JANE ESTERHUIZEN

34 Longchamps Drive, Kyalami Estate, Midrand, 1684, South Africa

Mobile: +27 (0) 79 983 5518 Email: janeb4g@gmail.com

Profile

Over 32 years retail experience, 28 of which in Senior Management, within key areas namely Procurement, Marketing &

Operations. Repeatedly demonstrated a unique combination of expertise that has maximized organizational

effectiveness, ensured efficiencies & yielded productivity. Effectively shown the ability to build & lead successful, goal-

orientated teams of professional staff while overseeing budgets & resources for bottom-line results.

Company – JD Group, Braamfontein, South Africa May 2013 – March 31st 2015

MERCHANDISE & MARKETING EXECUTIVE

Headed up the Merchandise & Marketing for Bradlows & Morkels with 7 direct reports. 205 stores with an annual turnover

of over R 1.2 Billion per annum.

• Consolidated two differing product ranges across furniture & electrical into one concise model range to cater for the combined Bradlows/Morkels customer. Effectively rationalized supplier base & negotiated improved supplier pricing & rebates across the board to realize our gross margin target of just under 40%.

• In a 6-month period successfully executed aggressive exit strategy to turn more than R 109 million worth of excess stock into OTB. • Devised & directed a marketing strategy that resulted in the 2 Chains launching ‘The Best of Both’ combined catalogue. Print &

marketing costs reduced in excess of 30% whilst the Bradlows/Morkels Cluster achieved almost 110% of sales budget. • Worked closely with the Operations Executive Team & put a renewed focus on product & marketing within stores. Workshops, staff

education, merchandise manuals, to name a few, all assisted in improved service levels in-store & resulted in the business exceeding its sales budget every month without fail.

• New Point of Sale marketing was introduced to drive the ‘lay by’ business, which contributed to the Cluster achieving the highest

sales figures in ‘lay by’. The Clusters top line sales contributed approximately 24% to the Group but the Clusters ‘lay by’ business contributed more than 35% to the Group´s ‘lay by’ business.

• Restructured marketing portfolio´s & moved 12% of overall marketing budget into digital. Appointed EOH as digital agency for the

Cluster & oversaw the development of the digital strategy with the team. First phase was creation of the website, development of social media through Facebook & SEO.

Company – J.Marlow Consulting, Cascais, Portugal Aug 2010 – Oct 2012

RETAIL CONSULTANT (OWN COMPANY)

Worked in a consultant capacity on two specific projects whilst also conducting due diligence on a number of other

business opportunities. Spent time in these businesses to evaluate operational practices & determine investment risk.

• Worked on an initial European expansion plan with a Danish designer of luxury women’s clothing. This plan included many aspects for example attention to the product via labeling & presentation, attendance at shows & launch to potential customers, logistics & stock controls to name but a few.

• Consulted to a retail outlet that specialized in Arts, Crafts & Homewares. After assessment of the business & its competitors

presented a short-term corrective plan which saw the store achieve more that a 10% growth YOY.

Company- Rushdale Wines, Cork, Republic of Ireland Oct 2005 – July 2010

Joined the family fine wines wholesale & retail business. Wine portfolio included over 700 wines sourced globally ranging

from entry-level wines into retailers to highly accoladed wines into 5 Star Hotels and Michelin Star restaurants.

• Handled all marketing functions, launched two own label wines and the first “Fair Trade” South African wine into Ireland. Managed all retail elements e.g. POS, visual displays, assortments etc. Achieved Best Wines of Ireland status with 90% of wines entered over a 3-year period. Introduced wine tasting clubs & participated in various international food & wine events.

• In conjunction with web designer successfully launched Rushdale Wines website. Set up an in-house studio and photographed and

presented all gifting elements for the website for individual and corporate clients.

Company- “4Home Superstores”, Mallow, Republic of Ireland Apr 2004 – Sept 2005

TRADING DIRECTOR

Appointed by the new CEO for the retail division of the Dairygold Group (€750 million turnover) to head up the

purchasing department.

• Initial turnover of €100 million, grew the business to €120 million with a 54% margin across 44 stores including “4Home Superstores”, Co-Op Superstores & Co-Op Stores. Restructured existing purchasing department & recruited 5 new purchasing managers.

• Introduced a new purchasing strategy, improved LTA’s with a number of key suppliers, rationalized IRL/UK supplier base, developed

new product ranges and introduced sourcing from the Far East impacting positively on cost of purchases. Drew up marketing plans & pricing policies & implemented IT & stock management systems etc.

• Reviewed & redefined assortment plans within existing stores based on location, customer profile, competitor analysis etc. Successfully opened a number of “4Home Superstores” included in the new store roll out plan, which exceeded initial monthly sales budgets by more than 10% on average.

Company- Kay-El Ireland, Cork, Republic of Ireland May 2001 – Apr 2003

DIRECTOR/GENERAL MANAGER RETAIL

Headhunted by the Kay-El Group, an international procurement company based in the UK and the Far East, to start up

the Retail & Manufacturing Divisions Head Office in Cork, Ireland. Worked directly with the largest retailer in Ireland

namely the Musgrave Group, which consists of over 2800 Stores located across Ireland, UK & Spain with an annual

turnover in excess of €6.9 Billion.

• Director Role - Developed an entire concept for the first furniture lifestyle retail store for the Kay – El Group. This covered strategic aspects such as marketing, product, manufacturing, supply chain, store design, location, personnel etc.

• General Manager Role – Increased the sales turnover significantly across all non-food products pa. from €3.5 million to €18 million in first year and €24 million in year two.

• Managed the supply chain of all non-food products from start to finish i.e. identification of product globally, market research, supplier sourcing, manufacture, logistics, marketing, and administration. This move greatly assisted in growing the margin by more than 33% to 40% GM in the non-food category.

• Successfully negotiated a 3 year exclusivity agreement for the supply of promotional products to the Musgrave Group for its

national consumer promotions business worth €25 million per annum. Company- J. Marlow Consulting, Johannesburg, South Africa Aug 1998 – Mar 2001

RETAIL CONSULTANT (OWN COMPANY)

Consulted to two JSE listed companies namely Edgars and House of Busby working directly with the respective

companies Executive Directors.

• Edgars - Researched and analyzed speciality store operations within the Edgars chain. Submitted written recommendations based on findings & facilitated the successful implementation of same that contributed to sales growths in excess of 20%.

• House of Busby - Set up the House of Busby’s marketing and advertising department, defined the mission statement and core values. Successfully developed concepts, set objectives and marketing budgets for each of the companies’ brands. Compiled and effectively implemented a 12-month marketing plan for each brand in conjunction with the respective brand managers.

• Liaised with international brands namely Fendi, Nine West, Calvin Klein, Guess, Kipling & Cosmopolitan and ensured compliance to

licensing agreements throughout the respective retail stores in SA. • Negotiated & implemented the first ever retail loyalty scheme with South African Airways into 40 retail stores. Furthermore,

negotiated and effectively implemented the in-store foreign exchange service called Master Currency.

Company- Edgars, Johannesburg, South Africa Aug 1987 – Mar 1998 Edgars is Southern Africa’s largest retailer in the CFTA and cosmetic market serving middle/upper income families. The

companies’ annual turnover was £560 million with 151 stores and over 5000 employees.

DIVISIONAL BUYING MANAGER - ACCESSORIES DIVISION Apr 1996 – Mar 1998

Reported to the Chief Merchandise Executive and had an overall responsibility for the turnaround of a division with an

annual turnover of £28 million. The division had strong growth potential but an underperforming, demotivated team.

• Successfully introduced a number of international brands into the various accessory groups e.g. Calvin Klein, Guess, Jurassic Park etc. adding a new dimension to the division and realizing growths in excess of 20%. Developed & successfully launched the ‘Kelso’ house brand hosiery range into more than 120 stores, growing the hosiery business by over 50%.

• Presented bi-annual strategic direction and led range reviews to an audience of over 100 people made up of CEO, Board of

Directors, Store Management and Senior Operations Personnel. • Significantly improved employee morale by introducing measurable goals, weekly feedback & recognition, team building activities

etc. As a result of the various changes made in this division the team managed a growth of 12% increase on budget. STORE MANAGER - GRP ‘A’ STORE Apr 1995 – Mar 1996

Reported into the Operations Executive with responsibility for the management and overall profitability of the store with

a turnover budget of £15 million and a staff complement of 120. • Achievements included the restructuring of the management team, developing a mission statement, achieving affirmative action

goals whilst working closely with the unions.

• Redefined the merchandise assortment to reflect the customer profile, improving merchandise presentation and stock turn from 3 to 4.

DIVISIONAL SALES MANAGER – EAST DIVISION Mar 1994 – Mar 1995 As DSM of the largest division in the chain consisting of 46 stores and accounting for 36% of the total business, reported to

the Operations Executive and played a pivotal role in achieving 104% of the profit budget.

• Successfully opened numerous new and revamped stores within the division. Areas of responsibility included negotiating assortments, architectural designs/layouts, store planning & human resources.

• Devised and implemented a ‘Vendor Intensification Programme’ for the fine jewellery department across the division, which saw a

year on year growth in sales in excess of 35%. SALES SPECIALIST LADIES LINGERIE in Aug 1987 joined Edgars and after 5 promotions in fewer than 6 years went on to be STORE

MANAGER GRP ‘B’ STORE in Jun 1993 – Feb 1994.

Company - Marks and Spencer, Morecambe, United Kingdom Apr 1982 – July 1987

Selected to join the Youth Opportunity Programme for 6 months. On completion of the training was employed full time

and gained valuable experience in a number of departments in various roles ranging from sales to supervisor levels.

Interests – Squash, gym, running, cycling, scuba diving, reading & art

Nationality & DOB – British, born 18th August 1965