Pandora’s MD Goes On A Retail Tour

The high-end jewellery retailer’s new managing director, Brian Winther has no intention on staying behind his desk. He is going on tour across the UK, visiting Pandora stores to immerse himself into the retail’s universe, establish a dialogue and drive market shares off the charts. Prior to becoming Pandora’s managing director to the UK, Winther was president of Pandora in Australia and New Zealand, where he picked up on more than a thing or two in retail.

In a recent interview with Professional Jeweller magazine, Winther expressed his desire to learn all there is to know about how partners run their business and the challenges they may face. “I need to get into the stores and find out what is going on out there,” shares Winther. “That’s not 30 days or six months, that’s my role. My role is to find out what our franchise partners want, what our teams want and what our stores want. I’ve been out to visit stores with a number of our sales team and it is an ongoing process.”

His first impressions of the UK market? The brand’s franchise partners are passionate and the opportunities for growth is astronomical. When asked what partner can expect from him as their boss, Winther recalls his background as a retailer. “What can the retailers expect from me? I am a retailer,” Winther explains. “I will talk their language, I want to get in to stores, I want to find out what is happening in stores, and I will talk a lot about operational improvements in the business. How do we do more with what we’ve got? How do we make sure that our teams are able to provide a great consumer experience? Because at the end of the day consumers come back to where they’ve had a great experience. It’s not about product and price. It’s about the experience.”

He continues: “My background is retail, so I think I have a real affinity with retail and store managers and store staff. I understand that my role is to generate profits for our retailers. We can’t grow unless they grow; we can’t be profitable unless they’re profitable.”