Merchandise Planner

Great product is only half the equation.

Knowing what to buy, how much to buy, where it needs to go and when to make the next move is where great merchandise planning comes in.

CSD Brands is looking for an experienced Merchandise Planner to join our team and take ownership of the numbers, insights and decisions behind our seasonal ranges across our retail and wholesale channels.

This is a hands-on commercial role for someone who understands that merchandise planning isn't simply reporting on what happened last week. You'll use sales performance, inventory, forecasts and market insights to help us decide what happens next.

THE ROLE

• You'll work closely with our Buying, Sales, Production, Retail, Warehouse and Finance teams to plan seasonal assortments, manage buy plans, forecast demand and ensure we're making smart decisions about our stock investment.

• You'll have visibility across the full product lifecycle - from initial assortment and buy planning through to allocation, replenishment, promotional activity, markdowns and end-of-season management.
  

Your world will include:

• Building and managing seasonal merchandise and buy plans

• Forecasting product and inventory demand

• Supporting seasonal assortment and range planning

• Managing stock allocation and replenishment across channels

• Monitoring sales, margin, sell-through, stock turn and weeks of cover

• Analyzing product performance and identifying opportunities and risks

• Managing product grading and recommending stock movements

• Identifying underperforming stock and recommending promotional or markdown strategies

• Reviewing inventory commitments against forecasts and commercial targets

• Supporting wholesale sales order and inventory requirements

• Partnering with suppliers and internal teams around product availability and demand

• Turning merchandise data into clear commercial recommendations

• Helping us continuously improve the way we plan, buy and manage inventory.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

We're looking for someone who genuinely understands merchandise.

You can move comfortably between a spreadsheet and a commercial conversation. You understand the impact that buying decisions have on sales, margin and inventory - and you're confident challenging a plan when the numbers are telling you something different.

You'll ideally bring:

• Previous merchandise planning, retail buying or inventory planning experience

• Strong experience with forecasting, buy planning, allocation and replenishment

• Experience analyzing sales, stock, margin and product performance

• Strong Excel skills and confidence working with large data sets

• Experience working within an ERP, merchandise or inventory management system

• Strong commercial instincts and attention to detail

• The ability to identify stock risks before they become stock problems

• Confidence communicating insights and recommendations across different teams

• Strong organization and the ability to work across multiple seasons and priorities.

Experience within apparel, fashion, footwear, streetwear or a multi-brand retail/wholesale environment will be highly regarded.

Experience with Apparel21 is essential.