Senior Planner - Merchandise Strategy

GMG Gulf; Dubai; On-site; AED 200,880 - 290,160; Full time

Job summary

GMG Gulf is seeking a Senior Planner - Merchandise Strategy in Dubai to lead merchandise financial planning for designated brands and categories. You will translate historical performance, market trends and customer demand into sales, margin and inventory plans, collaborating with buying, finance, operations and supply chain to guide assortment, stock investment, replenishment and markdown decisions.

The role emphasizes improving planning accuracy, controlling GMROII, open-to-buy and stock

Qualifications

• Five to seven years of relevant experience in merchandise planning, retail planning or category financial planning.
• Advanced knowledge of merchandise financial planning principles.
• Strong understanding of GMROII, open-to-buy, sell-through and stock cover.
• Proven experience developing seasonal sales, margin and inventory plans.

Responsibilities

• Lead annual and seasonal merchandise financial planning across assigned brands and categories.
• Develop sales targets, gross margin expectations, inventory budgets and open-to-buy frameworks.
• Build detailed sales forecasts using historical data, market intelligence and category trends.
• Monitor in-season sales, margin, stock and category performance.
• Protect product availability by identifying potential stock-out risks.

Skills

Merchandise planning

GMROII

Open-to-buy

Sell-through

Stock allocation

Forecasting

Excel

ERP systems

Category planning

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Business Management

Tools

Microsoft Excel

BI tools

ERP systems (SAP, Oracle)

Job description

Job Title: Senior Planner - Merchandise Strategy

Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Industry: Retail

Function: Merchandise Planning and Buying

Experience: 5-7 years

Job Type: Full-time

Salary: 18000-26000 (Estimated salary range; confirm with employer.)

Role Context

The Senior Planner - Merchandise Strategy will lead merchandise financial planning across assigned brands and categories. The position converts historical performance, market trends and customer demand into practical sales, margin and inventory plans that support profitable retail growth. Working closely with buying, merchandising, finance, retail operations and supply chain teams, the senior planner will provide commercial guidance on assortment, stock investment, replenishment, allocation and markdown decisions. The role is accountable for improving planning accuracy and maintaining strong control over GMROII, open-to-buy, sell-through, stock cover and inventory productivity.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead annual and seasonal merchandise financial planning across assigned brands and categories.
• Develop sales targets, gross margin expectations, inventory budgets and open-to-buy frameworks.
• Build detailed sales forecasts using historical data, market intelligence and category trends.
• Create financial guardrails that support assortment planning and buying decisions.
• Partner with Buying teams to define category strategies and seasonal investment priorities.
• Review proposed assortments against sales, margin and stock productivity objectives.
• Monitor in-season sales, margin, stock and category performance.
• Recommend actions to maximize revenue and profitability during active trading periods.
• Lead stock balancing across stores, channels and locations.
• Guide replenishment and allocation decisions based on demand and inventory position.
• Monitor sell-through, stock cover, markdown performance and gross margin return on inventory investment.
• Track open-to-buy utilization and identify overspend or underinvestment risks.
• Recommend stock transfers, order adjustments and replenishment changes.
• Identify slow-moving, ageing and excess inventory.
• Develop markdown and clearance recommendations to improve stock liquidation.
• Protect product availability by identifying potential stock-out risks.
• Conduct post-season reviews covering sales, margin, inventory and assortment performance.
• Identify successful products, underperforming areas and planning gaps.
• Translate post-season findings into recommendations for future buying cycles.
• Prepare scenario models to evaluate changes in demand, pricing and inventory investment.
• Produce category financial models and commercial planning reports.
• Maintain accurate planning data across merchandise and enterprise systems.
• Develop dashboards and reports using advanced Excel and business intelligence tools.
• Present planning insights and recommendations to senior stakeholders.
• Support continuous improvement of merchandise planning processes and controls.
• Ensure planning activities remain aligned with retail calendars, trade plans and promotional strategies.
• Complete additional merchandise planning assignments required by management.

Ideal Profile

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Business Management or a related discipline.
• Five to seven years of relevant experience in merchandise planning, retail planning or category financial planning.
• Advanced knowledge of merchandise financial planning principles.
• Strong understanding of GMROII, open-to-buy, sell-through and stock cover.
• Proven experience developing seasonal sales, margin and inventory plans.
• Strong forecasting and demand‑planning capabilities.
• Experience managing stock allocation, replenishment and inventory optimization.
• Ability to perform post‑season analysis and convert findings into future planning actions.
• Strong understanding of retail cycles, buying calendars and trade strategies.
• Experience building category financial models and planning scenarios.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
• Practical experience with business intelligence and data visualization tools.
• Familiarity with merchandise financial planning platforms.
• Working knowledge of ERP, SAP, Oracle or comparable planning systems.
• Strong analytical, numerical and problem‑solving abilities.
• Commercial mindset with close attention to detail.
• Effective communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to influence buying and merchandising decisions using data.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage several planning cycles simultaneously.

Skills Set

• Merchandise financial planning
• Retail planning
• GMROII
• Open-to-buy planning
• Sell-through analysis
• Stock cover analysis
• Sales forecasting
• Demand planning
• Inventory budgeting
• Margin planning
• Category planning
• Assortment strategy
• Stock allocation
• Replenishment planning
• Inventory optimization
• Stock balancing
• Markdown management
• Post-season analysis
• Category financial modelling
• Scenario planning
• Advanced Microsoft Excel
• Business intelligence tools
• Merchandise planning systems
• ERP systems (SAP, Oracle)
• Performance reporting
• Retail trade planning

About the Company

GMG is a global well‑being company that retails, distributes and manufactures international and home‑grown brands across sport, food, health and consumer sectors. Its operations span GMG Sports, GMG Food, GMG Health and GMG Consumer Goods across the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. Under the ownership and management of the Baker family, GMG has introduced more than 120 brands into its markets.