Merchandise Planner

XX-XY Athletics; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 34,000 - 55,000; Part time

Job summary

XX-XY Athletics is seeking a part-time, hands-on Demand & Supply Planner with light merchandising responsibilities in Denver. You will connect what we intend to sell with what we buy, ensuring the assortment is efficient, productive, and financially sound.

You will work closely with Finance, Design, and Operations to align plans with cash flow and timing. This role requires building the demand plan, tracking performance, and turning insights into actions.

Qualifications

• Experience in demand, inventory, or merchandise planning in apparel or consumer goods.
• Fluent in spreadsheet modeling using Excel or Google Sheets.
• Hands-on, independent worker who can pull data and build tools.
• Startup or high-growth experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain the demand plan by units, timing, channel, and style.
• Collaborate with Finance on receipts, turns, margins, and open-to-buy.
• Collaborate with Design on assortment architecture to keep line tight.
• Translate the plan into POs with Ops; own light merchandising.
• Track sell-through, weeks of supply, aging; flag risks early.
• Attend on-site in Denver for half-day weekly.

Skills

Demand planning

Inventory planning

Merchandise planning

Spreadsheet modeling

Startup mindset

On-site collaboration

Hands-on execution

Tools

Excel

Google Sheets

Job description

This is a part-time, fully hands‑on Demand & Supply Planning role with light merchandising responsibility. You will own the connection between what we intend to sell, what we buy, and what the assortment should look like so it is efficient, productive, and financially sound.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain the demand plan — units, timing, channel, and style-level — and keep it current as sales, inventory, and marketing plans change.
• Partner with Finance on the financial plan: receipts, inventory turns, margin, open-to-buy, and cash implications of buys.
• Partner with Design on assortment architecture so the line is tight, productive, and not bloated — fewer, better, right sizes and depths.
• Partner with Supply Chain / Operations to convert the plan into purchase orders and receipts that we can actually execute.
• Own light merchandising: depth vs. breadth tradeoffs, carryover vs. newness, size curves, color stories that sell, and SKU hygiene.
• Track sell-through, weeks of supply, and aging; flag over/under-bought styles early and recommend action.
• Keep simple, usable tools (spreadsheets first; systems later if they earn their keep). No theater. Numbers that people can act on.
• Show up in Denver one half-day per week to work live with the team on assortment, buys, and the plan.

What “Good” Looks Like

• The demand plan is trusted by Finance and used to place real buys — not a slide deck.
• Assortment is tighter and more productive over time: higher sell-through, fewer dogs, clearer heroes.
• Buys land on time and in the right quantities relative to cash and capacity.
• You are in the details: SKUs, sizes, deliveries, and exceptions — not just the roll‑up.
• You communicate clearly, flag risk early, and do not wait to be asked.

Qualifications

• You have done demand planning, inventory planning, merchandise planning, or buying in apparel, footwear, or a related consumer product business. Startup or high‑growth experience is a plus; big‑company process without ownership is not.
• You are spreadsheet‑fluent and comfortable building models other people can use. Excel/Google Sheets is the job, not a side skill.
• You understand how assortment, pricing, lead times, MOQs, and cash interact. You can explain a buy in both units and dollars.
• You are completely hands‑on. You will pull the data, build the file, sit with Design on the line list, and help Ops place the PO.
• You thrive in a hectic startup. Ambiguity, changing priorities, and wearing more than one hat do not drain you — they energize you. You think this is fun.
• You can work independently most of the week and still be a high‑bandwidth partner when you are on‑site.
• You are aligned with XX-XY’s mission: fair, safe, sex‑based competition for women and girls. This is not a “nice to have.” The brand exists for this reason. If that is not a conviction you share, this will not be a fit.
• Ideally you live in the Denver metro and can come in one half‑day per week. Remote‑only will be considered only if the skill set is exceptional and the collaboration cadence still works.

Nice to Have

• Experience with performance apparel, athletic, or technical fabrics.
• Familiarity with 3PLs, overseas production calendars, and domestic replenishment.
• Light visual / web merchandising instinct (what should be featured, bundled, or killed).
• Comfort partnering with a founder‑led team that moves fast and says what it means.

What This Is Not

• A strategy‑only or “insights” role.
• A large‑team merchandising org with assistants underneath you.
• A culture‑fit exercise disconnected from the product and the P&L.