Product Line Manager & Merchandiser

Product Line Manager & Merchandiser

At Storm Creek, our mission is Better Product for the Greater Good. Our lifestyle apparel line is sustainably made, exceptionally high quality, and ready to perform. We're a WBENC-certified woman-owned company that runs on EOS and plans to exceed five million dollars to charity by 2030. We're humble and driven to seek better in all that we do. Our core values drive us daily:

• Always Seek Better
• Think & Be Curious
• Have Passion for Growth
• Engage with Purpose

We work on-site at our collaborative, energetic office space located in the Twin Cities. We show up daily with a purpose. Are you seeking better? Check us out!

Storm Creek is looking for a product line manager responsible for executing the product strategy for Storm Creek. This role will collaborate closely with Design, Purchasing, Marketing, Sales, and Operations to implement the product and business objectives of our three channels. With a keen business acumen, understanding of apparel, and key data metrics, you'll leverage all available resources and align teams to achieve goals. You think strategically but live in the details and communicate clearly across the organization.

This role achieves P&L goals through delivery of a product line that increases revenue, gross margin, and market share with a strategic assortment of best-in-class products. Chief responsibilities include:

• Manage overall product assortment and merchandising plan.
• Achieve product development timelines.
• Optimize product life cycle management.
• Enact sustainability and responsibility goals throughout the supply chain.

Responsibilities:

• Collaborate to develop 3-year product assortment strategy and execute in partnership with internal and external stakeholders. Partner with design to create balanced product assortments that incorporate proven bestsellers and new trends and ensure strategies support financial goals.
• Champion the product sustainability and responsibility mission. Lead the implementation of sustainability/responsibility initiatives across Storm Creek.
• Lead the development and execution of merchandise planning though close collaboration with Sales, Marketing, Purchasing, and Finance teams.
• Manage and maintain product development phases. Ensure all calendar milestones are met for on-time delivery and launch.
• Champion a product's introduction from conception through go-to-market launch and acts as the communication liaison on all details pertaining to the product line.
• Work with the Design Team, to make day-to-day product decisions aligned with the product strategy/roadmap.
• Oversee product data integrity to ensure correct product details and are cross-functionally distributed, including tracking and communication of changes.
• Develop and maintain product and supply chain compliance/certification reporting and repository including HIGG Index.
• Partner with Marketing to disseminate information aiding in the creation of marketing and sales collateral for distribution, i.e. hangtags, packaging, POS, product pages, etc.
• Utilize sales data reports, identify positive or negative sales trends to more effectively and efficiently balance inventory. Analyze data and make business recommendations.
• Ensure products meet forecast, revenue, and margin targets. Own product costing/pricing data and targets.
• Build/maintain Product Lifecycle strategy. Work with owners, Purchasing, Sales, Marketing to minimize unplanned carryover and maximize sell through.
• Build/maintain efficient Private Label project management system.
• Collaborate with design team and supply chain to maintain product QA and testing standards.
• Keep a pulse on industry trends, competitor, and market information in the lifestyle, outdoor, and corporate apparel space. Continually analyze market information and interpret for Storm Creek product vision.

Skills & Experience:

• 7 years related apparel experience in wholesale, retail or direct businesses.
• Bachelor's Degree in Merchandising, Product Management, or Business, or equivalent combination of years of experience and education.
• Advanced computer skills (Excel mastery, Office 365, ERP and PLM software; data visualization tools like Tableau is a plus).
• Superb organizational skills, obsessed with details, and able to manage multiple projects, prioritize, and meet deadlines.
• Knowledge of product development process, merchandising and assortment planning.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to compile and analyze large sets of data; ability to assess past performance, current issues, and expected trends within the apparel industry.
• Strong aptitude with numbers and clear understanding of product costing. Proficiency in using financial metrics and reports to measure business performance and understand how decisions impact financial results.
• Self-starter with strong leadership and communication skills; able to communicate persuasively, influentially, and responsibly across a cross-functional team.
• Proactive in anticipating, troubleshooting, and solving problems.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment where the ability to build relationships is critical.
• Passion for apparel and sustainable sourcing.
• Insightful to customer's perspective as a driving force behind business decisions and activities.
• Embraces and lives the Storm Creek values!