Background:

Ever since Upper Deck revolutionized the sports trading card experience with its inaugural 1989 Baseball set, their No. 1 mission has been to capture the excitement of the game and deliver it to fans of all ages through high quality, innovative, authentic, and collectible products.

Packs from the company’s first baseball set featured color photography, an anti- counterfeit hologram on every card and foil wrapping. The set was an instant hit with collectors.

The cornerstone of their business is based on sports trading cards, but over the years, their brand has expanded to include other products.

Keeping in stride with the latest technology Upper Deck’s long list of accomplishments have recently included:

Upper Deck e-Pack® bridges the gap from digital to physical, and lets you instantly purchase and open packs of trading cards and authentic collectibles at any time, from anywhere and keep your entire collection at your fingertips by viewing, sorting, and storing with the simple click of a button.

Legendary® is the critically acclaimed Marvel Deck Building Game; a cooperative deck-building game for 1-5 players where players take on the roles of Marvel heroes, including the Avengers and X-Men.

Upper Deck Authenticated®

Autograph forgeries make victims out of unsuspecting fans. In 1992, Upper Deck Authenticated® became the first company to find an answer to the forgery problem by creating an airtight five-step authentication process that assures fans are getting genuine autographs. This groundbreaking process is why some of the most prominent names in sports such as Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Wayne Gretzky have signed deals with the company. Today, the company has autograph relationships with many of the game’s biggest stars and produces some of the finest sports memorabilia on the market.

This position is located in Carlsbad, CA also known as “The Village by the Sea”. The city offers the charm of a European town with the conveniences of a large city. As you wander streets lined with antique stores, boutique shops, and sidewalk cafes, you’ll soon discover much more, including miles of coastline, beautiful flower gardens, and world-class resorts. With a perfectly mild climate, each season offers a variety of unique events and activities, from street fairs to art walks. Steps away sit clean, uncrowded beaches for swimming, sunbathing and surfing as well as beautiful lagoons for fishing, birdwatching and nature trail hikes. Venture further to discover the unique destinations of LEGOLAND® California and SEA LIFE Aquarium or the nearby attractions of San Diego and Los Angeles.

Upper Deck not just a “trading card” company; they’re a sports and entertainment company. They’re a company with passion and attitude – about sports, about authenticity, and about quality and innovation.

They thrive on fast pace, risk and things that are cutting edge. Most of all, they have pride and dedication to creating products that turn memorable moments into collectibles that people want to covet. 

THEIR MISSION:

Provide their Customers and Consumers with Sports and Entertainment Products that Reflect Their Commitment to Rich Set Content, Innovative Design, Quality Craftsmanship, and Authenticity.

Any interested candidates should contact TurnkeyZRG directly.

Contacting Upper Deck will only delay consideration of your qualifications.

Position Summary:

The Brand Manager role is ideal for a detail-oriented, self-motivated individual with passion and experience in the entertainment sector who strives to work as a centerpiece in building collectibles of some of the most recognizable properties in entertainment. The Brand Manager will be responsible for developing, integrating, and executing Upper Deck business and brand strategies, while heavily relied on to manage specific trading card products, working closely with sales and marketing teams as well as a multitude of departments to deliver innovative, authentic products to the end consumer. In sum, this position encompasses development and implementation of business plans, product line profitability analysis, evaluation of product marketplace and evaluating new product opportunities in the collectibles space. 

This position will interact closely with the Senior Brand Manager, Product Development Team, Project Manager, Operations, Finance, Sales, Legal, Design, and Senior Management, along with related Company staff members and external licensors.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Product Strategy: Implement business objectives in conjunction with supervisor, managing the process of Brand and Product team. Work closely with Product Development team in executing the full production of all trading cards and collectibles. Work closely with supervisor to identify products needed for maximum revenue while managing product P&Ls and company margin expectations;

• Licensed Property Product Portfolio Management: Manage timing and implementation of licensed products. Manage business relationship with Licensors and ensure that licensor requirements are met and maintained. Work with licensing team to ensure rights are acquired as needed to maximize product profitability and look to create brand and product presentations for internal and external partners;

• Business Analysis and Planning: Develops short term and long-range plans for specific products and licenses; based on historical analysis, market trends, competition, and Upper Deck trading card product portfolio. Creates business plan, including product concept and design direction aligned with product development team. Responsible for department revenue, P&L management of brand, and looks to manage all brand aspects to ensure department maximizes profitability goals as well as contractual guarantees and forecasts;

• Communication: Looking for a natural leader who can be responsible in ensuring all business product goals get carried out through the production process and successfully launched to completion. Individual will manage personnel and be a liaison with other departments that are tied to and work closely with Brand. Key role in managing all Brand initiatives, working day to day with product, operations, creative, sales and management teams, incorporating concepts from Brand team to product development team to ensure products being created follow Brand strategy. Interact with consumers, retailers, and distributors to understand market trends and drivers of product purchasing behavior. Will be responsible for keeping the company partners up to date with ranging developments. Recommends, communicates, and manages launch strategies, product calendars, talent signings, product promotions, creative product directions, and all other trading card brand initiatives;

• Product Determination and Selection: Work within the trading card department and produce products that are commensurate to strategies specified in licensed product brand business plan. Conduct research on market trends and take team-leading role in all aspects of product definition, channel distribution strategy, brand, and marketing direction. Manage relationships with licensors to cultivate business dealings and identify new opportunities for growth and development;

• Marketing and Communications: Provide direction to Marketing/Advertising/Promotions/PR campaigns in line with corporate strategies and initiatives. Attend meetings and Trade Shows to communicate product plans and strategies. Work closely with marketing and e-commerce team to ensure social media content, release calendars, ads, press releases, and all other department campaigns line up with Upper Deck brand initiatives.

Salary:

$70,000-$80,000

Qualifications, Skills and Education Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree with an emphasis in Business (Marketing preferred), Brand Management, Product Development, or related experience;

• Five-plus years’ experience in product marketing or Brand Management with a strong desire to learn;

• Brand and/or product management experience;

• Knowledge of budgeting, P&Ls, and product profitability analysis. Ability to communicate with Product Management in working on cost cutting solutions to improve product profitability;

• Strong leadership skills and experience managing cross-functional teams in a fast-paced environment;

• Ability to apply creative thinking to product themes, content, and business solutions;

• Ability to lead focused meetings;

• Ability to communicate with external parties frequently to discuss brand strategies;

• Excellent oral and written communication skills;

• Experience writing creative briefs for advertising, promotions, design on memorabilia items, packaging, and web design for brands;

• Motivated and proactive;

• Proven ability to multi-task and effectively determine priorities;

• Strong presentation skills;

• Motivated, proactive, and organized;

• Team-player orientation;

• Ability to interface with internal and external parties;

• Ability to travel domestically on behalf of Upper Deck;

• Retail and hobby sales knowledge a plus;

• Interest and knowledge in entertainment and pop culture properties a plus;

• Interest and knowledge in comics, especially Marvel a plus;

• Proficiency in the following software: MS Office, SharePoint a plus.