Planning Manager 12 month FTC

JR United Kingdom; London; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the retail sector is seeking a Planning Manager for a 12-month fixed-term contract. The successful candidate will oversee planning across departments, support financial targets, and lead a multi-tiered team. Ideal candidates will possess extensive experience in merchandise planning and financial forecasting, with proven leadership skills and a strategic mindset to drive business performance.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in merchandise planning and financial forecasting.
• Experience leading multi-category and multi-channel businesses.
• Excellent stakeholder management across levels.

Responsibilities

• Oversee planning across departments, driving performance.
• Lead a multi-tiered team with direction and performance appraisals.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to develop and execute strategies.

Skills

Merchandise planning

Financial forecasting

Leadership

Strategic mindset

Data-led decision making

Communication

Tools

Excel

EP

WSSI

OTB tools

BI tools (e.g. Qlik, Power BI)

Zebra Pricing Tool

Job description

Social network you want to login/join with:

Job Title: Planning Manager 12-month FTC

Reports To: Director of Planning

Location: London Office

• Oversee and manage planning across multiple departments and channels, driving commercial performance through strategic planning, effective trading, and cross-functional collaboration to deliver financial targets and operational excellence.

• Lead and develop a multi-tiered team, providing clear direction, regular performance appraisals, and tailored development plans to build capability and support individual growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Set and manage financial targets by department and category, aligned with business objectives.
• Lead strategies to grow the full-price business and protect/drive comp sales.
• Act as the Full Price business lead—consolidating department insights and providing short- and long-term topline forecasts.
• Own the monthly Open-to-Buy (OTB) process and ensure regular in-season forecasting and trade reactivity.
• Analyse WSSI data to identify commercial opportunities and minimise business risks.
• Deliver reports and business recaps, analysing sales, inventory, markdowns, and profit performance at both topline and regional/classification levels.
• Conduct pre-sign financial meetings with Planning and Buying teams ahead of market to review budgets, align on financial targets, assess prior performance, and ensure investment decisions are data-driven and commercially sound.

Merchandise & Assortment Strategy

• Partner with the Buying team to shape seasonal merchandise assortments in line with financial plans.
• Analyse key metrics (ROS, sell-through, sales density) and present findings to senior management to inform actionable strategies.
• Recommend seasonal buys based on deep commercial analysis to optimise sales, profitability, and sell-through rates.
• Collaborate with Field team, Allocation and Buying to manage product flow and assortment by classification.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Retail, Buying, Finance, and Store Operations to develop and execute commercial strategies.
• Support New Store Openings in collaboration with Buying and Branch teams supporting with financial planning, stock builds, and forecasting.
• Develop financial strategies in partnership with Field to monitor and exceed planned performance.
• Manage and develop a multi-tiered team, providing coaching, clear expectations, and regular performance feedback.
• Build a high-performing, commercially focused planning team, fostering accountability, curiosity, and continuous learning.
• Identify rising talent and support the career development of direct report

Inventory Management & Exit Strategies

• Monitor stock levels, weeks of supply, and sell-through rates to ensure alignment with stock targets.
• Develop and implement exit strategies for aged and underperforming stock to protect margin and improve inventory efficiency.

Skills & Experience Required:

• Strong background in merchandise planning and financial forecasting (at least 7 years).
• Experience managing a multi-category and multi-channel business.
• Proven leadership in developing and coaching teams.
• High proficiency in planning systems (e.g. EP, WSSI, OTB tools) and strong Excel skills.
• Commercially astute, with a strategic mindset and the ability to drive performance through data-led decisions.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills across levels and functions.
• Experience in a luxury or premium retail environment.
• Familiarity with systems like BI tools (e.g. Qlik, Power BI), Zebra Pricing Tool, or other analytical platforms.