Senior Merchandise Planner & Team Lead

TFG (The Foschini Group); Wes-Kaap; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

TFG (The Foschini Group) is seeking an experienced Merchandise Planner to drive sales and profitability through strategic planning, forecasting, and stock management across departments. The role collaborates with Buying, Supply Chain, and Finance to ensure the right products are available at the right time and in the right quantities.

The successful candidate will lead a small team, develop seasonal plans, manage budgets, and monitor key metrics like GMROI and stock turns to optimise

Qualifications

• Degree or Diploma in Business, Retail, Supply Chain, Finance, Mathematics, or related field.
• Minimum 5 years' retail merchandise planning experience.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and experience with retail planning systems.
• Strong understanding of inventory management, forecasting, OTB, and retail financial planning.

Responsibilities

• Develop seasonal and annual merchandise plans aligned to company financial targets.
• Forecast sales, margin, inventory, and profit at department and category level.
• Manage Open-to-Buy (OTB) budgets and adjust stock investments based on trading performance.
• Partner with Buyers to create balanced and commercially effective assortments.
• Analyse sales trends, stock productivity, and customer demand to identify risks and opportunities.
• Drive markdown and clearance strategies to maximise sell-through and profitability.
• Monitor GMROI, sell-through, inventory turn, weeks of supply, and margin performance.
• Collaborate with Supply Chain, Logistics, Stores, and Finance to ensure stock flow and availability.
• Lead a small team consisting of a planner and allocator.

Skills

Analytical thinking

Commercial acumen

Planning & organising

Stakeholder collaboration

Education

Bachelor's or Diploma in Business/related

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Retail planning systems

Job description

TFG (The Foschini Group) is seeking an experienced Merchandise Planner to drive sales and profitability through strategic planning, forecasting, and stock management across departments. The role collaborates with Buying, Supply Chain, and Finance to ensure the right products are available at the right time and in the right quantities.

The successful candidate will lead a small team, develop seasonal plans, manage budgets, and monitor key metrics like GMROI and stock turns to optimise