Assistant Manager - Buying & Merchandising - Category Footwear

Skechers USA Ltd.; Mumbai; On-site; INR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

Skechers India, based in Mumbai, is seeking an Assistant Manager to support seasonal range planning, assortment building, buying and merchandising, and product development for the Footwear category. You will work with cross-functional teams to ensure the right product, timing, pricing and channel mix, aligned with business objectives and store performance.

Responsibilities include season range planning, assortment depth, delivery tracking, inventory management, and collaboration on EOSS and

Responsibilities

• Season Range Planning & Assortment Building: develop seasonal footwear ranges based on objectives, trends, and consumer requirements.
• Buying & Merchandise Planning: assist in developing seasonal buying plan, track buys, monitor availability and inventory.
• Season Launch & Delivery Tracking: own delivery tracking, maintain trackers, coordinate to avoid delays with Go-To-Market calendar.
• Product Performance & Sell-Through Management: analyse performance across region/store/channel/gender/size, identify action.
• EOSS & Markdown Planning: support planning and execution of End of Season Sale, monitor ageing inventory.
• Product Development: support new product development with internal teams and stakeholders.

Job description

The Assistant Manager - Buying, Merchandising & Product Development will support the seasonal range planning, assortment building, buying and merchandising activities, product performance analysis, EOSS planning, and product development initiatives for the Footwear category at Skechers India.

The role will work closely with the Buying & Merchandising, Product Development, Planning, Marketing, Retail Operations, Visual Merchandising, and other cross-functional teams to ensure the right product, assortment, quantity, timing, pricing and channel mix are delivered in line with business objectives.

The position will also be responsible for monitoring category and product performance at the store, region, channel, gender, style and size level, identifying opportunities and supporting corrective actions to maximise sales, sell-through, inventory productivity and profitability.

Job Title

Buying & Merchandising

Designation

Assistant Manager

Department

Category - Footwear

Position Type

Permanent

Location

Mumbai

Reporting To

Senior Manager - Buying & Merchandising

No. of Reportees

Individual Contributor

KEY ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Season Range Planning & Assortment Building

Support the development of seasonal footwear ranges based on business objectives, historical performance, market trends and consumer requirements.

Analyse previous-season performance to identify winning styles, underperforming products, gaps and opportunities for the upcoming season.

Support assortment planning across categories, gender, product types, price points, technologies, franchises and channels .

Assist in determining the optimum width and depth of assortment based on store grades, regional requirements and channel potential.

Support the development of OTB and buy recommendations in line with business plans.

Ensure the assortment is balanced across core, fashion, seasonal and newness products.

Participate in seasonal range reviews and product selection meetings with relevant stakeholders.

2. Buying & Merchandise Planning

Support the Buying Manager/Senior Manager in developing the seasonal buying plan for the assigned category.

Prepare and maintain buy forms, assortment sheets, range plans, catalogues and other buying-related documents .

Track planned versus actual buys and highlight significant deviations.

Monitor product availability and ensure adequate inventory coverage for key styles and periods.

Coordinate with Planning and Supply Chain teams to ensure product availability as per the agreed seasonal calendar.

Support decisions related to replenishment, stock balancing, liquidation and inventory movement based on product performance.

Monitor inventory ageing and identify potential risks to minimise excess and obsolete inventory.

3. Season Launch & Delivery Tracking

Take ownership of tracking seasonal product deliveries for the respective category.

Maintain detailed trackers for planned, received and pending deliveries.

Coordinate with relevant internal teams to identify and resolve delays or gaps impacting season launches.

Ensure key launches are aligned with the agreed Go-To-Market calendar .

Highlight delivery risks and provide timely updates to the Buying/Merchandising leadership team.

Support cross-functional teams in ensuring that new-season products are available in stores within the planned launch timelines.

4. Product Performance & Sell-Through Management

Conduct periodic, in-depth analysis of category performance across:

• Region
• Store grade
• Store/channel
• Category
• Gender
• Product/style
• Size
• Price point
• Season

Monitor sales, sell-through, stock cover, inventory levels, ageing, markdowns and profitability .

Identify top-performing and underperforming styles and recommend appropriate actions.

Analyse store-level performance and identify assortment gaps or over/under-stock situations.

Support initiatives to improve full-price sell-through and inventory productivity .

Provide regular performance dashboards and actionable insights to the Buying & Merchandising team.

Track agreed GM% and category profitability deliverables and highlight areas requiring corrective action.

5. EOSS & Markdown Planning

Support the Buying Manager in planning and executing End of Season Sale (EOSS) activities.

Analyse ageing and slow-moving inventory to identify products requiring markdown or liquidation.

Support markdown recommendations based on product performance, inventory position, store/channel and seasonality.

Monitor EOSS performance and sell-through during the sale period.

Track inventory liquidation and identify opportunities to minimise carry-forward stock.

Prepare post-EOSS analysis and recommendations for future seasons.

6. Product Development

Support new product development initiatives for key channels, strategic partners and specific market opportunities.

Coordinate with internal Product Development/Design teams and other stakeholders for product briefs, specifications and development timelines.

Conduct market and competitor analysis to