Accessory Category Manager

Ashley Furniture Industries; Town of Arcadia (WI); On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Comprehensive benefits

Career growth opportunities

Job summary

A global furniture retailer seeks an Accessory Category Manager to lead sourcing of trendy home accents. This essential role involves trend forecasting, vendor collaboration, and product development, ensuring accessory offerings enhance furniture collections. The candidate should possess a relevant bachelor's degree and over 5 years of experience in merchandising or product planning, alongside keen analytical and organizational skills. Creative professionals passionate about home furnishings and capable of traveling domestically and internationally will thrive in this position, which offers competitive compensation and benefits.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in assortment planning, merchandising, or product planning.
• Moderate domestic and international travel required.
• Ability to curate cohesive accessory collections.

Responsibilities

• Research future trends and marketplace developments.
• Source domestic and international accents based on company needs.
• Compile development requests into comprehensive presentations.
• Follow up with samples to ensure all market introductions ship on time.

Skills

Trend forecasting

Vendor negotiation

Product development

Analytical skills

Time management

Interior design knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in Merchandising, Fashion, or related field

Job description

Join Ashley Furniture's Global Design & Merchandising team as an Accessory Category Manager, where you'll source trend-forward domestic and international home accents that keep Ashley competitive and fashion-forward in the home furnishings industry. This creative and strategic role combines trend forecasting, vendor relationships, product development, and merchandising expertise to curate a compelling accessory assortment.

You'll work at the intersection of design, sourcing, and sales—traveling to markets, collaborating with vendors worldwide, and ensuring our accessory offerings perfectly complement our furniture collections.

What You'll Do

• Research future trends and marketplace developments through online research, retail shopping, and wholesale market visits
• Provide trend recommendations to retail and sales management
• Stay ahead of industry trends to keep Ashley fashion-forward and competitive
• Monitor competitive landscape and identify opportunities

Product Development & Sourcing

• Source domestic and international accents based on company needs and trend direction
• Work with furniture development teams to coordinate complementary accessory development
• Collaborate with domestic and international vendors to develop samples
• Make modifications to product development as needed
• Inspect first production runs to verify design integrity
• Build and maintain relationships with domestic and international suppliers
• Negotiate pricing and terms with vendors
• Communicate development needs and specifications to suppliers
• Make strategic decisions to drop items if pricing or quality doesn't meet standards
• Work with vendors to ensure quality and shipment improvements

Development Presentations & Specifications

• Compile development requests into comprehensive presentations with inspiration, images, specifications, and target pricing
• Present development concepts to suppliers
• Validate shipping, images, target pricing, and ensure item information accuracy
• Coordinate with international sourcing team on necessary forms and documentation
• Recommend wholesale prices based on competitive market analysis
• Collaborate with Finance to ensure costing meets market deadlines
• Manage velocity and sales reports to gauge projections for current and future items
• Analyze sales data to inform buying decisions

Market Preparation & Execution

• Follow up with samples to ensure all market introductions ship on-time
• Assign names and SKU numbers to new introductions in collaboration with team
• Provide information to legal department for product approval
• Tag accessory items at market with accurate information and pricing
• Make recommendations for market line-up associations
• Train marketing specialists on product features and styling
• Write product knowledge and descriptions for training, tags, price lists, and catalogs
• Coordinate photography line-up and in-line associations to support sales
• Work with sales management to determine potential "Go" decisions during market
• Maintain list of "No Go" items and determine disposition
• Work with market team on damages and missing items

What You'll Bring

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Merchandising, Fashion, or related field (or equivalent work experience)
• 5+ years of experience in assortment planning, merchandising, and/or product planning
• Moderate domestic and international travel required
• Flexible schedule with willingness to work extended hours when necessary
• Interior design knowledge with excellent eye for color
• Ability to curate cohesive accessory collections
• Understanding of how accessories complement furniture

Business & Analytical Skills

• Strong negotiation skills with vendors
• Analytical and problem-solving abilities
• Data analysis for sales projections and velocity management
• Strategic thinking and decision-making
• Working knowledge of Continuous Improvement

Technical & Organizational Skills

• Effective time management and organizational skills
• Handle multiple projects simultaneously within established time constraints
• Strong attention to detail and accuracy
• Moderate domestic and international travel to markets, vendors, and trade shows
• Flexible hours during market periods and product development cycles

Why Ashley Furniture?

• Shape trend direction for one of the world's largest furniture retailers
• Travel internationally to discover emerging trends and work with global vendors
• Creative role combining design, merchandising, and business strategy
• High visibility with collaboration across Design, Sales, Marketing, and Finance
• Industry leadership in home furnishings innovation
• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits
• Career growth within Global Design & Merchandising organization
• Dynamic environment with constant product innovation

Our Core Values

• Ethics and Values - Doing what's right in all vendor and business relationships
• Integrity and Trust - Building reliable partnerships
• Innovation - Staying trend-forward and competitive
• Collaboration - Working across teams to achieve excellence
• Customer Focus - Creating products customers love

Ready to Apply?

Join Ashley Furniture Industries as an Accessory Category Manager and help us stay at the forefront of home décor trends!

This creative role offers the perfect blend of trend forecasting, global sourcing, and strategic merchandising for passionate home furnishings professionals.

Ashley Furniture Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer