Assistant Planner, Distribution

Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) is a global leader in the design, marketing and distribution of premium lifestyle products in five categories: apparel, accessories, home, fragrances, and hospitality. For more than 50 years, Ralph Lauren\’s reputation and distinctive image have been consistently developed across an expanding number of products, brands and international markets. The Company\’s brand names, which include Ralph Lauren, Ralph Lauren Collection, Ralph Lauren Purple Label, Polo Ralph Lauren, Double RL, Lauren Ralph Lauren, Polo Ralph Lauren Children, Chaps, among others, constitute one of the world\’s most widely recognized families of consumer brands.

At Ralph Lauren, we unite and inspire the communities within our company as well as those in which we serve by amplifying voices and perspectives to create a culture of belonging, ensuring inclusion, and fairness for all. We foster a culture of inclusion through: Talent, Education & Communication, Employee Groups and Celebration.

Position Overview

The Distribution and Allocation Assistant will play a key role supporting the Distribution and Allocation Planners providing administrative support including running reports, analyzing sales and stock figures.

This role is part time (20 hours), 12 month FTC based in Watford.

Operations/Financial

• Produce reporting as required to review sales and stock performance.
• Attend meetings where required and take notes to drive actions for the wider teams.
• Work within team to formulate and implement strategies to help drive sales.
• Ensure the financial success of the business by supporting the Distribution and Allocation Planners to review timelines and communicate these to the wider teams to ensure successful and timely set up for season launches / sale periods.
• Support in the review of product availability to drive actions for the wider team, to help to maximize sales and minimize markdown.
• Support the Distribution and Allocation planners to ensure timely and accurate execution of new store openings.
• Support the Distribution and Allocation Planner with store, product and size analysis
• Manage store communications through the system ‘RL Intelligence’ and ‘Yoobic’ to communicate necessary information to key stakeholders.
• Use systems including Inventory Smart, Microstrategy, and SAP

Communications/Relationships

• Develop and maintain effective working relationships within cross-functional teams (stores, buying, planning, marketing, visual, etc.).
• Communicate initial release and replenishment strategies within cross functional team
• Participate in cross functional meetings, contributing input on distribution and/ or trading strategies.
• Compose and deliver key trading messages to the wider business.
• Collaborate with peers to ensure consistency of information, share best practices and develop systems knowledge
• Manage communication regarding inventory/replenishment with field contacts on a store-by-store basis if required
• Store visits to gain insight into performance and availability
• Participate in Company initiatives as appropriate

Experience, Skills & Knowledge

• Able to organize, prioritize tasks and manages time well to meet deadlines
• Demonstrates logical analysis and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrates good listening, written and oral communication skills, effectively and clearly communicates
• Able to build and maintain productive relationships within team environment
• Advanced PC and associated application skills in MS Word and Excel
• Show ability or aptitude in retail math, and to learn technical applications quickly