EKKY MANOILENKO: SENIOR ANALYST, OPERATIONS AT ARITZIA
Introduction
I am originally from Russia, and my high school education was in Moscow. I decided that I wanted to study abroad, and I came across Canada in my search. My eyes fell on Queen’s and I decided to pursue my undergraduate degree there. I had never been to Canada until then but clearly, I really enjoyed it and have been here for almost 10 years now! While I was at Queen’s, I studied Global Development and Health. My undergrad was very much a passion degree - social impact and healthy lifestyle are still big parts of my life today. I also have always been a bit artistic - I played violin for 12 years as a child, and I have always enjoyed clothes and fashion. Throughout my undergrad I didn’t actively pursue my artistic side, but I also didn’t see myself pursuing a career in NGOs or in the health sector like my classmates at Queen’s.
After graduation, I kind of took a year to figure out what I wanted - “kind of” because I was working full-time throughout that year. That was key - to try a few different industries, a few different roles, try to find my own place in the business world. I find when people say “took a year to figure out what I want” they usually imply being away traveling, care-free, with a lot of time to think. My approach was different - I decided that the only way to really figure out my dream career is to actively try the ones I am interested in and see what fits. I worked in financial software recruitment agency and in a large lens manufacturing company, and eventually, my journey led me to a place where I feel like I belong - fashion retail.
As a consumer and a health major, I always loved lululemon - I loved their clothes and how different they are from competitors. Also retail as an industry was always intriguing to me - it truly touches every person. We all buy things, we all wear clothes. Lululemon is trying to get more people to exercise and take care of their bodies, so I loved their social impact stance also resonated with me. I really was interested in working there. I moved to Vancouver and got a job in their Store Support Centre (HQ). That’s when my official retail career started. I loved retail as a shopper but it truly excited me to experience how it all comes together behind the scenes. I got a job as an executive assistant - I worked for a number of executives but supported one primary person. My primary executive was SVP of Operations Excellence, which basically means internal strategy and operations. Everyone on the team was from consulting or had an MBA and I was mind-blown by how much value they add to the business and how much insights they provide. I fell in love with the idea of solving complex business problems.
I was working as an EA, but simultaneously I was studying public relations. I kept trying to find the best path for me. You have to realize for some people this is how it has to be. Some people have a linear path, and some people try five different things before they land where they need to be, and it’s a wonderful experience. Then I got a job in public relations at lululemon. I enjoyed it but the idea of getting an MBA truly got into my head, so while I was working I was also studying for my GMAT. And then I got into MBA at Ivey.
Very quickly at Ivey I realized that I want to go back to fashion retail, but I want to do something related to consulting, something related to the high-level business structuring. But because this industry is my passion, I also realized that I am willing to do anything there. I knew I wanted a career to span a bunch of different areas of retail. Being an industry generalist allows you to truly understand how that industry works, and I am very fortunate in which I have already worked in three areas of retail.
Post-MBA I interviewed at Aritzia and landed a role in internal consulting - I’ve been here for six months now and I absolutely love it!
Can you walk me through your day-to-day work at Aritzia? What components make up the work done in operations?
Although I’ve been at Aritzia for only 6 months I haven’t had that much breadth of experience anywhere before - no day is the same. I work on projects on customer, eCommerce, finance and omni departments - there are so many opportunities. My job in operations is really providing internal consulting services, mainly related to operations but not always. For example, in the summer we actually worked on a customer initiative for which we engaged Ivey Retail & Fashion Club that was very high-level and conceptual in nature. My favorite thing about internal consulting is that you are able to build long-term relationships and see through the impact your work on the organization. In operations, we help departments build infrastructure to scale their vision. It’s a very exciting and rewarding work.
In terms of day-to-day, roughly half of my day is spent on analysis and building, and another half I am in meetings hosting workshops for the departmental clients or providing updates to senior leaders on the progress of ongoing projects.
What are some of the biggest skills you’ve leveraged in both your time at Aritzia and lululemon?
I think my most important skill is taking initiative. I try to see everything as an opportunity, rather than a task I have to do, which doesn’t happen always, but it’s like a muscle I trained within myself, and I think it works. The other one came to me at Ivey, and the case method truly helped with it. It’s about coming into every meeting and being able to contribute and stand your ground and have an informed opinion. It’s not easy to attain for a young professional and I’ve always had a decently serious case of the imposter syndrome. Ivey really teaches you that you have knowledge and that your own perspective is valuable - you just have to do your homework and communicate it. Ever since I started my job at Aritzia, no matter who I’m meeting, it’s more exciting than it is scary to come in and share my thoughts. The third skill is building community. I really like working in teams, but I most enjoy working in teams in which each individual feels responsible for fostering the sense of community within. I have been fortunate enough that at both lululemon and Artizia my teammates share this sentiment.
Having experience at two Canadian companies, how have you witnessed the international growth of these brands and what do you think is in store for their future?
That’s a great question, I think about this quite a lot!
With lululemon, what they have done with breaking into men’s is really cool. Changing the brand identity of a yoga-inspired brand from all-women to men’s and doing it successfully isn’t easy. I think lululemon will probably continue becoming more and more gender-neutral or further develop men’s focus. They have also expanded into self-care which I find is a great idea. Internationally, I know that breaking into Europe has been challenging for lululemon, but in Asia they are really doing well. I can only see their presence there expand, and maybe focus more on fashion rather than function for their European customers.
When it comes to Aritzia, I am even more excited. Aritzia by revenue is smaller than lululemon, which means that we have more opportunity to grow. I think right now for the most part we are really focusing on the U.S because of the similarities between Canadian and U.S. fashion; it’s a really seamless and a no-brainer transition for us. I also think we will expand our brands a bit more. As you may know at Aritzia there is no ‘Aritzia’- branded clothing, it’s all branded as Wilfred, Babaton, TNA. So I can see us doubling down on that and building a community around them. At this point we are excited to be selling internationally but opening stores has not been a priority beyond US, especially in the current situation. But our ambitions are big - so stay tuned.
One thing that I have to say about both companies that I really love, is that both companies are ambitious, but they would only make very strategic calculated decision on where and how they expand and grow. And it’s something to say about Canadian companies compared to some other companies in the US where as soon as you have the opportunity to grow you open a hundred stores and by year two the hype is gone, and they have to close all of them down. So I think what Artizia and lululemon do really well is that strategic long-term vision that is very unique in fashion retail specifically. Some people focus just on trends, just on short-term gains. I think both Aritzia and lululemon are doing very great and I am very proud of them being Canadian, and feel fortunate to have experience in both.
What career trajectory do you hope to take over the next 5-10 years? Are there any mentors or influencers you have based your own career goals off of?
That’s a great question! It’s so important to continuously take time to think and evaluate; do things but also think about what you are doing at the same time.
In terms of career trajectory as I mentioned, I really love retail. I’m not saying I’m going to be in it forever because you never know, but what I love about it is that feeling that it touches everybody, the joy that it brings to people. So if I ever pivot out of retail, I will probably pivot to something similar to that. I see myself as a generalist; as of now I want to learn how the business operates as a whole - I love the behind-the-scenes flare of operations and I love what I do today. I also really love the customer-focused work, putting the customer at the forefront and figuring out the future of the relationship between the brand and the customer. Customers are very different now from when I came into the industry five years ago. Everyone has a strong understanding of what they want and where they want to shop. And it’s more of a conversation with brands, than brands just trying to sell. But in general, I would love to oversee a company someday, I would love to be in a leadership role where I am responsible for multiple areas of the business and help set the company’s strategy, help it grow and scale. I don’t know if it will be my own company - I really enjoy the idea of entrepreneurship and I hope one day to explore that, but maybe it will be within Aritzia or another brand. I have high ambitions but I also absolutely love where I am now, so really I try to focus on the now, enjoy my work and trust that my vision will be realized if I do my best.
In terms of influencers and people who have contributed to my life. First of all - my mom. I have had a very unique experience growing up - my mom is the primary breadwinner in my family - I have always seen my mom as a role model who doesn’t take “no” for an answer, she is someone who is fearless and very ambitious. She does everything to the highest standard, and she never stops learning. Right now she is taking three courses because she says “the world is changing! I need to figure it out.” So I think my number one has always been my mom. She always believed in me and inspired me to be myself.
And obviously in my career I have been really fortunate to have met so many fantastic leaders! Two people I’d love to highlight are Candan (pronounced Jendan) Erenguc who was the SVP of Operations Excellence I supported as an EA and Jordana Pourian, Aritzia’s SVP of Operations and Chief of Staff. Firstly Candan, a very strong leader, now the Chief Supply Chain Officer of Away. I learned so much from her - she is so authentically herself and I’ve always felt empowered to be myself around her. Secondly, although it’s only been six months, I have been really enjoying working with Aritzia’s SVP of Operations and Chief of Staff Jordana Pourian. She is an incredible leader and she teaches me be faster and better thinker. When you work with a person who teaches you to think differently and learn differently, this is where magic happens. I’ve always been grateful to Candan who taught me about unapologetic authenticity at work and who helped me open up my “operations” mind, and now I am incredibly grateful to learn from Jordana. But again, I feel like I can’t give justice to all the fantastic people who have contributed to my growth, especially women. I think all girls in my MBA class have been nothing but great influencers for me, and now at Aritzia I am surrounded by strongest female role models. I just want all women to feel empowered to pursue their career dreams, and find fulfillment doing whatever speaks to their hearts.