Specialty Inventory Strategist — Allocation & Analytics

Barnes & Noble, Inc.; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 70,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Sick Pay

Employee Discount

Vacation

Personal Days

Company Holidays

401(k)

Health Benefits

Disability

Life Insurance

Transit

Tuition Reimbursement

Job summary

Barnes & Noble, Inc. is seeking a Specialty Inventory Manager in Chicago to drive optimal store inventory and assortment decisions. You will determine initial buy levels, allocate stock, and balance sell-through with sales goals across multiple categories.

The role requires strong retail analytics, collaboration with buyers and distribution, and proficiency with internal tools to support inventory planning. Chicago-based, full-time position with comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience with at least 3 years in retail analysis.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to translate data into buying strategies.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and familiarity with merchandising/inventory tools.

Responsibilities

• Identify initial buy quantity and allocate specialty inventory by store and category.
• Balance sales and sell-through through inventory strategies across lifecycle.
• Collaborate with buying, distribution, and merchandising systems teams.
• Monitor store profiles and sales data to adjust assortments and promos.
• Analyze trends and postmortems to optimize inventory levels.

Skills

Retail analytics

Analytical thinking

Microsoft Office

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience

Tools

BI tools

IMM

IM2

1010 data

Data Warehouse

Job description

Barnes & Noble, Inc. is seeking a Specialty Inventory Manager in Chicago to drive optimal store inventory and assortment decisions. You will determine initial buy levels, allocate stock, and balance sell-through with sales goals across multiple categories.

The role requires strong retail analytics, collaboration with buyers and distribution, and proficiency with internal tools to support inventory planning. Chicago-based, full-time position with comprehensive benefits.