Senior Merchandising Manager

UrbanStems; New York (NY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

UrbanStems is seeking a Senior Manager, Merchandising to own the assortment strategy and P&L for a major product category. This role moves from tactical execution to strategic ownership, setting category direction and negotiating with vendors, while partnering with Supply Chain, Ecommerce, Marketing, Creative, and Finance leadership.

You will lead a direct report, translate trends into forward-looking assortment recommendations, and drive cross-functional planning to meet brand and revenue goals.

Qualifications

• 8–10+ years in buying, merchandising, or planning.
• 3+ years directly managing people.
• Proven ownership of a category P&L, including margin management.
• Vendor negotiation experience at a strategic level.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• Proficiency in Excel/Google Sheets; BI tools experience.
• Willingness to learn floral/plant product knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end assortment strategy for your category—architecture, pricing, margin targets, and lifecycle planning.
• Set and manage the category P&L: sales, margin, markdown, and inventory turn targets.
• Own vendor strategy: lead negotiations on cost, terms, and exclusivity; manage senior vendor relationships.
• Set the GTM calendar for your category and coordinate with cross-functional teams.
• Translate trends and data into a forward-looking assortment perspective for senior leadership.
• Partner with Supply Chain on demand planning, inventory investment, and replenishment.
• Represent Merchandising in seasonal planning and post-mortems; drive action items.
• Serve as escalation point for product quality, sourcing, or availability issues.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Vendor negotiation

People leadership

Data-driven

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Excel

Google Sheets

Looker

Tableau

Job description

The Senior Manager, Merchandising owns the assortment strategy and P&L performance for a major product category (floral and/or non-floral). This is a step up from a tactical execution role into strategic ownership: you'll set category direction, own vendor and margin negotiations, and represent Merchandising in cross-functional planning with Supply Chain, Ecommerce, Marketing, and Finance leadership. You'll also be a people manager, developing that direct report's skills and growth path.

What You Will Do

• Own end-to-end assortment strategy for your category — architecture, pricing, margin targets, and lifecycle planning — aligned to brand and revenue goals
• Set and manage the category P&L: sales, margin, markdown, and inventory turn targets, reporting results to the VP of S&OP and Merchandising
• Own vendor strategy: lead high-stakes negotiations on cost, terms, and exclusivity; manage the senior vendor relationships in your category
• Set the GTM calendar for your category and hold cross-functional partners (Supply Chain, Ecommerce, Marketing, Creative) accountable to it
• Translate trend, competitive, and customer data into a forward-looking assortment point of view; present recommendations to senior leadership
• Partner with Supply Chain leadership on demand planning, inventory investment, and replenishment strategy for the category
• Represent Merchandising in seasonal planning (peak holidays) and post-mortems, driving action items company-wide
• Be the escalation point for product quality, sourcing, or availability issues within your category

Who You Are

• A strategic operator who can zoom out to set direction and zoom in to fix a broken PO
• A confident negotiator with a track record of improving vendor economics
• A people leader who develops talent, not just manages tasks
• Fluent in data — comfortable building and defending a P&L, not just reading one
• Calm under pressure during peak seasons, with the judgment to triage competing priorities
• A clear, credible communicator with senior stakeholders and cross-functional peers alike

What You Bring

• 8–10+ years in buying, merchandising, or planning, ideally in DTC, gifting, or retail
• 3+ years directly managing people, with demonstrated success developing managers/associates
• Proven ownership of a category P&L, including margin and markdown management
• Vendor negotiation experience at a strategic (not just transactional) level
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
• Proficiency in Excel/Google Sheets; experience with Looker, Tableau, or similar BI tools a plus
• Willingness to learn floral/plant product knowledge if not already a category expert