Director, Brand Partnerships, Collaborations & Licensing

Vera Bradley is an iconic American lifestyle brand built on color, pattern, creativity, and self-expression. Entering a new chapter of transformation, we are building on our rich heritage through product innovation, cultural relevance, and meaningful partnerships to attract new generations of customers and expand across categories and channels.
The Director of Brand Partnerships, Collaborations & Licensing is a newly created, entrepreneurial role responsible for originating, negotiating, and securing partnerships, collaborations, and licensing agreements that drive revenue and cultural relevance.
You will own three core pillars:
Strategic Partnerships & Business Development: Build a framework to originate and secure deals with complementary brands, businesses, IP owners, and cultural partners.
Licensing Growth & Transformation: Scale our existing licensing business in partnership with IMG while building the internal capabilities to evaluate bringing licensing in-house within three years.
Commercial Execution: Partner cross-functionally with Design, Merchandising, and Marketing to translate agreements into compelling, profitable product drops and brand activations.
Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic Partnerships & Deal Origination
Develop and execute a multi-year partnerships strategy aligned with brand positioning and revenue goals.
Proactively prospect, cultivate, and close agreements with consumer brands, designers, lifestyle businesses, and entertainment properties.
Leverage an established network of senior-level industry relationships to convert prospective leads into signed contracts.
Build a disciplined framework to evaluate partners based on brand fit, cultural relevance, audience reach, and financial returns.
Identify emerging trends, white spaces, and new categories for collaboration.
Lead deal structuring and negotiations—covering financial terms, revenue sharing, royalties, minimum guarantees, exclusivity, distribution rights, and IP usage—in partnership with Legal.
Maintain a robust pipeline, balancing high-profile brand builders with scalable commercial partnerships.
2. Licensing Strategy & Transformation
Drive a 3-year licensing growth strategy to expand into complementary categories, channels, and customer segments.
Manage the primary relationship with IMG, setting strategic targets, performance expectations, and scorecards (royalty revenue, guarantees, profitability).
Partner with Design to ensure licensed products align with quality standards and brand identity.
Build a 3-year transformation roadmap developing internal capabilities, financial visibility, and processes to assess an in-house or hybrid licensing model.
3. Commercial Execution & Business Accountability
Own partnerships from initial opportunity through launch and post-review, establishing clear success metrics.
Partner with Design and Marketing to translate agreements into product concepts, storytelling, and integrated customer experiences.
Work with Merchandising on product opportunities, pricing, distribution, and launch timing.
Track financial performance, pipeline conversion, and ROI, providing regular updates to senior leadership.
Qualifications & Experience
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
8–12+ years of progressive experience in strategic partnerships, business development, licensing, or commercial brand management (fashion, accessories, beauty, lifestyle, or consumer products).
Proven track record of personally originating, negotiating, and closing high-value commercial agreements with measurable results.
Deep fluency in licensing and collaboration economics (royalties, minimum guarantees, advances, exclusivity, and IP rights).
Established network of senior-level relationships across consumer brands, agencies, and entertainment properties.
Strong financial acumen: experience modeling deal profitability, forecasting revenue, and assessing ROI.
Exceptional communication, presentation, and executive-level negotiation skills.
Entrepreneurial, proactive, and highly accountable mindset.
Leadership Attributes
Deal Maker & Business Builder: Possesses the commercial instincts and persistence to open doors and close valuable agreements.
Entrepreneurial & Proactive: Actively builds business rather than waiting for assignments.
Brand-Savvy & Culturally Curious: Identifies partnerships that drive cultural relevance and new audiences.
Creative & Commercial: Balances compelling creative concepts with strong financial returns.
Influential Relationship Builder: Earns trust quickly with external partners and internal cross-functional teams.
We are proud of the competitive and comprehensive compensation and benefit package provided to our associates and their families. Our compensation package is designed to meet our associates today and help them plan for the future.
Health Benefits
Vera Bradley offers a variety of medical, dental and vision programs to meet your family’s health care needs.
Medical plan options including both a HDHP/HSA plan and a PPO plan
Dental
Vision
Flexible spending accounts
Survivor Benefits
Life insurance provides peace of mind for your family should the unexpected happen.
Employer provided 2X your salary in life insurance
Accidental Death and Disability insurance
Voluntary life insurance for you, your spouse and your children
Income Protection
If you are unable to work due to illness or injury Vera Bradley provides several programs to protect your income at no cost to you.
Short-term disability
Long-term disability
Retirement Plan
The Vera Bradley 401k plan helps you accumulate savings for retirement
401k with generous company match, immediate vesting (age and service requirement)
Strong line up of professionally managed funds
Safe-harbor plan design
Paid Time Off
Enjoy generous time off programs.
Earn up to 3 weeks of paid time off in your first year of employment with opportunity to earn more
9 paid holidays a year
Paid bereavement leave
Give Back Opportunities
Vera Bradley offers the opportunity to serve your community.
Voluntary Time Off
Holistic Wellness
Access to a variety of financial, physical, and mental wellness experts
Employee Assistance Program with access to work/life wellness support including no cost unlimited telephonic counseling services
Opportunities for leadership development, skill development and career advancement
Product Discount
Generous employee discount on Vera Bradley products
Ancillary Benefits and Programs
Bonus opportunity, identity protection, legal services, pet insurance, cell phone discount, employee referral bonus, annual birthday gift, DailyPay, corporate fitness facility and individual policies through Aflac
Equal Opportunity Employer/Vets/Disabled
Vera Bradley is an Equal Opportunity Employer and Affirmative Action Employer.
Vera Bradley provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other ch