Merchandising Manager, APAC

Position

As a Merchandising Manager, you will be the individual contributor and responsible for driving merchandising strategies and plans across four APAC markets with eight stores: Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Singapore. Reporting to the Brand Director, APAC and functionally to the Global Merchandising Director, you will focus on curating merchandise assortments, attending buying sessions, and maintaining effective communication with headquarters and stores. You will also be highly involved in product training, visual merchandising, and analyzing commercial performance.

Job responsibilities

Main Responsibilities:

Buying / Merchandising

• Define and develop merchandising strategies and Open-to-Buy (OTB) plans.
• Responsible for merchandise mix and assortment planning in alignment with respective merchandising strategies.
• Attend seasonal buying sessions in Paris to ensure the right merchandise is purchased for Asia Pacific, meeting targeted sales projections and sell-throughs.
• Understand market needs to support business development.
• Maintain effective communication with headquarters (HQ) and stores on product feedback and needs.
• Prepare sales forecasts and coordinate merchandise reordering.
• Propose ready-to-sell collections for special orders, creating new opportunities.
• Review and follow up on all special orders.

Merchandising, Product Training & VM

• Propose store remerchandising during new product launches and season-end sales.
• Analyze sales performance through sell-through analysis and propose action plans.
• Identify training needs and prepare training materials on products.
• Review and discuss visual merchandising guidelines with VM, ensuring store displays adhere to global guidelines, new merchandise, launch schedules, advertising and promotion programs, image, sales, and stock levels.
• Arrange retail pricing for all markets in line with pricing policy and global positioning set by HQ.
• Manage seasonal discount proposals and budget adherence

Commercial Follow-up and Analysis

• Prepare regular reports on merchandisers' comments.
• Review sales and sell-through analyses and propose action plans if necessary.
• Maintain close relationships with retail stores.
• Monitor sales and sell-through situations, initiating appropriate strategies and tactics to liquidate stocks and boost sales.
• Handle mark-downs, mark-ups, and merchandise-related issues for seasonal sale periods.
• Follow up on the development of quality and after-sales services.
• Conduct market research on customer behavior, market trends, competitors' prices, and product offers.

Profile

Qualifications & Experience:

• Degree holder in Business, Merchandising, or a related discipline.
• Minimum 8 years of luxury retail merchandising experience.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating with cross-functional teams.
• Detail-oriented with strong analytical and numerical skills.
• Exceptional fashion and market acumen, especially within the retail sector
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
• Excellent command of written and spoken English and Chinese.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office (E.g. Excel and PowerPoint).
• Knowledge of Power BI is advantageous.