Planning Manager - Retail Commercial

AlFuttaim; Dubai; On-site; AED 260,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

AlFuttaim seeks an experienced Planning Manager – Retail Commercial in Dubai to drive sales forecasting, margin control, markdown strategy, and inventory planning across multi‑channel operations. You will align business plans with stock flow, category performance, pricing, and weekly trading insights for fashion, food, digital, store, and regional channels.

Ideal candidates bring 5–8 years in retail planning, strong analytical skills, and proficiency with BI tools to influence senior

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Merchandising, Retail Management, or a related field.
• Master’s degree or advanced qualification is preferred.
• 5–8 years of experience in retail planning or related areas.
• Experience in fashion, food, multi-channel, or regional retail planning is preferred.
• Strong forecasting, margin, markdown, and inventory skills.
• Proficient with planning systems and BI tools.

Responsibilities

• Plan the annual business plan by market and business unit.
• Deliver weekly WSSI planning for multiple categories.
• Lead forecasting of sales, gross profit, margin, markdown, and inventory.
• Build sales plans by market, store, category, and time period.
• Monitor forecast vs actuals and recommend corrective actions.
• Own markdown planning, pricing, and sell‑through optimization.
• Prepare weekly sales, stock, and inventory reports.
• Present performance and recommendations to senior stakeholders.

Skills

Retail planning

Forecasting sales

WSSI planning

Markdown planning

Inventory management

Excel

Power BI

Tableau

SAP

Oracle

JDA

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Merchandising, Retail Management, or related field

Master’s degree or advanced qualification

Tools

Excel

Power BI

Tableau

SAP

Oracle

JDA

Job description

Planning Manager – Retail Commercial

Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Industry: Retail

Job Type: Full‑time

Job Summary

Planning Manager – Retail Commercial in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is a Retail hiring opportunity for an experienced planning professional who can drive sales forecasting, margin control, markdown strategy, inventory planning, and commercial performance across multi‑channel retail operations. The role supports profitable growth by aligning business plans, stock flow, category performance, pricing activity, and weekly trading insight across fashion, food, digital, store, and regional channels.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan the annual business plan by market and business unit, ensuring financial targets are practical, measurable, and aligned with retail growth priorities.
• Deliver weekly WSSI planning for Clothing and Home, Food, and total business performance.
• Lead accurate forecasting of sales, gross profit, gross margin, markdown, inventory movement, and closing stock across all retail channels.
• Build sales plans by market, store, category, season, month, week, and day to support trading visibility and operational execution.
• Monitor forecast versus actual performance, identify variances, and recommend corrective action to protect commercial results.
• Own markdown planning across regions and channels, including markdown phasing, price reduction strategy, and sell‑through optimization.
• Analyze the financial impact of markdowns, promotional activity, aging stock, and stock clearance decisions.
• Partner with Merchandising, Buying, and Allocation teams to align seasonal plans, new product strategies, launches, and promotional priorities.
• Work with Retail and E‑Commerce teams to ensure markdowns are implemented accurately, on time, and in line with business requirements.
• Ensure Municipality Permission lists and market‑specific markdown requirements are submitted on time where applicable.
• Prepare weekly sales, stock, and inventory reports by business unit, channel, region, store, and category.
• Report on core KPIs including sales, gross profit, gross margin, markdown cost, aging stock, closing stock, and cash margin.
• Provide senior leadership with clear insight on risks, opportunities, performance gaps, trading actions, and forecast changes.
• Work with Supply Chain and Allocation teams to ensure stock flow supports sales targets, product availability, and inventory efficiency.
• Maintain and improve planning tools, dashboards, reporting templates, and performance tracking processes.
• Identify opportunities to improve forecast accuracy, automate reporting, standardize planning processes, and increase planning efficiency.
• Present financial performance, inventory movement, forecast updates, and commercial recommendations to senior stakeholders.

Ideal Profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Merchandising, Retail Management, or a related field.
• Master’s degree or advanced qualification is preferred.
• Minimum 5‑8 years of experience in retail planning, financial planning, merchandise planning, or commercial planning.
• Experience in fashion retail, food retail, multi‑channel retail, regional retail planning, or large‑format retail operations is highly preferred.
• Strong expertise in forecasting sales, gross profit, gross margin, markdown, aging stock, and closing inventory.
• Good understanding of WSSI planning, business unit sales planning, markdown management, seasonal planning, and stock optimization.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to connect sales plans, margin targets, product availability, and inventory performance.
• Confident user of planning systems, BI tools, and reporting platforms such as Excel, Power BI, Tableau, SAP, Oracle, JDA, or similar tools.
• Advanced analytical ability with strong attention to accuracy, data quality, and performance interpretation.
• Able to collaborate effectively with Merchandising, Buying, Allocation, Supply Chain, Retail, E‑Commerce, Finance, and Operations teams.
• Strong influencing skills with the ability to challenge assumptions and support decision‑making with clear evidence.
• Well organized, deadline‑focused, and able to manage multiple business units, categories, channels, and reporting cycles.
• Comfortable presenting plans, commercial results, risks, opportunities, and recommendations to senior leadership.

Core Skills

• Retail planning
• Merchandise planning
• Financial planning
• Sales forecasting
• WSSI planning
• Markdown planning & optimization
• Inventory management
• Gross margin & profit analysis
• Cash margin tracking
• Aging stock & closing stock analysis
• Category & business unit planning
• Seasonal planning
• Sales performance reporting
• Commercial analysis & KPI tracking
• Retail analytics
• E‑Commerce & store planning
• Allocation & supply chain coordination
• Promotional planning & business planning
• Excel, Power BI, Tableau, SAP, Oracle, JDA

Benefits & Opportunity

This role offers the opportunity to influence commercial planning inside a leading Dubai‑headquartered retail group with a wide regional footprint and a strong brand portfolio. The Planning Manager will work across multiple channels, categories, and markets, gaining exposure to high‑value retail decisions that affect sales performance, margin delivery, stock productivity, markdown efficiency, and customer availability. It is a strong fit for a retail planning professional who wants a commercially visible role with broad stakeholder impact and long‑term growth potential.