Visionary VP of Merchandising & Growth

Cracker Barrel; Lebanon (TN); On-site; USD 250,000 - 450,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Annual bonus opportunities

Medical Rx Dental Vision

Life Insurance

Paid vacation

Tuition reimbursement

Professional development

401k with company match

Employee stock purchase program

Cracker Barrel discount 35%

Exclusive Biscuit Perks

Job summary

Cracker Barrel is seeking a visionary, commercially driven Vice President of Merchandising to lead the strategic direction and performance of our $650M+ retail business across a national footprint and growing digital channels. You will shape category strategy, product development, sourcing, pricing, and organizational capability while partnering with senior leaders to elevate guest experiences.

You are a merchant at heart with deep P&L ownership, multi-category leadership, and a track record of

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive merchandising leadership experience.
• Significant ownership of large-scale retail P&L performance.
• Experience leading multi-category merchandise portfolios.
• Expertise in merchandising strategy, category management, assortment architecture, pricing, promotions, sourcing, and product development.
• Success developing proprietary, exclusive, or differentiated product assortments.
• Demonstrated vendor negotiation and commercial leadership experience.
• Proven ability to lead large organizations through leaders.
• Strong executive presence and cross-functional influence.
• Experience leveraging data, analytics, technology, and AI to improve merchandising performance and decision quality.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute enterprise merchandising strategy across all merchandise categories.
• Establish category portfolio priorities, assortment architecture, and investment frameworks.
• Identify new growth opportunities through consumer insights, emerging trends, and changing guest needs.
• Create differentiated merchandise experiences that strengthen brand distinction and customer loyalty.
• Lead enterprise product development and sourcing strategy.
• Build innovative product pipelines that create competitive advantage.
• Guide major vendor negotiations and commercial partnerships.
• Balance quality, speed-to-market, exclusivity, cost, innovation, and margin performance.
• Ensure sourcing strategies support long-term growth and profitability.
• Lead through a team of Senior Directors, Directors, and merchandising leaders.
• Build organizational capability, leadership depth, succession plans, and future talent pipelines.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Position the organization for future growth through modernization and capability building.
• Partner closely with executive leaders across Retail, Operations, Finance, Planning, Supply Chain, Marketing, eCommerce, Technology, and Data & Analytics.
• Influence enterprise strategy by connecting merchandising decisions to business performance and guest experience.
• Serve as a key member of the Retail Leadership Team.

Skills

Merchandising leadership

P&L ownership

Portfolio management

Vendor negotiations

Data analytics

AI in merchandising

Executive presence

Cross-functional leadership

Multi-category merchandising

Strategic thinking

Job description

Cracker Barrel is seeking a visionary, commercially driven Vice President of Merchandising to lead the strategic direction and performance of our $650M+ retail business across a national footprint and growing digital channels. You will shape category strategy, product development, sourcing, pricing, and organizational capability while partnering with senior leaders to elevate guest experiences.

You are a merchant at heart with deep P&L ownership, multi-category leadership, and a track record of