Head of Retail, dnata Catering Ireland

Job Purpose

dnata is more than a global air and travel services provider. We connect people with possibilities and opportunities across 130+ airports in 34 countries through ground handling, cargo, travel, and catering & retail services. Our purpose is clear: to deliver on the promises our customers make. We are powered by a bold vision to be the world’s most admired air and travel services provider, which guides our strategy, culture, and every role across our teams. Our core values fuel everything we do: we are safe, we play to win, we respect everyone and work together as a team, and we are future thinking. At dnata, we foster diversity, nurture ambition, and celebrate achievement. If you're inspired by purpose and motivated to be part of a global team shaping the future of aviation and travel, we’d love to have you onboard.

Based in Dublin Airport Logistics Park, dnata Catering & Retail Ireland provides catering and inflight services to several international airlines operating from Dublin, Cork & Shannon Airport. We deliver high quality inflight catering and innovative onboard retail programmes to airline partners across Ireland, with a culture anchored in dnata’s values. In September 2020, we expanded operations with a state-of-the art facility that quadrupled our catering capacity to enable the delivery of 40,000 quality inflight meals a day. Covering an area of 6,300m², our new facility is equipped with the latest technologies.

As a Head of Retail, you will lead a sustainable and profitable Retail function, strengthening dnata’s partnership with Aer Lingus and driving EBITDA growth, service excellence and reputational value. You will inspire the Retail team to deliver commercial goals and KPIs while ensuring the performance and effectiveness of retail technology platforms that support the overall proposition.

In this role, you will

• Lead the Buying, Category Management, Marketing, Merchandising and Sales Engagement teams across the dnata Ireland network, creating a high-performance, commercially focused culture.
• Own the EI retail contract and strategic customer relationship end to end, acting as the senior customer owner and primary escalation point.
• Hold full P&L accountability, driving revenue growth, margin optimisation, cost control and delivery of agreed financial targets.
• Lead contract governance, compliance, risk management and SLA/KPI performance, ensuring contractual commitments and customer expectations are consistently achieved.
• Own annual budgets, forecasts and business plans, monitoring commercial, operational and financial performance and implementing corrective actions where required.
• Drive retail, buying, category, merchandising, marketing and sales strategies to maximise revenue, profitability and customer value.
• Identify and deliver commercial growth opportunities, leveraging market intelligence, customer insights and internal data to strengthen the retail proposition.
• Build strong relationships with customers, internal stakeholders, SMEs and operational leaders, aligning commercial objectives with operational delivery.
• Lead talent management and team development, ensuring clear accountability, engagement, operational excellence and high-quality customer delivery.
• Ensure compliance with Retail standards across marketing, onboard merchandising, crew engagement and training, profit protection, Health & Safety and HR practices.
• Hold strategic and commercial accountability for the retail technology platform and major developments, ensuring systems and integrations support business objectives and customer commitments.
• Oversee technology and vendor performance, setting commercial priorities and escalating issues impacting customers, contractual commitments or business performance.
• Stay abreast of market and industry trends, translating emerging opportunities into commercially viable retail initiatives.

Qualification

To be considered for the role, you must meet the below requirements

• Bachelor's degree and 8+ years’ experience in retail, commercial management, strategic account management or a related field, including responsibility for P&L performance and customer relationships.
• Proven experience in key account management, ideally within the airline or aviation industry.
• Exceptional stakeholder management and customer focus, with strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills.
• Strong commercial acumen, with experience in business development, pricing, tendering and contract negotiation.
• Good understanding of Service Level Agreements (SLAs), contractual obligations and commercial commitments.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with meticulous attention to detail.
• Strong problem-solving and continuous improvement capability, with the ability to identify opportunities and drive positive change.
• Ability to direct, challenge and hold technical delivery teams accountable for business outcomes without requiring deep technical expertise.
• A proactive, solutions-focused approach with a strong can-do attitude.

At Emirates Group, we’re committed to providing our employees with opportunities to grow and develop in their careers. So if you’re looking for a challenging and rewarding opportunity, apply today and join our team!

Salary & benefits

Join our growing team and enjoy a competitive remuneration package.