Overview
Assistant Merchandise Planner – Watford, United Kingdom
Position Overview
Ref #
W181374
State/Region
Hertfordshire
Department
Merchandising & Planning
Location
United Kingdom
City
Watford
COMPANY DESCRIPTION
Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE:RL) is a global leader in the design, marketing and distribution of premium lifestyle products in five categories: apparel, accessories, home, fragrances, and hospitality. For more than 50 years, Ralph Lauren’s reputation and distinctive image have been consistently developed across an expanding number of products, brands and international markets. The Company’s brand names, which include Ralph Lauren, Ralph Lauren Collection, Ralph Lauren Purple Label, Polo Ralph Lauren, Double RL, Lauren Ralph Lauren, Polo Ralph Lauren Children, Chaps, among others, constitute one of the world’s most widely recognized families of consumer brands.
At Ralph Lauren, we unite and inspire the communities within our company as well as those in which we serve by amplifying voices and perspectives to create a culture of belonging, ensuring inclusion, and fairness for all. We foster a culture of inclusion through: Talent, Education & Communication, Employee Groups and Celebration.
POSITION OVERVIEW
The Assistant Merchandise Planner supports the merchandising team in planning, analysing and executing product strategies that drive sales, margin and product inventory. They play a key role in supporting with reporting and trackers so the department can ensure the right products are available at the right time and in the right quantities to meet customer demand.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Operation/Financial
Update reports on a weekly, monthly, and ad hoc basis.
Actualises the departments WSSI weekly.
Attends and prepares for weekly trade meetings and able to formulate and deliver a trade message independently.
Provides accurate data to support analysis for key seasonal meetings including hindsight and sign offs.
Updates and forecasts department line cards to maximise sales potential and optimise stock availability across channels.
Systematically updates seasonal recodes.
Owns department stock delivery schedule and communicates updates to team.
Responsible for actioning seasonal markdowns & communication to stores.
Commercial Awareness
Participate in regular store visits, collating store reports prior and assisting in creating follow up presentations.
To undertake competitor analysis on a regular basis and present any relevant points.
Training and development
To adopt a positive and proactive approach to their own training and development as well as that of their peers.
Proactively promotes improvements to working practices and systems.
Participates in company initiatives as appropriate.
Communications & Partnerships
Creates and maintains strong working relationships within cross-functional teams: Buying, Allocations, ECOM and the retail store teams.
Liaises with Assortment Planning and Buying partners to review and assist in the formation of the seasonal lessons learnt. Influencing future Buys, using analysis and historical data to ensure commercial decisions are made.
EXPERIENCE, SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE
Commercial and Analytical
Effective communicator – able to communicate messages clearly and concisely to a variety of audiences
Able to work autonomously
Able to demonstrates logical analysis and problem-solving skills
Able to organize, prioritise tasks and manages time well in order to meet deadlines
Able to build and maintain productive relationships within team environment
Competent in using Microsoft excel
Attention to detail
Show ability or aptitude in retail mathematics and able to learn technical applications quickly
Able to demonstrate resilience and remain positive during challenging periods
Desire to have fun at work and an appreciation for product
Allocation experience preferred
IMPORTANT: Before applying for this role, please make sure you have the right to work in the country where the role is based. Unless it clearly stipulates within in the job advert above that the hiring company is looking to or able to sponsor applicants it is deemed that the hiring employer will only consider applications from those able to comply with and work in the country where the role is based.
