Kearney Consumer Industries & Retail Principal

Job Description

As a Principal within Kearney’s Consumer Industries & Retail Practice (CIRP), you will play a critical leadership role in building and scaling our Fashion & Luxury sector. This is a high-visibility position for a seasoned leader with deep apparel and merchandising expertise who can engage clients at the executive level, lead complex engagements end to end, and help shape the future of a fast-growing practice. You will work closely with senior client stakeholders and internal leadership to develop insights, drive impact, and grow long-term client relationships across the fashion, apparel, footwear, and adjacent beauty ecosystem. What You’ll Do Client Leadership & Delivery

• Lead large, high-impact Fashion & Luxury engagements from problem definition through analysis, synthesis, and executive-level client communication
• Serve as a trusted advisor to C-suite and senior merchandising, planning, and brand leaders at leading apparel and retail organizations
• Drive work across corporate and growth strategy, merchandising and assortment strategy, apparel planning, go-to-market strategy, and enterprise transformation
• Lead cross-functional teams and manage multiple complex workstreams with autonomy and accountability

Industry & Functional Expertise

• Bring deep content expertise in apparel and fashion, with a strong command of core business functions including:
• Merchandising and assortment strategy
• Apparel and demand planning
• Product development, sourcing, and design (preferred)
• Brand, franchise, and portfolio strategy
• Apply this expertise across vertically integrated apparel brands, multi-brand retailers, and luxury players
• Contribute thought leadership on industry trends and emerging topics across fashion, apparel, and beauty

Business Development & Practice Growth

• Originate and expand client relationships, with a clear ability to drive revenue growth within existing and new accounts
• Lead proposal development, participate in senior-level client pitches, and shape commercial strategy
• Support the continued growth and differentiation of Kearney’s Fashion & Luxury offering within CIRP
• Mentor and develop junior team members while helping build a strong, collaborative sector community

Who You Are After nearly 100 years, we know this business is fundamentally about making connections—between facts, figures, insights, strategies, tools, technologies, and above all, people. That’s why we look for collaborative, insightful, and inquisitive problem-solvers who don’t accept the first thing in front of them and who are always unapologetically themselves. We Want To Hear From You If You Have

• An MBA (preferred) and 10+ years of professional experience
• Significant Principal-level experience in top-tier management consulting, with demonstrated market traction
• Deep Fashion & Apparel expertise, particularly across merchandising, apparel planning, and core product commercialization functions
• Experience working with leading apparel, footwear, retail, and/or luxury brands
• A strong client network and the ability to engage senior executives as a credible industry expert
• Experience supporting Fortune 500 clients through long-term engagements
• A passion for leading teams, mentoring talent, and building inclusive, high-performing cultures
• Exceptional consulting skills across communication, analytics, leadership presence, and problem solving
• Willingness to travel as required (with frequent presence in New York strongly preferred)

What We Can Offer You Every day, our people work to be the difference for our clients, our communities, and our colleagues. Helping them make an impact, they are sustained by a competitive remuneration package plus comprehensive benefits and perks, including but not limited to:

• Generous retirement/pension savings contributions
• Comprehensive medical insurance for employees and immediate family
• Gym membership discounts
• Non-partner equity-based awards (for consulting managers and above)
• Structured and on-the-job learning and development opportunities
• Personalized opportunities including talent mobility, flexible work programs, and externships to help you chart a unique career journey to pursue your own personal and professional goals

Principal Base Salary – $245,000-$270,000. It is important to note that at Kearney, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the top of the range for their role. Individual salaries within each range are determined through a wide variety of factors