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I literally walked my way into a job with Clarks!

posted by Caroline Grant
23 January 2015

You might not believe this, but I literally walked my way into a job with Clarks!

I had picked up a pair of sandals from Clarks for a trip to Spain. On day one, I walked around Seville in my brand new sandals for 10 hours without once thinking about my feet. Once I had that experience, I was dedicated to the Clarks brand.

So when I saw an open position for eCommerce Marketing Manager on the Multi-Channel Retailing team, I knew I had to give it a shot. It was a dream position for me, enabling me to tie together all of my previous work experience to integrate across channels, plus being able to manage my own team of marketers.

Online marketing can be tough. The landscape is ever-changing and it’s crowded with the “new best thing” and the next “killer” app, site, service, algorithm etc. Wading through all of the possibilities and distilling down the best opportunities for Clarks is always a challenge.

Due to the dynamic landscape, there is immense pressure on brands like Clarks to innovate. Consumers are adopting new technologies faster and faster; the rate of change has exploded. To be successful, our MCR team needs to create a roadmap that responds to changes quickly, but is financially responsible.

Right now we’re in the midst of Project Pangaea. This is a hugely important global project that will give all of our global MCR teams a single world-class platform on which to operate our regional businesses. I’m really excited for 2015! We have three huge new initiatives for this year that will redefine how we market Clarks. We’ll also shift focus to the 2nd half of the Pangaea project and with that we’ll gain new capabilities to engage with consumers!

Consumers today don’t think about brands as online or brick-and-mortar, they think of interacting with shopping brands in a completely seamless way. Our collaborations have been the initial steps to making that goal a reality.

Everything we achieve as a Multi-Channel Retailing unit is due to the individual contributions made by our close knit and dedicated team. No matter how smart marketing technology gets, it cannot match the creativity and curiosity of a team of people who truly care about their positive impact on Clarks and love to push the envelope.

Our team is entrepreneurial - we’re looking for new opportunities and new ways of thinking. Any team member can surface an idea, build a business case, and get backing. One of our most recent new initiatives in the budget is a blogger outreach program which grew out of one employee’s previous experience and personal passion!

I love my team here at Clarks! My manager is just as psyched as I am about our business and new opportunities. My team is a group of stellar individuals who like what they do and make working at Clarks a joy. It is really all about the people that surround me.

I am excited every day about the opportunities here at Clarks, especially in my field. So far we’ve only scratched the surface of what is possible from a measurement and engagement perspective. I find my work challenging and I know I’ve grown professionally since beginning my role. I’ve had the pleasure of being involved in management training. The two-day in-depth course reinforced good management skills, but also highlighted areas of opportunity for me. I often remember my takeaways from the course when I’m faced with a challenge. There are also great training modules on shoemaking that gave me a much deeper appreciation for the entire process. So much happens before it’s on the shelf!

Clarks has an amazing capability framework that makes it easy to set targets for myself and my team to grow soft skills. The framework gives clear benchmarks so that we all know when someone is ready for the next available career opportunity. In my time here, I’ve seen people shift from customer service to the business, retail stores to the corporate office, or from retail operations to wholesale sales. Clarks recognizes strong contributors and allows them to pursue their passions and strengths. For example, my Email Marketing Manager set herself a goal to present at a conference held by our email service provider. Not only did she do an excellent job on her presentation but she won an award for our team for Best Marketing Campaigns. As a manager, seeing one of my employees set a goal, partnering with them all of the way through to fulfilment and then seeing them recognized for their work by a 3rd party was amazing.

Clarks is a dynamic environment, no team is exactly alike but the people really make the business and the people across the board are caring, compassionate, and hard working.

The Clarks benefit package is a strong one and I also love the shoe purchasing perks!

I never get over how cool it is to stand in the product we sell day in and day out, experiencing the comfort, quality, and style of our shoes first hand. Seeing our shoes on people I bump into on the street or at conferences is just pure awesome! Hearing all of the fantastic stories from people who know and love the brand is inspiring! That physical product connection really sets the Clarks experience apart for me.

When I’m not geeking out over online marketing, I’m thinking about my next meal! I love the Boston food scene; my latest amateur foodie escapade was a dish called tobiko - flying fish roe - on cabbage. Over all of those delicious meals, I’m usually planning for my next vacation. I like to travel to far-off places (even though I hate to fly!). Next stop: Peru to hike the Inca Trail. And yes, Clarks will be coming with me.

Kylie - eCommerce Marketing Manager - Multi-Channel Retailing Team - Newton (MA), US