Strategic Retail Planner: Inventory & OTB Lead

T E C Industrial Inc; Rosemont (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k) match

Paid time off

Bonus plan eligibility

Job summary

Claire’s seeks a Planner to own the financial sales, margin, and inventory plan for an assigned category across pre-season and in-season. You will translate merchandising strategy into a profitable plan and partner with Buying, Merchandising, and Allocation to drive Claire’s growth.

You’ll forecast, manage OTB, monitor inventory, analyze data, and deliver Weekly Business Review insights to leadership. Strong Excel and cross-functional collaboration are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience required.
• 2–4 years of experience in planning, buying, merchandising, or related analytics.
• Strong retail math and financial planning metrics knowledge.
• Ability to analyze data and translate into actionable recommendations.
• Proficient with presentations for peers and executives.
• Experience with planning systems (Oracle a plus).

Responsibilities

• Forecast and plan sales, margin, inventory, receipts, and OTB for assigned categories.
• Own weekly Open to Buy and allocate new and repeat product to maximize sales and margin.
• Manage inventory levels to balance in-stock and markdown risk.
• Apply data analysis to sell-through, turn, and purchasing patterns.
• Create and present Weekly Business Review narratives and dashboards.
• Collaborate on preseason promotions and markdown strategies within budget.
• Represent Planning in weekly trading and merchandising meetings.
• Identify process improvements to improve forecast accuracy and efficiency.

Skills

Analytical skills

Advanced Excel

Forecasting

Presentation skills

Process management

Cross-functional collaboration

Oracle experience

Retail math knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in business/finance/marketing/retail management

Tools

Oracle

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Claire’s seeks a Planner to own the financial sales, margin, and inventory plan for an assigned category across pre-season and in-season. You will translate merchandising strategy into a profitable plan and partner with Buying, Merchandising, and Allocation to drive Claire’s growth.

You’ll forecast, manage OTB, monitor inventory, analyze data, and deliver Weekly Business Review insights to leadership. Strong Excel and cross-functional collaboration are essential.