The Role:

The Senior Merchandiser/Planner plays a critical role in driving the success of the company's merchandise assortment and maximizing sales and profitability. This position combines strategic planning and analysis with operational execution to optimize assortment for our clients and inventory levels. The Senior Merchandiser/Planner collaborates with cross-functional teams to develop and implement merchandising strategies that align with the company's goals and customer preferences.

Your Responsibilities:

Sales, Strategy & Assortment

• Develop and execute comprehensive merchandise plans and assortment strategies in alignment with company goals and customer demands.
• Analyze historical sales data, market trends, and customer insights to identify opportunities and risks and make informed assortment decisions.
• Conduct regular product reviews and provide recommendations for assortment optimization, including product mix, fit adjustments, pricing, and inventory levels.
• Collaborate with the Buying team to ensure the assortment meets the needs of target customer segments and aligns with the overall brand strategy.
• Possess a clear understanding of retail financial measurements and how to impact them.
• Analyze pricing strategies, market competition, and customer preferences to recommend pricing adjustments that maximize sales and profitability.
• Collaborate with vendors to execute styles from initial concept to production.

Inventory Management and Merchandise Planning

• Forecast sales and inventory needs based on historical data, market trends, and marketing activities.
• Plan and execute inventory strategies to optimize product availability and achieve sales and margin goals.
• Monitor inventory levels, keep rates, and stock performance to identify and address potential issues or opportunities.
• Collaborate with vendors to ensure timely and efficient replenishment of merchandise.
• Maintains the planning system with accurate parameters to improve forecast accuracy, receipt flow and performance of algorithms.
• Develop and implement strategic merchandise planning and forecasting models.
• Monitor and evaluate utilization and productivity of carryover and new choices on a weekly basis.
• Identify, design, develop and implement new business tools and reports to inform buy decisions. 

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Collaborate closely with the Styling, Marketing, and Operations teams to align merchandising strategies with marketing campaigns, inventory availability, and operational capabilities.
• Provide guidance and support to the Buying team in product selection, vendor negotiations, and assortment planning.

Who you are:

• BA or BS preferred.
• 8 consecutive years of women’s apparel buying experience at a high growth retail organization, planning experience preferred
• Effective problem solver, with a hands-on “get things done” mentality. You are eager and able to solve challenges and tackle opportunities, identify potential issues and hurdles, and develop ways to get around them. 
• Effective prioritization and organization to stay positive and proactive in an ambiguous environment are a must. 
• Excellent quantitative and data analysis skills. You’re energized by data and are always looking to uncover insights to develop new ideas, test hypotheses, and make key recommendations. 
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to interpret data and make data-driven decisions.
• Strong writing, communication, and presentation skills.
• Meticulous organizational skills with strong follow-through abilities.
• Understands that different situations may call for different approaches, showing the ability to be flexible in changing situations.
• Take initiative to start work quickly to meet deadlines with energy and a curious mindset.
• Contribute positively to team dynamics and assist wherever possible.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and have aptitude to learn technical applications quickly.
• Managerial experience preferred.
• Have experience in subscription business desired.

Why You'll Love Working at Short Story:

• You'll get to work at an early stage start-up, to build the culture, and to have an outsized impact on our company and society
• You'll be a key part of the company with the ability to make high impact decisions
• You'll get the opportunity to try your hand at new things. We deeply believe in giving people opportunity to venture into new areas
• We are a successful, fast-growing startup solving problems that have not been solved before and reinventing fashion for an underserved segment
• We are a group of smart, passionate, hustlers with a wealth of diverse experiences
• We are motivated by unique challenges and opportunities
• We are our own customers; many of us on the team are petite women who love our products
• We are driven by the mission of helping petite women find their perfect fit so they can dress with total confidence

Benefits:

• Professional development resources
• Opportunity to work with a dedicated and experienced founding team
• Opportunity to work with a growing start up