ECI Area Specialist

General Position Summary:

The ECI Area Specialist responsible for overseeing performance, execution, and brand standards across assigned ECI exhibition spaces.

This role focuses on in-store excellence without direct team management, acting as a key liaison between the brand and ECI store teams. The Area Specialist ensures that product presentation, availability, and staff engagement meet company standards to drive sell-out performance.

The position requires regular field presence, building strong relationships with ECI sales associates and managers, providing training, ensuring visual merchandising compliance, and identifying opportunities to improve performance. The Area Specialist also supports new exhibition openings, monitors KPIs, and collaborates cross-functionally with Coordinators, VM Coordinator, and reports directly to ECI Operations Manager.

Essential Functions/Responsibilities:

Store Visits & Operational Excellence

• Visit assigned ECI locations on a regular basis (majority of time in the field) following an agreed route plan
• Ensure product is correctly displayed according to company Visual Merchandising (VM) guidelines
• Verify that product placement is optimized for visibility, accessibility, and conversion
• Review stock levels, replenishment needs, and storage room organization to ensure product availability
• Identify gaps in assortment, stock or execution and coordinate solutions with relevant teams

Relationship Management & Influence

• Build strong, collaborative relationships with ECI sales staff, acting as the main brand ambassador in store
• Establish regular contact with ECI floor managers and ECI sales associates to ensure alignment and visibility
• Influence ECI store teams to prioritize the brand without direct reporting lines
• Act as the key point of contact for brand-related topics within assigned stores

Training & Brand Advocacy

• Train ECI staff on:
  • New collections and seasonal launches
  • Product features, technologies, and benefits
  • Selling techniques to improve conversion
  • VM guidelines and product placement standards
• Ensure staff feel confident selling the brand and understand key differentiators vs competitors

Performance Monitoring & Insights

• Monitor sales performance and KPIs at store level
• Analyze performance vs targets and competitors
• Identify growth opportunities, risks, and areas for improvement
• Provide qualitative and quantitative feedback to the ECI Operations Manager
• Support action plans to improve store-level performance

Openings & Projects

• Lead and support new exhibition openings, ensuring strong execution from day one
• Coordinate with internal teams for setup, VM, product allocation, and training
• Ensure consistency in execution across all locations

Specific Job Skills:

• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills 
• Ability to build relationships across different stakeholders
• Excellent observation and analytical skills
• Prompt response/return of phone calls, emails and requests for information or assistance
• Proactivity, flexibility and positivity when dealing with challenges
• Strong understanding of retail KPIs and performance drivers
• Ability to identify opportunities and proactively implement improvements
• Strong communication and training skills
• High level of organization and time management
• Skills in operating personal computers, POS systems and various software packages including Microsoft Word and Excel are needed
• Strong written and oral communication skills required
• Able to communicate in English (oral and written)
• Driving license and car required

Education and/or Experience:

• Minimum 3–5 years retail experience, preferably in a multi-store or field role
• Experience working with El Corte Inglés (ECI) is a strong plus
• Experience in VM, training, or retail operations highly valued
• Proven ability to influence store teams and drive performance
• Strong customer and commercial focus

Job Conditions:

• Based in Barcelona
• 40 weekly hours, flexibility is required
• Job pressure (manage pressure in peak season and sales periods) of developing new creative ideas and dealing with multiple locations exists. 
• Ability to work a full time schedule including nights, weekends and holidays exists in the frame of the applicable Spanish legal context.
• Travel by airline, train and car domestically, 90% of time. Overnight travel may be required; including occasional weekend travel.
• Physical requirements include the ability to use telephone, computerized systems; perform repetitive movements of the arms and shoulders, stand for extended periods of time up to 8 hours per day, move freely around store, bend, twist, reach, squat, climb a ladder and regularly lift/carry up to 40 pounds.

This job description is not meant to be an all-inclusive list of duties and responsibilities, but constitutes a general definition of the position's scope and function in the company. 

At Columbia Sportswear Company (CSC), we’re committed to creating an inclusive and respectful workplace where everyone has the same opportunity to thrive. We welcome talent from all backgrounds and do not discriminate based on age, gender, nationality, race, religion or any other characteristics protected by applicable law.​

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the heart of our success as a global brand. We aim to recruit, develop, and retain exceptional people,ensuring fair practices and transparency in line with evolving standards. We are committed to equal pay for equal work and make employment decisions based on qualifications, merit, and business needs.

Expected Pay/Compensación prevista: €24,220 - €33,180 *Pay decisions are determined by multiple factors, including job competitiveness within the market, a candidate’s capabilities and skills, years of experience, and internal equity. *Las decisiones sobre la compensación se determinan por varios factores, entre ellos la competitividad del puesto en el mercado laboral, las capacidades y habilidades del candidato, los años de experiencia y la equidad interna.

The expected pay listed on this job posting reflects the gross expected pay for Full Time positions.
This pay disclosure will not apply to roles subject to different pay structures due to age or employment category (such as minors, apprentices, or interns) permitted under applicable law/CBA