Director of Merchandising - Outdoor Living (Sacramento, CA)

Director of Merchandising - Outdoor Living (Sacramento, CA)

Location: Folsom, CA
Salary: $140,000 – $220,000 per year

To Be Considered, Candidates Must Have:

• Proven retail category management experience
• Strong background in furniture, outdoor living furniture, patio furniture, grills, or related furniture categories
• Demonstrated success managing vendor relationships and negotiating costs, terms, and programs
• Experience driving sales, margin, assortment planning, and inventory productivity
• Ability to lead strategy and execute growth initiatives across multiple locations

About Us:

Green Acres Nursery & Supply encompasses a family of industry-leading, high-volume retail garden centers and wholesale landscape plant nurseries. The Green Acres retail stores offer a vast product mix of plants and landscape supplies, with competitive pricing and superior customer service, and a full line of Outdoor Living furniture, grills, and accessories. Green Acres first opened its doors in Roseville, California, in 2003, and has since expanded to seven locations in the greater Sacramento area and three in North Texas. Vertically integrated wholesale growing operations include Matsuda’s Nursery in Sacramento, California, and Powell Plants in New Summerfield, Texas. The company is family owned and operated.

About the Role:

Green Acres Nursery & Supply is growing, and we need an experienced retail business category manager to play a key role in the expansion and strategic direction of our Outdoor Living furniture category (high end and everyday outdoor furniture, grills, firepits, umbrellas, and accessories). Building on the Green Acres Nursery & Supply brand and business model, this new position will plan and execute solid strategies to affect significant growth of the category companywide, including maximizing sales, margin, and inventory productivity. The ideal candidate for this role is a business leader with relevant, progressive experience in retail category management, preferably in the furniture industry.

Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to:

· Responsible for all merchandising strategy and execution related to the Outdoor Living department, including planning, sourcing, buying, vendor relationships, negotiating vendor costs and terms, training and supporting in-store teams, visual merchandising, and all analytics.

· Oversees all activity to significantly expand the category, meeting aggressive goals for topline growth, performance, margin, and growth as a percent of total sales.

· Is an internal change agent who can provide leadership, strategy, structure, and inspiration consistent with our brand.

· Incorporates market trends to create an inspiring and compelling offering for our customers, and does so in close coordination with other internal merchandising teams to ensure consistency of company lines based on seasonal trends.

· Plans, sources, negotiates, buys, and executes on product assortment, pricing strategy, margin analysis, and inventory productivity for all lines within the category.

· Sources great new products and vendors, develops positive and mutually beneficial vendor relationships and negotiates the best terms, costs, and discounts to ensure value for our customers and compelling offerings consistent with our brand.

· Conceptualizes, plans, and leads companywide efforts to create and maintain enticing visual displays for the category which engage customers and stimulate sales activity; ensures that such displays are coordinated with those of other categories and consistent with company standards.

· Maintains regular, consistent in-store presence to ensure location specific implementation; works closely with operations and merchandising to coordinate efforts and manage priorities.

· Creates and utilizes selling and training resources to educate the team on product, and improves selling skills, sales generation, and customer service by prioritizing the customer experience.

· Provides input and collaborates closely with marketing to ensure timely and effective promotional initiatives to support aggressive category growth goals.

· Monitors competitive offerings and stays abreast of trends in the industry.

· Attends trade shows and conferences to research new industry trends and products.

· Working closely with finance/accounting and performs on-going monitoring and analysis of category performance to improve sales, margin, and category performance.

· Communicates and coordinates effectively with owners and other senior leaders.

Candidate Requirements:

· 10 years of progressive experience in retail category management, with a bachelor’s degree in retail management or business; or equivalent combination of experience and education - preferred

· Must have a proven track record of developing and driving business, preferably in outdoor living furniture, grills, furniture, or related product categories.

· Must have experience with and thorough knowledge of planning, sourcing, buying, effective visual merchandising, and retail business analytics, preferably in furniture categories.

· Experience in multi-location retail operations and/or family-owned businesses a strong plus.

· Ability to lead and manage people and to execute at both a strategic and tactical level.

· Excellent yet practical business acumen/judgment with good decision-making skills.

· Driven and self-directed with a strong work ethic, sense of urgency, and “roll-up-the-sleeves” approach.

· Good eye and sense of style for retail design and display trends.

· Hands-on team player who can collaborate effectively with multiple internal teams to manage priorities and achieve goals.

· Detail oriented with strong organizational, time management and prioritization skills.

· Excellent interpersonal and presentation skills, including written and oral communications.

· Proven negotiating skills and vendor management experience.

· Thrives in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial, and constantly evolving retail environment with willingness to learn and try new approaches.

· Proficient in Word, Excel, and Outlook, and working knowledge of POS, ERP, and inventory management systems.

· Ability to work flexible hours including weekends and holidays.

· Ability to work full-time on-site from our Support Center in the Sacramento area (Folsom, CA), with regular travel to local company and other locations, and national/international travel for trade shows and buying trips as needed to achieve business objectives.

Compensation & Benefits

This is a full-time, exempt position with a salary range of $140,000 - $220,000 annually. We offer an industry-commensurate benefits package, including 401K with company match, health insurance (with HSA option and company contribution), dental insurance, vision insurance, paid vacation, paid sick, and merchandise discounts.

Other

Our Company is committed to a policy of Equal Employment Opportunity and will not discriminate against an applicant or employee on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, color, creed, religion, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship, medical condition, disability, marital status, military service, pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions, genetic information, or any other legally-recognized protected basis under federal, state or local laws, regulations or ordinances.

Applicants with disabilities may be entitled to reasonable accommodation under the terms of the Americans with Disabilities Act and certain state or local laws. A reasonable accommodation is a change in the way things are normally done that will ensure an equal employment opportunity without imposing an undue hardship on the Company. Please inform the Company’s Human Resources Department if you need assistance completing any forms or to otherwise participate in the application process.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $140,000.00 - $220,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Employee assistance program
• Employee discount
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Relocation assistance
• Vision insurance

Education:

• Bachelor's (Preferred)

Experience:

• indoor/outdoor furniture and merchandising (retail): 10 years (Required)
• sourcing, negotiating and managing multiple vendors(retail): 10 years (Required)
• retail financial reporting and analytics: 10 years (Required)
• leading a retail product category: 10 years (Required)
• managing retail category for a multi site furniture company: 10 years (Required)

Work Location: In person

Salary : $140,000 - $220,000