George Papadopoulos

·Strategic Planning and Execution: Lead the development and implementation of store-specific strategies aligned with the company's overall goals, ensuring the store's performance contributes significantly to the company's success.
·Cross-Functional Collaboration: Actively participate in cross-departmental meetings and projects, providing valuable insights and feedback from the store level to influence company-wide initiatives and decisions.
·Data-Driven Decision Making: Utilize advanced data analysis to identify trends, forecast sales, and develop action plans that drive store performance, sharing these insights with senior management to inform broader company strategies.
·Leadership Development: Mentor and develop future leaders within the store, implementing succession planning to ensure a pipeline of qualified candidates ready to take on more significant roles within the company.
·Customer Experience Innovation: Implement innovative approaches to enhance the customer experience, such as personalized shopping experiences, loyalty programs, and community engagement events, setting a standard for other stores to follow
·Operational Excellence: Drive continuous improvement in store operations by implementing best practices, optimizing processes, and ensuring compliance with company policies and procedures. contributing to overall operational efficiency.
·Crisis Management and Problem Solving: Lead the store's response to challenges and crises with a calm, strategic approach, providing solutions that minimize impact and ensure business continuity.

Strategically expanded market share and propelled revenue growth increasing sales by 50% and a total revenue of $1.2M, through client acquisition and relationship management. Capitalized on business and strengthened market position as a new brand infiltrating the US market through sales strategies and identification of target key accounts and distributors.

· Opened national accounts including Publix Supermarkets, United Airlines, Delta Airlines

· Organized Trade Shows and led wholesale strategy

· Implemented effective sales team development training and coaching

· Conducted market research to identify customer needs and competitive opportunities

· Collaborated cross-functionally with marketing and product development

· Utilized CRM systems to track activities and manage pipelines and leads

· Generated accurate sales forecasts, facilitating informed decision-making and effective resource allocation

· Liaison between HQ for Marketing, Social Media strategy, package refresh and Kosher and Non-GMO certifications

Global apparel brand with over 40 monobrand locations worldwide and 2K points of sales founded in California in 1958 with HQ in Florence, Italy since 1978.

Championed the launch of two flagship stores, driving and managing a total revenue of $2.1M and delivering a 30% sales increase through strategic store product allocation and replenishment between stores. Demonstrated exceptional leadership acumen by building a strong clientele list and database, implementing comprehensive employee training programs, cultivating invaluable wholesale relationships with prestigious department stores, and orchestrating impactful trade show setups across international locations. Leveraged astute market insights to expand the brand's reach into 3 untapped markets, resulting in a remarkable revenue surge of $1M in less than two years.

· Recruited, hired, trained and led a team of 11 including a sales agent in NYC (M5 Showroom)

· Implemented compelling visual merchandising strategies and guidelines across 6 retail locations

· Exceeded sales goals in 4 consecutive years by 30% in retail stores and 90% in wholesale

· Forged profitable partnerships and expanded the brand's reach within prestigious retail channels including Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue andNeiman Marcus

· Seasonal collaboration with style office and head designers

· Organized trade show setups in key locations such as Miami, Los Angeles, Paris, Italy and New York

· Successfully oversaw and completed the openings of international markets including Paraguay, Mexico and Brazil

· Brand Development: Recognized by global outlets magazines. GQ Magazines, Fashion Network, Harpers Bazaar for the expansion of the brand.

· Generated weekly-monthly sell through reports

· Analyzed sales data, identified trends, and provided actionable recommendations. Tracked metrics, evaluated team performance, and delivered accurate reports to drive revenue growth

· Mentored and trained a team of high performing individuals by providing sales techniques, product and visual merchandising training for all retail locations

· Presented and introduced sustainable plan of products to HQ directors in efforts for brand's inclusion to the global market movement

Successfully oversaw renowned fashion collections, achieving exceptional sales growth of over 100% to $10M across multiple territories. Meticulous buying expertise and market data analysis and reporting. Captivating brands essence and visual merchandising for all showrooms and retail partners. Effectively provided product training for retail partners and enhanced, profitability and brand recognition. Provided valuable insights and direct reporting to chairman, through market research analysis. Infiltrated and expanded within existing and new channels reaching and exceeding all season's buying goals set by 10% for 8 consecutively years.

· Showroom Manager and Senior Account Sales Executive overseeing Ready to Wear, Activewear, and Leather Goods collections, including Armani Jeans, Emporio Armani, EA7, Armani Exchange, EA Underwear and Swimwear and Armani Junior

· Held responsibility for sales and distribution in Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Bulgaria and Iran for monobrand and mutlibrand stores

· Dynamically expanded businesses through additional penetration within existing channels

· Attended runways, brand presentations and workshops with directors and head of style office in HQ Milan, accomplishing the delivery of each market's needs

· Ensured timely and accurate communication with headquarters of all purchase order information and seamless supply chain management

· Managed line sheets, monitored retail sell-throughs, processed orders, and facilitated return authorizations

· Responsible for the Armani Monobrand stores buying as well for our clients/Department Stores-network

·Frequent presence across all retail locations for a successful brand representation, positioning and execution of the brand's overall presence while collecting each market' data

· Partnered Finance and Accounts Receivable teams, collaborating closely to project each season's sales plan and ensure alignment with financial objectives

· Responsible for implementing captivating visual displays across showrooms, multi-brand outlets and prestigious department stores, exceeding guideline standards and embodying the brand's essence

· Crafted meticulous visual experiences, captivating customers and driving brand recognition and sales

· Led engaging training sessions to empower the sales team with comprehensive product knowledge and confident communication of the brand's value proposition

Led strategic business development efforts in the Retail and Wholesale Sectors, achieving a remarkable 10% sales increasing in a downturn economy. Leveraged market analysis, proactive sales initiatives and comprehensive sales reporting to optimize growth and promote brand products.

· Oversaw men's, women's and kids categories. Ready-to-Wear (RTW) & Beachwear collections

· Proficiently managed buying activities for stores and wholesale clients

· Developed comprehensive sales reporting systems

· Accomplished presence in high end department stores by creating shop-in-shop and corners. (Attica Department Stores, Fokas, Intervista)

· Proactively identified and addressed sales performance gaps, implementing targeted initiatives and adjustments to drive sales revenue and meet or exceed targets

· Responsible for visual merchandising guidelines and standards for showroom and retail partners/locations

• Strategically developed and executed business plans to achieve sales targets and drive revenue growth.
• Implemented effective visual merchandising strategies to enhance the boutique's presentation and elevate the overall shopping experience.
• Leveraged market knowledge and customer insights to identify opportunities for expanding the clientele base and cultivating lasting relationships with high-profile clients.
• Fostered a high-performance team by providing mentorship, training, and ongoing coaching, resulting in an empowered staff dedicated to delivering exceptional customer service.
• Maintained a strong leadership presence on the sales floor, setting the standard for exceptional customer engagement and sales techniques.
• Monitored and analyzed sales performance data, translating insights into actionable strategies to maximize profitability and optimize product assortment.
• Collaborated with regional and global teams to ensure seamless execution of brand initiatives and adherence to Emporio Armani's standards of excellence.
• Successfully managed inventory levels, minimizing stock discrepancies, and optimizing stock turnover through effective inventory management techniques.