Senior Licensing Lead
SKILLS
FULL DESCRIPTION
Senior Licensing Lead
As Senior Licensing Lead, you will own and grow the [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] licensing program, turning our brand equity into a world-class portfolio of partnerships and consumer products. You'll sit at the intersection of commercial strategy, brand management, and branded partner relationships ensuring every licensed product reflects the quality, heritage, and ambition of [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal].
This is a senior management role reporting directly to the Director of Merchandising & Licensing. You will lead the licensing vertical end-to-end, managing a team of two direct reports and taking full ownership of the functions operations and commercial performance. You will be accountable for hitting and exceeding the licensing revenue targets that form a key pillar of the team's commercial plan.
Team Leadership
- Lead, develop, and performance-manage two direct reports, fostering a high-accountability, high-support team culture
- Set clear objectives and KPIs for the team, aligned to overall licensing revenue and brand goals
- Build the licensing function's capabilities, processes, and ways of working to support long-term growth
Licensing Strategy & Revenue Ownership
- Develop and execute the global brand licensing strategy, identifying new product categories, markets, and partnership opportunities
- Set ambitious revenue targets, track performance, and drive the team to consistently hit and exceed them
- Build and manage a pipeline of licensing prospects, from initial outreach through to signed agreements and product launch
Partner & Account Management
- Serve as the primary relationship owner for all licensee accounts, ensuring strong commercial outcomes and brand compliance
- Lead contract negotiations in collaboration with Legal, covering royalty structures, minimum guarantees, exclusivity, and territory rights
- Conduct regular business reviews with licensees to drive performance and identify growth opportunities
Brand & Product Governance
- Own the brand approval process for all licensed products, ensuring every item meets [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal]'s brand standards and quality benchmarks
- Develop and maintain a comprehensive licensing style guide and brand toolkit for partner use
- Work closely with the [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] brand team to ensure co-branding guidelines are respected across all licensed touchpoints
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with the Marketing team to support licensed product launches, retail activations, and fan engagement campaigns that grow our global brand presence and fandom
- Collaborate with the Merchandising team to avoid channel conflict and align on go-to-market strategy
- Support the broader Commercial team on sponsorship integrations that have a licensing or product component
Market Intelligence
- Monitor competitor licensing programs and broader sports licensing trends to keep [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal]'s program at the cutting edge
- Track royalty reporting and payments, ensuring accuracy and timely collection
Qualifications
Essential
- 8+ years' experience in brand licensing, either in-house at a rights holder or within a licensing agency
- Proven track record of building and growing a licensing portfolio — from deal origination through to revenue delivery
- Demonstrated experience leading, managing, and developing high-performing teams
- Strong commercial acumen with hands-on experience negotiating and closing licensing agreements
- Excellent relationship management skills, with the ability to influence, inspire, and collaborate across functions at all levels
- A genuine passion for brand integrity and a discerning eye for great product
Desirable
- Experience within motorsport, sports, entertainment, or lifestyle licensing
- Familiarity with the F1 fan and consumer landscape
- Existing relationships with licensees or manufacturers across apparel, collectibles, accessories, or gaming
Additional Information
We believe great people deserve great rewards. That's why we offer a competitive benefits package featuring generous holidays, exciting staff events, and a range of car schemes; plus a competitive salary and performance-related bonus.
Based in the heart of London, you'll work from our modern, collaborative office, with regular travel to our Grove, Oxfordshire headquarters. The role also offers the unique opportunity to attend race weekends and travel internationally across the F1 calendar.
Join a fast-paced, future-thinking team that’s driving innovation and pushing past engineering boundaries
[Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity and inclusion. We are happy to discuss reasonable job adjustments.