Director, Merchandising Partnerships

Location: New York, USA; eligible employees may work remotely one day per week.

Salary: $140,000–$155,000 annually, plus an annual discretionary performance bonus.

Company

hirify.global is a global sports and media organization operating the hirify.global, Whirify.global, hirify.global G League, hirify.global 2K League, and Basketball Africa League.

What you will do

• Develop and execute Whirify.global merchandising and licensing strategies, including product development, retail expansion, marketing activations, and partner growth plans.
• Manage licensing operations, product approvals, marketing collateral reviews, contract and deal memo development, compliance, and partner reporting.
• Analyze business performance, prepare forecasts and revenue projections, and use market and consumer insights to guide decisions.
• Collaborate with Finance, Legal, Marketing, Events, Basketball Operations, Digital, team brand leads, retail leads, and external partners.
• Lead merchandising and retail initiatives around All-Star, Draft, Finals, and other major league events.
• Oversee game-worn product acquisition, partner delivery, category analytics, direct-to-consumer initiatives, and cross-category growth projects.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required; an MBA or other advanced degree is preferred.
• 8–12+ years of progressive experience in licensing, consumer products, merchandising, partnerships, or a related field.
• Demonstrated success managing and growing complex licensing and merchandising partnerships, including revenue generation, contract negotiations, and strategic business planning.
• Strong financial, analytical, communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship management skills.
• Ability to lead multiple complex initiatives, influence senior stakeholders, and collaborate across functional and external partner organizations.
• Passion for sports, apparel, trading cards, and collectibles, with an understanding of women’s sports and fan marketplaces.

Nice to have

• Experience managing, mentoring, and developing high-performing teams.
• Experience in sports, entertainment, media, retail, or consumer products.

Culture & Benefits

• Hybrid work arrangement with remote work available one day per week for eligible employees.
• Medical, dental, vision, life, disability, fertility, family-forming, wellbeing, and mental health benefits.
• Educational assistance, HSA and healthcare/dependent care FSAs, and a 401(k) retirement plan.
• Vacation, sick time, and personal days are provided.
• Onsite work in New York and New Jersey offices requires full COVID-19 vaccination, subject to accommodation review.