Job: Merchandise Planner/Analyst & Jewelry Buyer – Caribbean Travel Retail

Our Client

Our client is an international operator/retailer in the Travel Retail industry, with a 30 year history on the prestigious western Caribbean island of Grand Cayman. Strongly focused on jewelry and watches. The company also features designer sunglasses and accessories.

Objective

The Merchandise Planner/Analyst & Jewelry Buyer゠is responsible for developing the jewelry category and lifestyle strategies that align with the company’s customer profiles and vision. Develop sound assortment plans that focus on key brands, key classifications and key items. Achieve sales, gross margin and inventory turnover/weeks of supply. Spearhead the creation and implementation of a reporting structure that provides detailed analysis of performance, trends, and an open to buy process.

Ideal Profile

The ideal profile is a well rounded Senior Retail Buyer professional, very analytical with strong experience in the retail distribution.

Job Description

• Strategize departmental, brand, classification and item vision to support varied customer profiles from moderate to upscale and luxury.
• Create merchandising and presentation standards to ensure accurate execution of the branded jewelry business.
• Acquire, develop and manage vendors that are relevant to our business and achieve sales and gross margin targets.
• Attain annual and seasonal objectives for each vendor and consistently review for progress and performance. (Sales, Gross Margin, Exclusives, Savings, Subclass Mixes, Key Items, Presentation Standards, Pricing Strategies.)
• Complete accurate forecasts for assortments and key items.
• Evaluate current trends and other components that will affect the business.
• Spearhead the total company sales, inventory, gross margin plans/target process on a seasonal basis (6 month high, 6 month regular).゠ Pull historical data & compile new targets by store/vendor with each Buyer/Supervisor/Executive Committee.
• Build assortments that support strategic merchandising vision and are relevant productive and profitable.
• Develop assortment mix by style and price.
• Develop and maintain assortments tailored to individual shop profiles as communicated by the strategic merchandising plan.
• Accurately forecast/ensure “in stock levels” of key items
• Identify, define, collect and track key business metrics for new and existing product categories.
• Provide monthly vendor targets by store for all key locations, and also updating prior month’s actuals vs targets.
• Continually updates Director of Merchandising of emerging trends, market updates and new product opportunities.
• Maintain competitive market awareness of the United States markets as well as the jewelry business in the Caribbean.
• Develop hard-hitting promotional opportunities and insure consistent in stock.
• Work with brands on product exclusive and branding opportunities to provide points of competitive differentiation.
• Evaluates data and provides direction to create a reporting structure that can be used to implement an Open to Buy process.
• Track inventory position by vendor vs targets for order approval process (for all jewelry, watches & sunglasses).
• In collaboration with the Director of Merchandising, consistently analyze, evaluate and resets the performance targets of each brand, focusing on key classifications and key items.
• Inventory Management, processes markdowns and identifies aged inventory on a timely basis to keep inventories clean.
• Partner with vendors to negotiate markdown money for slow moving merchandise and/or returns
• Develop competitive retail pricing strategy which delivers compelling price advantage and savings to the customer. ゠(Not as applicable to brands).

Requirements

• Bachelor Degree minimum (MBA a plus)
• Minimum of five years jewelry merchandising experience in fast paced, results driven organization.
• Career experience in retail marketing, merchandising and/or retail operations and prior success in the Caribbean region and/or the cruise travel retail and/or duty free industry will be looked at favorably.
• Very good use of office applications such as Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
• High level analytical skills and the ability to communicate in a clear & concise manner
• Excellent knowledge of product, the domestic and international markets and brand negotiations.
• Passion for excellence demonstrated through results to or above plan.
• High energy level to motivate and inspire peers
• Capacity to develop people through solid consulting and counseling.
• Appreciated previous experience: Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, Omega, The swatch group, Cartier, Rolex, Bulgari, Chanel, LVMH, Nuance Group, World Duty Free Group, Dufry, Duty Free Americas, DFA, DFS, Duty Free Shoppers, Heinemann, LS Travel Retail, Starboard, Diamonds international, Colombian Emeralds
• Appreciated previous titles: Purchase Manager, Senior Buyer, Merchandising Manager