Licensing Manager, Apparel & Lifestyle Products at General Motors Springfield, IL

Licensing Manager, Apparel & Lifestyle Products

Licensing Manager, Apparel & Lifestyle Products, is responsible for growing and managing GM's apparel and lifestyle licensing portfolio across brands (e.g., Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, Corvette, GM). This role owns GM's licensed portfolio in soft goods categories—soft goods including apparel, headwear, bags, and lifestyle accessories—and ensures that all licensed products drive both revenue and brand love.

They will grow external licensee partners, their collections, and distribution to deliver culturally relevant, fashion-forward assortments. This role reports to the Director, Global Merchandising and Licensing.

• Own the apparel and lifestyle soft goods categories (e.g., clothing, headwear, outerwear, bags, small accessories, home & lifestyle) across brands.
• Translate brand strategies into licensing briefs to inform licensing partner direction, portfolios and collaboration opportunities.
• Use consumer insights, cultural trends, and competitive scans to inform silhouettes, graphics, color stories, distribution partners and price architecture, ensuring GM plays as a lifestyle brand versus purely logo merchandise.
• Synergize with Merchandising Manager who leads owned-channel strategy while Licensing Manager leads external licensing partner strategy and licensed category growth.

• Grow and manage a portfolio of apparel and lifestyle licensees (e.g., fashion, streetwear, fanwear, accessories), from onboarding through ongoing business management ensuring GM has the best licensee partners in the top categories.
• Lead regular business and portfolio reviews with partners to assess performance, refresh assortments, identify white‑space opportunities, implement growth plans and recommend expansion into new programs, channels, or audiences.
• Partner with legal and finance to support contract renewals, amendments, and new partner evaluations, ensuring structures (royalty rates, guarantees, territories, channels) align with category strategy.
• Hold licensees accountable for brand visual identity alignment, commercial plans, marketing activation, and on‑time execution across key moments (launches, campaigns, events calendar, collaborations).

• Drive seasonal product development with licensees, from concept to final production, ensuring apparel and lifestyle products reflect brand guidelines and vehicle storytelling (e.g., nameplates, heritage marks, motorsports liveries).
• Partner with design and brand teams to create briefs, graphics, trims and labels that feel premium and on‑brand for each collection and collaboration.
• Review and approve product concepts, samples, and marketing assets via established approval tools and workflows; ensure compliance with brand, legal, and quality standards.
• Continuously monitor retail feedback to identify opportunities to refresh fits, fabrics, and collections, and to retire underperforming SKUs, platforms or partners.

• Develop and manage annual and seasonal financial plans (royalty revenue, unit volume, margin) for apparel & lifestyle categories across assigned licensees and channels.
• Analyze royalty data to identify trends, risks, and opportunities; recommend adjustments to assortments, pricing, and distribution to achieve targets.
• Ensure on‑time and accurate submission of royalty reports, product submissions, and marketing plans from apparel & lifestyle licensees.
• Maintain accurate records of contracts, approvals, and assortment details in shared systems; support governance routines for partner performance and portfolio optimization.

• Bachelor's degree required; in business, marketing, merchandising, fashion, or related field preferred.
• 7+ years in apparel, fashion, or lifestyle merchandising, licensing, or brand management, with direct responsibility for soft goods categories and/or licensed product lines.
• Strong product "eye" and understanding of apparel construction, fits, and materials.
• Demonstrated success developing and managing apparel and lifestyle assortments from…