Merchandiser

Group Merchandiser – Wholesale, DTC & Retail

Reports To: Head of Merchandising

Direct Reports: Junior Merchandisers, Assistant Merchandisers and Merchandising Admin Assistants

Purpose

To take full ownership of the merchandising function across all sales channels - Wholesale, DTC and Retail – leading the team, the planning and the systems that keep the right stock in the right channel at the right time. This is a leadership role responsible for stock forecasting, cover, markdown and channel strategy, for owning the full suite of merchandising operational systems, and for acting as the central bridge between supply chain and the wider business. Developing the team - bringing admin-level talent through to junior merchandiser level - sits at the heart of the role.

Key Responsibilities

Merchandising Ownership & Strategy

• Take full ownership of merchandising across Wholesale, DTC and Retail, ensuring a joined-up approach across all channels
• Own the seasonal merchandise financial plans – sales, stock, intake, margin and OTB - across channels, and set the KPIs the team trades against
• Set the overall stock, cover and markdown strategy and hold the team accountable to it
• Lead weekly trade, presenting performance, risks and opportunities to senior stakeholders and driving the actions that follow

Planning, Forecasting & Trading

• Own stock forecasting and cover targets across all channels, reforecasting in-season as trade dictates
• Own the WSSI, OTB and range planning process end to end, ensuring plans are accurate, commercial and aligned to strategy
• Build and sign off range plans in conjunction with Buying, balancing range width and depth against sales and stock targets
• Use sales analysis to identify best-backed lines, expected rates of sale, risks and rebuy opportunities at line and category level

Stock, Cover & Channel Management

• Direct stock movements between sales channels based on where stock is most likely to sell, maximising full-price sell-through and minimising markdown
• Set and manage cover targets by channel and product group, acting decisively where cover is short or long
• Own the markdown and clearance strategy, managing markdown within budget and protecting margin
• Manage terminal and aged stock, identifying clearance routes and channels to exit stock efficiently

Systems & Operational Ownership

• Understand and utilise all systems used across the business, owning how merchandising data flows between them
• Own the merchandising operational systems and processes - WSSI, Range Plans, OTB, Sales Analysis, Open Sales Orders (OSO) and Product Group Sales Analysis (PGSA) - ensuring they are accurate, well-controlled and fit for purpose
• Own Retail operations flowing from NetSuite Planning & Budgeting (NSPB) through to Shopify, ensuring data integrity across the chain
• Drive continuous improvement of merchandising systems and processes, working closely with the system infrastructure and wider business
• Ensure the team operates to a consistent, well-controlled set of processes end to end

Supply Chain Bridge & Intake Management

• Act as the bridge between supply chain and the wider business, translating what has been bought for the season into clear plans for every department
• Plan and stagger drops and intake phasing so stock lands when it is needed, without overwhelming any warehouse with more intake than it can service
• Communicate best-backed lines, expected rates of sale and key launches to internal teams to align focus across the business
• Manage commitment and the critical path with supply chain, flagging and resolving intake risks, delays and capacity constraints

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, manage and develop the merchandising team across all channels, setting clear objectives and standards
• Bring admin-level talent through to junior merchandiser level, with structured development, coaching and succession planning
• Conduct regular reviews, appraisals and one-to-ones, supporting both performance and progression
• Build a high-performing, collaborative team culture and ensure knowledge and best practice are shared

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Buying, Ecommerce, Marketing, Retail Operations, Finance and Supply Chain to align on product, trade and stock priorities
• Partner with Ecommerce and Marketing on launch timing, forward order books and what is selling across channels
• Maintain strong relationships with key wholesale accounts where required, supporting the team on planning and forecasting
• Represent merchandising in cross-functional and senior leadership forums

Skills & Experience

• A seasoned merchandiser who has already owned and led a full merchandising function, and is expected to step in and lead this one with authority from day one
• Brings a deep, hands-on command of every part of the discipline - planning, trading, systems and people – built across Wholesale, DTC and/or Retail (sportswear, footwear or fashion preferred)
• A proven people leader with a demonstrable history of building, managing and developing high-performing teams, including progressing admin-level talent into merchandising roles
• Full command of WSSI, OTB, range planning and merchandise financial planning
• Strong systems capability across ERP and merchandising platforms – NetSuite (including NSPB), Shopify, PowerBI and WMS - with the ability to own processes end to end
• Advanced analytical and Excel skills, confident working with large, multi-channel data sets
• Strong commercial acumen across forecasting, cover, markdown and margin
• Solid understanding of supply chain, intake phasing and critical path management
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management, able to operate strategically while staying close to the detail
• Operates with the credibility and judgement that only come from having owned a merchandising function end to end before