Manager, Innovation - Private Brands

Guitar Center Stores • Westlake Village, CA

46d • $95,000 - $140,000

About The Position

Job Summary: The Manager, Innovation supports the Director of Innovation in driving the development and execution of new product initiatives that fuel growth and strengthen thepany'spetitive edge. This role plays a critical part in identifying emerging opportunities, translating consumer insights into actionable product concepts, and supporting the innovation pipeline from idea to market readiness. Working cross-functionally with teams in Sourcing, Merchandising, Marketing, and Consumer Insights, the Manager will help bring forward-thinking ideas to life while ensuring alignment with business objectives and customer needs.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Design, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 6-8 years of experience in innovation, product development, brand strategy, or consumer insights—ideally within retail or consumer goods.
• Proven track record supporting the successful launch of new products or innovation programs.
• Strong ability to translate consumer and market insights into actionable concepts.
• Comfort working in ambiguity, ing agile methodology, and influencing stakeholders across theanization without direct authority. to define and manage brand architecture and equity: measure brand health (awareness, preference, NPS) and rmend interventions to strengthen brand value.”
• Demonstrated analytical and business acumen, with experience in financial modeling or forecasting.
• Excellent collaboration andmunication skills with cross-functional teams.
• Familiarity with concept testing, prototype development, and early-stage product validation.
• Creative thinker with stronganizational and project management skills.
• Passion for emerging trends, consumer behavior, and product innovation

Nice To Haves

• Musical/Audio background is a strong plus but not a requirement

Responsibilities

• Innovation Execution: Support the end-to-end development of new product concepts and initiatives, from ideation and concept validation through to early-stage development and handoff to execution teams.
• Consumer Insight Application: Use consumer data, trend research, and market analysis to identify unmet needs and guide product direction. Translate insights intopelling value propositions and concept briefs.
• Opportunity Assessment: Conduct initial market andpetitive assessments to vet new product opportunities and inform prioritization decisions.
• Product Concepting: Develop early product concepts, specs, and creative briefs, incorporating new materials, designs, and technologies that align with brand positioning and consumer demand.
• UI/UX/ID Leadership: Support ideation and development teams with concepts, direction and design reviews for Industrial Design, User Interaction and User Interfaces, including hardware, display-based and app-based interfaces and operation.
• Business Case Support: Assist in financial modeling for new concepts, including initial forecasting, cost estimates, and scenario planning to evaluate business impact.Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Sourcing, Product Development, and Merchandising to ensure innovation concepts are feasible, scalable, and aligned with operational capabilities.
• Trend & Market Tracking: Continuously monitor cultural, market, and consumer trends to inform innovation roadmaps and identify whitespace opportunities. Translatepetitive landscape and feature analysis into actionable insights
• Voice of the Customer: Advocate for customer needs throughout the development process, ensuring new products deliver meaningful and relevant value.
• Innovation Process Improvement: Support the enhancement of innovation frameworks, tools, and workflows that increase speed, clarity, and collaboration. Implement use of AI w feasible. Facilitate design-thinking workshops, user-testing to optimize opportunities.
• Stakeholder Communication: Prepare presentations and materials tomunicate innovation opportunities, project status, and insights to leadership and cross-functional partners.
• Team Collaboration: Mentor and guide junior team members or cross-functional contributors, fostering a culture of creativity, accountability, and collaboration.

Benefits

• For our employees who are musicians we offer the unique opportunity of gig leave—take time off to your music with the world and return to your job after your tour!
• Guitar Center offers robust benefits and perks, including Medical, Dental, Vision, 401K pluspany match, mental health support, paid sick/holiday/vacation time, employee discount program, and tuition reimbursement options.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees