What are the responsibilities and job description for the Merchandise Planner, Women's Tops position at Athleta?
About the Role
In this role you will be a part of the Inventory Management team that brings the financial strategy of our product vision to life by managing the largest financial asset of the company: our product itself. As Merchandise Planner, you will drive the success of one or more product categories by creating a financial roadmap and marrying it to brand strategy and customer needs. You are passionate about using your qualitative and quantitative skillset in a fashion retail environment and find joy and creativity in forecasting and financial planning. You are curious, innovative, and focused on executing an amazing customer experience while delivering/exceeding financial targets. Strong analytical and storytelling skills will serve you well, and a collaborative mindset is a must.
What You'll Do
- Analyze historical data and current trends to identify risks and opportunities by division and department
- Create preseason sales, gross margin and inventory plans by division and department that support product strategies
- Reconcile top down to bottom up division/department plans
- Present financial forecast and supporting action plans in open to buy meeting
- Reforecast sales and manage inventory for all basic styles to meet department financial goals
- Communicate financial results and forecasts to manager and cross functional team on a weekly basis
- Develop and maintain effective working relationships with members of cross functional team (Merchandising, Visual, Production, Distribution, Planning and Company Planning), setting expectations around prioritization and best practices around key deliverables
Who You Are
- Must love Excel, have advanced technical skills, and be systems savvy
- Believe in the Power of Team; builds constructive and effective relationships with a broad and diverse group of business partners
- Possess strong business acumen and strategic agility, able to handle many projects simultaneously while effectively prioritizing workload
- Demonstrate strong listening, written and oral communication skills
