying where they can succeed within PBP's retail network. Combining instincts, industry knowledge, and a relationship-first approach, you will help build a high-quality brand ecosystem while creating meaningful opportunities for both new and existing partners.

As the primary relationship owner for brands, you will oversee their journey from initial engagement and conversion through onboarding, activation, and ongoing retention. While internal teams support merchandising, operational, and technical execution, you will remain accountable for the overall brand relationship and experience.

Key Responsibilities

Brand Discovery & Acquisition

• Develop an understanding of prospective brands, including their positioning, business objectives, capabilities, and growth potential.
• Identify opportunities to bring new brands into the PBP ecosystem while uncovering additional opportunities for existing brands.
• Stay connected to emerging brands, industry trends, and developments across the retail and wholesale landscape.
• Collaborate across the Sales and Merchandising team  to identify brand acquisition priorities and opportunities.

Brand Conversion & Platform Growth

• Own the conversion of qualified brand leads into active, subscribed PBP customers.
• Clearly articulate PBP's value proposition, platform capabilities, retailer network, and growth opportunities to prospective brands.
• Lead discovery conversations to understand brand objectives, challenges, and readiness for retail expansion.
• Track conversion performance, identify barriers, and recommend improvements to the acquisition process.

Brand Relationship Management & Retention

• Serve as the primary relationship owner for an assigned portfolio of brands throughout their lifecycle with PBP.
• Build trusted, long-term relationships with brand founders and key decision-makers.
• Develop a deep understanding of each brand's business, objectives, capabilities, and growth potential.
• Proactively identify brands at risk of disengagement or churn and develop strategies to improve retention.
• Gather brand feedback, identify recurring challenges, and advocate for improvements to the brand experience.
• Identify opportunities to deepen brand participation and expand engagement across relevant PBP programs and retail channels.

Brand Opportunities and Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Develop a strong understanding of PBP's ecosystem, retail partnerships, and the opportunities available to brands.
• Act as the internal voice of the brand, ensuring their objectives, capabilities, and growth ambitions are understood across teams.
• Partner with Merchandising to assess brand suitability and identify potential retailer opportunities.
• Share brand insights and market intelligence to support Merchandising's assortment planning and retailer strategies.
• Collaborate with internal teams to communicate relevant opportunities and facilitate brand participation.
• Ensure alignment between brand expectations, platform capabilities, and available retail opportunities.
• Maintain visibility into brand progress and help remove barriers to growth and engagement.

Brand Onboarding & Lifecycle Ownership

• Own the overall brand onboarding experience, ensuring a smooth transition from conversion to platform activation.
• Set clear expectations with brands regarding onboarding requirements, timelines, platform capabilities, and next steps.
• Coordinate with Marketplace Operations and other internal teams responsible for account setup, product uploads, compliance documentation, and technical requirements.
• Monitor onboarding progress, proactively address blockers, and ensure brands remain engaged throughout the process.
• Own internal processes and ensure brands are vetted through PBP Verified™ and compliance requirements.
• Maintain visibility into brand readiness and coordinate with relevant teams to support activation.
• Participate in brand offboarding decisions and conversations, helping to understand reasons for departure, explore retention opportunities, and capture learnings.
• Ensure brands experience a consistent, professional relationship with PBP throughout their lifecycle.

What Success Looks Like

The Brand Relationship Manager is accountable for:

• Strong conversion: Qualified leads consistently convert into paying, subscribed platform customers.
• Brand relationship ownership: Brands have a trusted point of contact who understands their business and advocates for their success.
• Brand retention: Strong engagement, healthy subscription retention, and proactive management of at-risk relationships.
• Successful onboarding: Brands move efficiently from conversion to activation, with clear expectations and coordinated internal support.
• Cross-functional alignment: Brand needs, opportunities, and feedback are effectively communicated to Merchandising and other internal teams.
• Network intelligence: PBP has a clear understanding of its brand portfolio, relationships, and emerging opportunities.

Our Ideal Profile

• Genuine enthusiasm for independent brands, retail, design, consumer products, and the evolving marketplace landscape.
• Experience within a fast paced sales organization or related team.
• Constantly curious about emerging brands, new products, industry trends, and what makes a brand stand out.
• An appreciation for quality, brand storytelling, positioning, and the factors that contribute to a brand's success.
• Experience working within a wholesale marketplace, retail platform, consumer brand network, or e-commerce business. 
• A proactive approach to identifying opportunities, building relationships, and converting prospects into customers.
• Demonstrated ability to recognize brand potential and build meaningful commercial relationships.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple relationships and opportunities simultaneously.
• Comfortable using CRM and marketplace tools to track pipelines, manage relationships, and monitor performance.
• A collaborative mindset with the ability to work effectively across Sales, Merchandising, Operations, and Product.
• A self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced, evolving startup environment.

Compensation & Benefits

Base Salary: $60,000 - $75,000 CAD

We believe in transparent compensation. The salary for this role falls within the range above, with placement determined by experience and overall fit for the position. In addition to competitive compensation, we offer comprehensive health benefits and the opportunity to have a direct impact on the growth of our company.

About Powered by People (PBP)

Powered by People (PBP) is on a mission to democratize a global sustainable economy. Our digital platform has connected responsibly-made products from independent brands worldwide to mainstream retail channels through our distribution network, catalog and order management technology and compliance tools - PBP Dropship, PBP CatalogAgent, and PBP Verified™. Because when their businesses grow, we all flourish.