Associate Merchandise Planner Opportunities

SmartRecruiters, Inc.; Auckland; On-site; NZD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Discounts across brands

Birthday leave

26 weeks parental leave

Free parking

Friday WFH option

Onsite gym and café

Job summary

The Warehouse Group is hiring an Associate Merchandise Planner to support category planning across Apparel, Home, Grocery and more. You will partner with Buyers and Merchandise Planners to optimise stock, forecast demand and maximise profitability.

You will learn end-to-end retail lifecycle from strategy through to post-season analysis, while developing your planning capabilities for future leadership roles.

Qualifications

• Business or Commercial degree or equivalent.
• Strong analytical and numerical capability.
• Proactive and collaborative mindset with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute merchandise plans to drive sales, inventory and margins.
• Analyse sales, profitability and inventory trends.
• Partner with Buyers and Planners to deliver category objectives and trading plans.
• Support forecasting, promotions and seasonal planning cycles.

Skills

Analytical mindset

Excel skills

Stakeholder management

Commercial acumen

Education

Business or Commercial degree

Tools

Forecasting systems

Job description

• Full-time
• Contract Type: Permanent

Company Description

Build Your Career in Merchandise Planning

Since 1982, The Warehouse has been part of the moments that shape Kiwi lives. From first school uniforms and first flats to family milestones and everyday essentials, generations of New Zealanders have grown up with our brand. That connection is at the heart of This Is Warehouse Country, celebrating the place The Warehouse holds in communities across Aotearoa.

Today, we're transforming and investing in the future of Merchandise Planning at The Warehouse Group. We're looking for commercially curious, analytically minded future planners ready to build the next stage of their career.

Job Description

This role is an opportunity to learn one of retail's key commercial disciplines that influence decisions that impact millions of customers’ purchases every year.

As an Associate Merchandise Planner, you'll partner with Merchandise Planners, Buyers and broader teams to help drive sales, inventory performance and profitability across some of New Zealand’s largest retail categories. Whether your passion sits in Apparel, Home, Grocery, Lifestyle, Toys, Technology or one of our many other categories, you'll play an important role in helping ensure we have the right products, in the right place, at the right time.

You’ll develop the skills, capability and commercial mindset needed to progress your planning career while gaining exposure to the end-to-end retail lifecycle, from strategy and forecasting through to trading, promotions and post-season analysis.

Most importantly, you'll be joining a planning function designed around development, progression and future leadership.

What You'll Be Doing

Drive commercial performance

• Support the development and execution of merchandise plans
• Analyse sales, profitability, inventory and customer trends
• Identify commercial risks and opportunities and recommend actions
• Help optimise stock investment to maximise sales and margin outcomes
• Build forecasts and monitor performance against plan
• Produce insights that support trading and ranging decisions
• Support promotional planning and seasonal events
• Contribute to category reviews and future planning cycles

Partner across the business

• Work closely with Buyers and Merchandise Planners to deliver category objectives
• Collaborate with Supply Chain, Replenishment and Store Operations teams
• Contribute to planning discussions that influence customer outcomes and business performance

Build your capability

• Develop commercial, analytical and stakeholder management skills
• Gain exposure to planning systems, forecasting tools and retail reporting platforms
• Build a strong foundation for future progression within Merchandise Planning

Qualifications

You might already have experience/exposure to merchandise planning, allocation, forecasting, inventory management, retail analysis, finance, supply chain or another commercially focused analytical role. More importantly, you're someone who enjoys understanding how businesses work and can combine data, curiosity and commercial thinking to solve problems.

You'll bring:

• Business or Commercial focused degree
• Problem solving ability
• Strong Excel skills, analytical and numerical capability
• A highly curious and inquisitive mindset
• Strong attention to detail and organisational skills
• Resilience and adaptability in a fast-moving retail environment
• A genuine desire to build a long-term career in Merchandise Planning

Additional Information

Come work with us!

Build a meaningful career. When you join us, you'll join a team committed to developing future planning talent and helping people grow their careers. Learn from the best as you work alongside experienced planners and commercial leaders who will coach, support and challenge you as you build your expertise.

When you join us, we offer a range of benefits that work for you, your lifestyle, and your career, which include:

• Discounts across our brands
• Birthday leave and charity day off
• 26 weeks paid parental leave
• Free parking, EV charging at our Northshore support office
• We value collaboration, connection & flexibility – with 1 day (Friday) WFH
• Onsite gym and café at our Northcote support office (great views of the Waitemata and a decent lunch menu!)
• A range of wellbeing support, ongoing learning and development opportunities