Job Description
The Marketing Manager is responsible for leading all marketing activity for the Exact brand, from strategy to execution. The role drives brand awareness, customer acquisition & loyalty across all channels, while leading a diverse team of 9 marketing professionals spanning brand, design, visual merchandising & digital. The successful candidate will serve as both strategic leader & hands-on executer, working cross-functionally with buying, merchandise, store ops & e-commerce, & managing a portfolio of external agencies & contractors.
Responsibilities
Team Leadership & People Management
Lead, inspire & develop a diverse internal marketing team of 8 people across brand, design, visual merchandising & digital disciplines
Foster an inclusive, high-performance team culture that reflects Exact's family values & celebrates diversity
Set clear individual & team objectives, conduct regular performance reviews & support career development
Manage workload allocation, priorities & deadlines across disciplines for seamless campaign delivery
Identify skills gaps & champion learning opportunities, including AI tool adoption & upskilling across team
Manage relationships with external creative, media, PR and production agencies and freelance contractors — ensuring briefs are sharp, output is on-brand and value for money is maintained
Brand & Campaign Management
Develop and execute seasonal marketing campaigns aligned to Exact's value-fashion positioning across ATL, BTL and digital channels
Manage the brand calendar in sync with buying & merchandise cycles
Oversee catalogue and lookbook production and in-store visual merchandising alignment
Serve as ultimate brand guardian, ensuring consistency of tone, look and feel across all touchpoints — internal team and external partners alike
Digital & E-commerce Marketing
Drive online traffic and conversion for exact.co.za and the Bash platform presence
Manage paid media, SEO/SEM, email marketing and social media strategy
Leverage customer data and CRM for personalised, targeted campaigns
Work closely with the digital sub-team to test, learn and optimise performance continuously
Visual Merchandising & Design
Oversee design & VM teams to ensure execution is aligned to campaign strategy & brand standards
Brief and sign off all creative output — from digital assets to store graphics and window displays
Balance creative ambition with production budgets and delivery timelines
Retail & Trade Marketing
Partner with store operations on in-store activations, window campaigns and promotional material
Support new store openings & mall-level marketing requirements nationally
Insights & Reporting
Track campaign performance, ROI and brand health metrics
Conduct ongoing consumer and competitor analysis within the value-fashion segment
Translate customer insights into actionable marketing initiatives
Report regularly to senior leadership on team output, marketing performance and budget utilisation
Agency & Budget Management
Own and control the full marketing budget, including internal team costs and external spend
Negotiate contracts & retainers with agencies & contractors, driving efficiency without compromising quality
Ensure all suppliers and partners deliver on time, on brief and on budget
Qualifications
Qualifications and Experience
Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business or related field
5 - 8 yrs marketing, at least 2 - 3 years managing a multi-disciplinary team
Retail or fashion environment strongly preferred
Skills:
Link marketing activity to sales performance, footfall, online conversion
Hands-on experience with paid social, Google Ads, email platforms & analytics tools
Ability to manage multiple campaigns and workstreams simultaneously across a team in a fast-paced retail environment
Comfortable with campaign analytics, customer segmentation, performance reporting and translating data & insights into decisions
Behaviours
Consumer-obsessed — deeply understands the aspirational yet budget-conscious SA family shopper
Energetic and fast-moving — thrives in the pace of retail, where seasons and promotions don't wait
People-first leader — invests in their team, leads with empathy and brings out the best in individuals
Collaborative — works cross-functionally with buying, merchandise, e-commerce and store operations
Creative with commercial discipline — brings fresh ideas anchored in sales and brand outcomes
Inclusive mindset — appreciates the diversity of Exact's customer base & team across income levels, cultures and geographies
Resilient and solution-oriented — adapts quickly and steadies the team under pressure