Merchandise Planner

Key Responsibilities

Merchandise & Sales Planning

• Develop seasonal, monthly, and weekly merchandise plans in line with Nysaa's sales and commercial objectives.
• Prepare sales, stock, intake, and inventory forecasts by category, brand, store, and channel.
• Analyze historical sales trends, market trends, seasonality, and promotional activity to support merchandise planning.
• Monitor performance against budget, forecast, and business targets and recommend corrective actions.
• Support the development of assortment and range plans based on customer demand and commercial performance.

Inventory & Stock Management

• Maintain optimal inventory levels and ensure effective stock availability across stores.
• Monitor stock cover, sell-through, stock turn, ageing, and availability.
• Identify overstock, understock, slow-moving, and non-performing products and recommend appropriate actions.
• Work closely with Supply Chain and Operations on replenishment and stock allocation.
• Develop and maintain store-level allocation and replenishment plans.
• Support new store openings by preparing initial stock and assortment requirements.

Open-to-Buy (OTB) & Financial Planning

• Manage and monitor the Open-to-Buy (OTB) plan in coordination with the Merchandising and Finance teams.
• Track planned versus actual sales, purchases, stock levels, and inventory commitments.
• Provide recommendations on future purchases based on sales performance and available inventory budget.
• Support markdown and clearance planning to optimize inventory and minimize aged stock.

Reporting & Analysis

• Prepare regular trading and merchandise performance reports.
• Analyze key KPIs including:
  • Sales and sales growth
  • Sell-through %
  • Stock turn
  • Stock cover
  • Gross margin
  • Average selling price
  • Inventory ageing
  • Availability / out-of-stock %
  • Markdown performance
• Highlight key business risks and opportunities and provide actionable recommendations to management.
• Maintain accurate merchandise planning and reporting data.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Buyers to translate category and brand strategies into commercially viable merchandise plans.
• Work closely with Retail Operations to understand store-level performance and stock requirements.
• Coordinate with Marketing on promotions, launches, campaigns, and seasonal activities.
• Collaborate with Supply Chain to ensure timely stock availability and replenishment.
• Work with Finance to align merchandise plans with budgets and financial targets.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Sales achievement vs. budget
• Forecast accuracy
• Inventory turnover
• Sell-through %
• Stock availability
• Stock cover
• Gross margin achievement
• Reduction of aged and slow-moving inventory
• OTB accuracy and control
• Replenishment effectiveness

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Retail Management, Supply Chain, Merchandising, or a related field.
• 3-5 years of experience in merchandise planning, retail planning, commercial planning, or a similar role.
• Experience within beauty, cosmetics, fashion, or specialty retail is preferred.
• Strong experience in sales forecasting, inventory planning, replenishment, and commercial analysis.
• Experience working with multiple brands, categories, and retail locations is an advantage.

Technical Skills

• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including Pivot Tables, XLOOKUP/VLOOKUP, SUMIFS, and data analysis.
• Strong understanding of retail planning and merchandise KPIs.
• Experience with ERP, merchandising, BI, or planning systems.
• Strong analytical and numerical skills.
• Ability to interpret large datasets and convert insights into commercial actions.

Competencies

• Analytical thinking
• Commercial acumen
• Planning and organization
• Attention to detail
• Problem-solving
• Stakeholder management
• Communication and collaboration
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
• Proactive and results-oriented approach
• Strong understanding of customer and market trends