Merchandising Analyst – 5 month FTC

Retail Human Resources plc; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 38,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Hybrid work schedule

Job summary

Retail Human Resources plc is seeking a Merchandise Analyst to shape planning, pricing, promotion and space decisions. You will own analytics for trading moments, build Power BI dashboards, and run SQL queries, presenting insights to senior stakeholders to optimise sales and margin.

You will assess pricing against competitors, measure promotions, uncover halo effects and maximise space at store level, while aligning with inventory to support Merchandising Planning.

Qualifications

• Strong analytical background with retail merchandising exposure.
• Advanced Excel skills and hands-on experience building dashboards.
• SQL querying ability and experience with Power BI reports.
• Ability to present insights to senior stakeholders and translate analysis into actions.

Responsibilities

• Own analytics behind key trading moments and create the hindsighting deck.
• Deliver line plan analytics and in-season performance analysis.
• Analyse pricing vs competitors and promotional effectiveness to optimise margin.
• Provide ad hoc analysis to the Director of Merchandising and support space analytics.
• Track market share data and identify opportunities to improve basket size and customer growth.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Stakeholder presentation

Problem solving

Data storytelling

Tools

SQL

Power BI

Excel

Job description

An established retailer is looking for a merchandise analyst to support the wider merchandising and buying team. They’re looking for someone to shape how our collections are planned, priced, promoted and placed. You'll sit at the heart of their product strategy, bringing sharp analysis and clear recommendations that drive sales, margin and customer growth.

In this role, you'll own the analytics behind our key trading moments. You'll build the hindsighting deck, deliver line plan analytics and in-season performance analysis, and bring advanced insight to our hindsighting and Strategic Alignment Meetings, drawing on market and trend data to add context. You'll combine productivity metrics such as return on inventory and return on space with sales, margin and customer metrics (including customer growth and new customer acquisition) to spot forward-looking opportunities. You'll also review line plans as they develop in season, offering a clear viewpoint on the adjustments we should consider, and you'll own our market share data, tracking our progress over time.

Your work will directly influence commercial outcomes across the business. You'll analyse our pricing against competitors to find ways to optimise price and customer willingness to pay while improving margin. You'll assess the effectiveness of each promotional event, weighing its net contribution against its impact on the brand, and give product clear recommendations. You'll uncover halo effects and attachment opportunities that grow basket size, identify product clustering opportunities by store, and use store-level space analytics alongside Allocation to maximise return on space. You'll also recommend smarter ways to use inventory to Merchandise Planning and Allocation, and provide ad hoc analysis to the Director of Merchandising as priorities evolve.

You will be someone with a strong analytical background, within a retail merchandising set up. You'll need advanced Excel skills, strong SQL for querying and manipulating data, and hands-on experience building dashboards and reports in Power BI. You'll be comfortable presenting insights to senior stakeholders, balancing commercial ambition with brand considerations, and translating complex analysis into practical recommendations.

The role offers a £45,000 plus benefits package. The retailer is based in Watford and offers a hybrid working schedule where you are required to be in the office 2 days a week. Please note this role is a 5 month fixed term contract.

Reference: RS - 4000