Strategic Merchandising Director

RG Barry Brands; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

RG Barry Brands is seeking a Director of Merchandising to define and execute the product and assortment strategy for Dearfoams, aligning with brand positioning, consumer needs, and financial objectives.

The role leads end-to-end merchandising lifecycle—from line architecture to in-market performance—serving as the key link between Design, Product Development, Sales, and Marketing. This position drives differentiation, profitability, and channel-relevant assortments.

Qualifications

• Requires a bachelor’s degree with 8–12+ years in merchandising or equivalent experience.
• Proven track record of driving P&L-focused assortment strategies.
• Strong understanding of multi-channel retail (mass, digital, specialty).
• Experience partnering cross-functionally across Design, Sales, Marketing, and Operations.
• Demonstrated ability to balance brand building with commercial performance.
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills.
• Excellent communication and leadership capabilities.
• Ability to build strong internal and external relationships and partner collaboratively.

Responsibilities

• Defines and leads the seasonal merchandising vision and product strategy across core and expansion categories (slippers, casual footwear, Fireside, sandals, etc.).
• Develops line plans and assortment architecture that reflect clear segmentation (good/better/best) and pricing strategy by channel.
• Ensures the line delivers meaningful newness and innovation, not incremental updates.
• Establishes clear product differentiation aligned to brand positioning.
• Partners with Sales to build customer-relevant assortments that drive revenue and margin growth.
• Aligns product strategies to key accounts (Walmart, Target, Amazon, Nordstrom, etc.) while maintaining brand integrity.
• Owns performance metrics including: Revenue and margin targets ; AUR and pricing strategy ; sell-through and SKU productivity
• Identifies risks and opportunities relative to AOP and drives actions to close gaps.
• Partners closely with Design and Product Development to ensure: Trend-right and consumer-relevant product; clear differentiation vs. competitors; on-time execution aligned to GTM calendars
• Ensures all product initiatives (materials, technologies, innovations) are fully developed, commercialized, and ready for market
• Translates consumer insights into actionable merchandising decisions
• Maintains strong awareness of: Competitive landscape (UGG, Bearpaw, private label, Amazon 3P); pricing dynamics and value perception; market trends vs. over-indexing on non-core aesthetics
• Ensures product is built for real customers and channels, not aspirational or misaligned targets
• Leads and develops a high-performing merchandising team with clear accountability and ownership
• Drives discipline in: Line reviews and product gates ; SKU rationalization ; post-season hindsight and learnings
• Identifies and resolves breakdowns in the product creation process, including: Trend misses; misaligned assortments; lack of readiness on key initiatives
• Implements best-in-class merchandising processes across planning and execution

Skills

P&L management

Cross-functional collaboration

Analytical thinking

Strategic planning

Leadership

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Office

AI tools

Job description

RG Barry Brands is seeking a Director of Merchandising to define and execute the product and assortment strategy for Dearfoams, aligning with brand positioning, consumer needs, and financial objectives.

The role leads end-to-end merchandising lifecycle—from line architecture to in-market performance—serving as the key link between Design, Product Development, Sales, and Marketing. This position drives differentiation, profitability, and channel-relevant assortments.