Director Merchandise Planning - Sr. Director Merchandise Planning - Arhaus

The Director or Senior Director of Merchandise Planning is responsible for leading the Planners and Planning Analysts to achieve overall financial and inventory goals in conjunction with Merchandising, Supply Chain, Sourcing and Store Team Leadership. The position will lead, coach and develop the Planning team to achieve financial objectives including sales targets, gross margin, inventory and OTB management. This role will be critical in identifying risks and opportunities within the inventory and buy plans and working to mitigate those risks. This person must be passionate about leading a team through change as well as drive development of strategies for long term growth.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the development and implementation of yearly/monthly category merchandise financial plans in accordance with company goals, historical performance and trend analysis
• Collaborate with Buyers, Product Development and Sourcing to ensure purchase orders align with inventory targets and will deliver the required sales volume, gross margin and inventory turn goals
• Drive allocation and receipt strategy of inventory across multiple warehouses to maximize delivered sales and product turn while minimizing cost
• Communicate regularly with vendors to ensure capacity, purchase orders and cost are aligned with financial plan goals and commitments
• Train and develop Planning team on strategic planning, cross functional relationship building and communication
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work well under pressure and pivot quickly and effectively
• Foster strong cross functional relationships that drive collaborative work effort and results
• Exceptional organization, time management, customer service and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrate create problem solving and outside the box thinking
• Present strategies to Executive Leadership to gain alignment
• Provide strategic leadership to the Merchant team
• Identifies and recommends change in process to improve efficiencies

COMPETENCIES

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance or related field
• 7+ years of experience in Merchandise Planning, Demand Planning, Inventory Management, Allocation or Buying
• Thorough understanding of retail math
• Ability to analyze and report against financial metrics
• Demonstrated ability to communicate, collaborate and influence cross functionally
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Self-motivated and able to work in an ever-changing environment with efficiency and accuracy
• Proficient in MS Word and Excel Applications and data analytics