What are the responsibilities and job description for the Senior Manager, Merchandise position at Build-A-Bear?
The Senior Manager, Merchandise’s primary responsibility is to drive business growth by achieving the plans set forth by the organization, maintaining the strength of existing businesses, and enhancing the guest experience. This is accomplished through the development and execution of captivating product assortments across Core, Licensed, and Seasonal product lines on omnichannel platforms, driving the company forward with innovation and excellence. Additionally, the Senior Manager, Merchandise will lead and develop their team of Merchants and Assistant Merchants to ensure the successful execution of these strategies, further contributing to business growth and guest experience.
Responsibilities:
- Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive merchandise strategy
- Establish robust financial strategies to ensure profitability through product lifecycle management and achieving margin goals
- Execute product assortments and buys, overseeing the planning and management of omnichannel assortments within key business segments
- Cultivate close working relationships with Planners to align buying strategies and inventory management, collaborating on determining optimal order quantities
- Analyze top sellers and marketing impact, driving initiatives to support business plans and optimize performance
- Observe and assess sales and market trends, focusing on future data and upcoming trends to inform buying decisions and identify opportunities for innovation and growth
- Deliver engaging and persuasive presentations to key stakeholders
- Maintain fluency in industry trends and emerging technologies to drive innovation and maintain the company’s position as a leader in the retail space
- Build & mentor a strong, engaged, and high-performing team
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree
- 6-8 years of buying/merchant experience
- Experience leading a team of merchants/buyers
- Expert data analysis
- Skilled in Excel
- Skilled in Microsoft 365
- Proficient in PLM Systems
Preferred Qualifications:
- 10 years of previous merchant experience
- Master’s Degree
- In-depth knowledge of retail merchandising, procurement, or category management
Behavioral Traits for Success:
- Driven to achieve results that align with the strategic goals of the organization
- Initiative, sense of urgency, and the ability to stay focused on results despite changing conditions
- Analytical approach to decisions
- Ability to purposely drive toward results while problem-solving and engaging the commitment of others
- A leadership style that is goal-oriented yet motivates, trains, and engages others
- Learns quickly and thoroughly
- Effective delegation
- Willingly accepts accountability for results
Working Environment:
- Typical office environment with climate control and sufficient lighting, ergonomic desk/chairs
- Corporate Office located St. Louis, MO
- 10% domestic travel
- Flexible work schedule
Your Performance Will Be Measured On:
- Effectiveness of your team
- Product assortment, pricing, procurement, and product life cycle management
- Effective omnichannel management
- Decision-making and judgment
- Execution of the strategic initiatives
- Quality of recommendations based on raw data and analytics
- Financial planning and goal achievement
- Effectiveness and impact of presentations and active participation in meetings
- Ability to secure internal support and product adoption
- Strength of cross-functional collaboration
- Responsiveness
- Stakeholder Feedback