WGU Store Strategist

Western Governors University; United States; On-site; USD 68,000 - 103,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonuses

Medical benefits

Dental & vision

Health savings account

Life insurance

Disability coverage

Retirement plan

Wellbeing program

Tuition discount

Paid time off

Parental leave

Paid holidays

Job summary

Western Governors University is seeking a Store Strategist to shape how the brand comes to life through merchandise. You will oversee a visible program serving employees, students, and alumni across internal, external, pop-up, and custom orders.

You’ll refresh the merchandise assortment, improve product availability, and build loyalty through engaging experiences that align with WGU’s branding. This role is full-time and in-office in Salt Lake City, with travel up to 20%.

Qualifications

• 4 years of branded merchandise, e-commerce, or retail buying experience.
• A bachelor’s degree, or relevant professional experience in lieu of a degree.
• Strong budgeting, forecasting, and performance reporting skills.
• Demonstrated project management, inventory planning, and organizational skills.
• A creative eye and the ability to evaluate merchandise for design quality and brand alignment.
• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• A detail-oriented, low-ego approach with a strong sense of urgency and the ability to work independently and collaboratively.

Responsibilities

• Own the strategic direction, product selection, and day-to-day merchandising operations for WGU’s internal, external, pop-up, and custom-order store channels.
• Develop proactive inventory and assortment plans that improve product availability, introduce fresh designs, and support enterprise merchandise needs.
• Manage vendor relationships and fulfillment operations, including forecasting, reordering, product quality, order accuracy, and on-time delivery.
• Review SKU performance and determine when products should be reordered, marked down, discontinued, refreshed, or replaced.
• Oversee the custom merchandise ordering process and collaborate with partners across the organization, including Procurement, Finance, Communications, HR, Student Services, Events, Academics, and Marketing.
• Lead merchandise strategy and execution for commencements, summits, town halls, and other major activations.
• Manage program reporting and budget oversight while ensuring merchandise meets WGU’s brand and visual identity standards.

Skills

Branded merchandise

E-commerce

Retail buying

Budgeting

Forecasting

Performance reporting

Project management

Inventory planning

Brand alignment

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

ERP systems

Job description

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you’re committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career. Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.

The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Grade: Professional 307 Pay Range: $68,300.00 - $102,500.00.

Job Description

Bring together creativity, e-commerce, and business strategy to shape how WGU’s brand comes to life through merchandise. As the WGU Store Strategist, you will oversee a highly visible branded merchandise program that serves employees, students, and alumni through internal, external, pop-up, and custom-order channels. This individual contributor role offers the opportunity to refresh WGU’s merchandise assortment, improve product availability, and create engaging experiences that build loyalty and brand affinity. You will join a growing team, gain exposure across the organization, and help develop how the team collaborates and operates.

What You’ll Do

• Own the strategic direction, product selection, and day-to-day merchandising operations for WGU’s internal, external, pop-up, and custom-order store channels.
• Develop proactive inventory and assortment plans that improve product availability, introduce fresh designs, and support enterprise merchandise needs.
• Manage vendor relationships and fulfillment operations, including forecasting, reordering, product quality, order accuracy, and on-time delivery.
• Review SKU performance and determine when products should be reordered, marked down, discontinued, refreshed, or replaced.
• Oversee the custom merchandise ordering process and collaborate with partners across the organization, including Procurement, Finance, Communications, HR, Student Services, Events, Academics, and Marketing.
• Lead merchandise strategy and execution for commencements, summits, town halls, and other major activations.
• Manage program reporting and budget oversight while ensuring merchandise meets WGU’s brand and visual identity standards.

What You’ll Bring

• 4 years of experience in branded merchandise, e-commerce, or retail buying.
• A bachelor’s degree, or relevant professional experience in lieu of a degree.
• Strong financial acumen, including experience with budgeting, forecasting, and performance reporting.
• Demonstrated project management, inventory planning, and organizational skills.
• A creative eye and the ability to evaluate merchandise for design quality and brand alignment.
• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• A detail-oriented, low-ego approach with a strong sense of urgency and the ability to work independently and collaboratively.

Bonus Points

• Experience supporting marketing communications campaigns.
• Familiarity with e-commerce platforms, ERP systems, project management software, or technology integrations.
• Experience supporting branded merchandise programs for major events or distributed organizations.

What to Expect

At WGU, our mission drives everything we do, including how we hire. Our interview experience is designed to give qualified candidates the opportunity to show their best work through meaningful conversations and collaboration. We thoughtfully review every application and invite forward the candidates whose experience and potential best align with the role and our mission. Our interview experience includes an introductory call with a TA Partner Hiring leader interview, and an interview with the leader overseeing Corporate Brand Communications.

Work Location

This is a full-time, in-office position requiring five days per week in our Salt Lake City, Utah office, designed to foster the collaboration and connection that fuel our best work.

Visa Sponsorship

While we welcome applicants from all backgrounds, WGU is not able to provide visa sponsorship for this role.

Travel Requirement

This position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements.

Position & Application Details

Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours):

• bonuses
• medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare
• health savings account and flexible spending account
• basic and voluntary life insurance
• disability coverage
• accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages
• legal and identity theft coverage
• retirement savings plan
• wellbeing program
• discounted WGU tuition
• flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual
• flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual
• 11 paid holidays
• other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave

Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.

In 1997, a coalition of 19 U.S. governors founded Western Governors University with a singular vision: to make higher education more accessible by offering full degree programs online. Starting small, we quickly expanded. Today, we’re one of the largest accredited online universities in the U.S.