I am a creative manager with international experience in visual merchandising and retail. I hold a BA in Fashion from the University of Manchester and am currently studying with the Institute of Leadership & Management. As Design Manager for Al Tayer Retail, I oversee design teams, review budgets, research trends, and collaborate across departments. Key achievements include winning international window display awards for Al Tayer and developing their CSR strategy.

1. Aoife Baxter
aoifebaxter@yahoo.co.uk
+971 55 883 6469
Villa 11, Westar Reflections,
Jumeirah Village Circle
Dubai
Nationality: Irish
Availability: 4 weeks notice
Overview:
I am a creative manager with international visual merchandising and retail experience. I have experience of luxury, mid-
premium and high street brands including; Bloomingdales, Harvey Nichols, Armani, Ralph Lauren, Guess, Banana Republic,
Topshop, River Island and GAP.
I hold a BA Honors degree in Fashion from University of Manchester, UK and am currently studying with the Institute of
Leadership & Management (ILM).
Employment History
Design Manager
Creative Services – Al Tayer Retail
(Dubai based supporting the creative requirements of the business across the Fashion,
Beauty, Home and Hospitality and Department Store Divisions)
November 2012 to current
• Oversee creation of designs, creative concepts and sample layouts and ensure they are submitted to
the VM Manager within the agreed Service Level Agreement
• Guide and motivate Design Team to enhance performance, produce quality work, and ensure that
they are continuously developed for higher level roles
• Review the budget requirements of the Design function, and accordingly participate in the
development of Retail Business Units budget
• Research international consumer trends within the retail and service industries, and suggest
creative ways to implement them within Al Tayer.
• Collaborate with the VM, Marketing and Events Managers to deliver creative solutions for all
areas of the business
Key Achievements:
• Raised the international profile of Al Tayer Creative Services by participating in and
subsequently winning Best International Window for two consecutive years at the VM &
Display Awards in the UK
• Raised internal profile of the department by designing and writing a monthly newsletter
#creative which is circulated across the other marketing functions in the business and to the
CEO
• Played an integral part in the development, launch and roll out of the companies CSR strategy
which has been adopted by Al Tayer Corporate
• Guest lectured in Dubai Women’s Collage with 1st
year and 3rd
year Visual Communications
students. Their final project was to design Ramadan windows which were produced and
installed in Bloomingdales Dubai in June 2014. This resulted after hosting interns from the
collage who had an exceptionally positive experience within the design team
• Created the first VM Induction and LEAD training program for all new joiners going through the
Retail Academy. The introduction of weekly knowledge sharing sessions within the design
team has seen significant improvement in individual presentation skills, as well as an
appreciation and understanding of each other diverse skills and expertise
• Initiated the upgrade and migration to iMac and CS6 for all of the designers. This resulted in
increased productivity, performance and subsequent customer satisfaction. (The design
department achieved 25% more than the company average score in the last Internal Customer
Satisfaction Survey)
• Designed the Design Division Structure with a 3 year expansion plan and succession plan.
• Saved the business 142,000aed in agency fees by handling projects internally during the last
financial year
Visual Merchandising Manager
Gap & Banana Republic – Al Tayer Retail
(Dubai based covering the GCC Market inc. 3 of the 5 top stores in the brand’s global portfolio)