Associate Merchandise Planner

Clarks; Needham (MA); On-site; USD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in innovative shoemaking is seeking an Associate Merchandise Planner to support strategic planning and profitability. This role involves managing inventory, optimizing buy plans, and collaborating with various teams to forecast and analyze trends. The ideal candidate will have solid retail experience and strong analytical skills to enhance cash flow and optimize stock performance.

Qualifications

• Experience in retail merchandise planning, buying, demand, and supply planning; footwear experience is a plus.
• Knowledge of various business models such as Retail, Franchise, Outlet, Ecommerce, and Wholesale.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to interpret trends for planning and forecasting.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with departments to optimize buy plans and category strategies.
• Manage inventory through forecasting and support markdown processes.
• Provide analysis on assortment and profitability as needed.

Skills

Analytical Skills

Organizational Skills

Communication

Job description

The Associate Merchandise Planner will be responsible for supporting the profitability of their department by managing sales and inventory activities. This includes maintaining open-to-buy plans, assortment plans, monitoring sales and inventory, and providing stock productivity analysis. The role involves creating and analyzing forecasts across channels and reporting to the Planning Manager.

What You'll Be Doing :

• Collaborate with other departments to optimize buy plans, SKU assortment, and category strategies, working closely with Merchant and Product teams.
• Manage open-to-buy flow for the current season and develop an 18-month strategic plan for future seasons.
• Assist with in-season inventory management, including forecasting and adjustments, supporting markdown and closeout processes.
• Develop and update inventory productivity analyses, including stock aging, Pareto analysis, velocity, and seasonal mix.
• Prepare for monthly open-to-buy review meetings with the Manager and Merchants.
• Assess current inventory against plans, identifying risks and opportunities for optimization.
• Provide analysis on assortment, profitability, markdown cadence, stockouts, and service levels as needed.
• Work with Merchants to set buy targets by channel, breaking down plans to improve forecast accuracy and optimize cash flow.
• Support the development of weekly and monthly performance reports against KPIs.

What You'll Bring With You :

• Experience in retail merchandise planning, buying, demand, and supply planning; footwear experience is a plus.
• Knowledge of various business models such as Retail, Franchise, Outlet, Ecommerce, and Wholesale.
• Understanding of supply chain metrics and logistics.
• Experience across key distribution channels including wholesale, retail, and digital.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to interpret trends for planning and forecasting.
• Excellent verbal and organizational skills for coordinating feedback.
• Practical knowledge of financial, range, space, and demand planning processes.
• Understanding of trading and marketing planning processes.
• Proficiency in relevant computer tools.

About Clarks

Founded in 1825 in Somerset, England, Clarks has been a leader in innovative shoemaking, renowned for its craftsmanship and iconic designs like the Desert Boot and Wallabee. This season, Clarks introduces the Clarks Collective, a group of activists promoting social change through its global campaign, For the World Ahead.

Clarks values diversity and inclusion, striving to create an environment where everyone has equal opportunities to succeed. The company is committed to non-discrimination based on sex, age, disability, marital status, race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender re-assignment, in accordance with local laws.