Director of Merchandising & Product Development (Earthwise)

Bunzl Career • Glendale, CA

52d • Hybrid

About The Position

As the Director of Merchandising , you will lead the development and execution of merchandising strategies for Earthwise’s reusable bag portfolio. In this role, you will ensure alignment with customer brand objectives, market trends, and sustainability goals while driving profitability and growth. You will also support and lead the product and merchandising teams. You will also support and lead the product and merchandising teams. This role will be hybrid, with the expectation to work in the Glendale office at least 3 days per week. Bunzl is a global leader in the Cleaning & Hygiene, Food Processing, Grocery, Health Care, Non-Food Retail, and Safety industries. We have grown both organically and through acquisitions to sales in excess of $10 billion. Bunzl North America is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Bunzl North America owns and operates more than 100 warehouses and serves all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Canada and parts of the Caribbean and Mexico. With more than 5,000 employees and 400,000 plus supplies, Bunzl is regarded as a leading supplier in North America.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, Merchandising, Product Development, Marketing, or related field; MBA preferred.
• 8+ years of merchandising experience, ideally in consumer goods or retail private label programs.
• Strong understanding of sustainability trends and retail operations.
• Proven ability to manage complex customer relationships and deliver tailored solutions.
• Excellent analytical, negotiation, and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Team Leadership Lead and mentor product and merchandising teams, fostering collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Process Improvement: Streamline merchandising workflows and tools to enhance efficiency, reduce sales team workload, and improve speed-to-market. Drive cross-functional alignment with operations, marketing, and supply chain teams.
• Strategic Merchandising Leadership Develop and implement merchandising strategies for private label reusable bags across multiple retail partners. Analyze market trends, consumer insights, and competitive data to inform product assortment and pricing strategies.
• Customer Collaboration Partner with retail clients to design custom bag programs that align with their brand and sustainability initiatives.
• Customer Line Planning: Collaborate with sales and customers to develop tailored product assortments that align with brand strategies and market trends.
• Product Development Liaison: Translate customer insights into actionable product briefs, working closely with design and sourcing teams to bring new products to market. Serve as the primary merchandising liaison for key accounts, ensuring exceptional service and program execution.
• Product Development & Innovation Identify white space opportunities and guide the end-to-end development of new products—from concept to commercialization—ensuring alignment with customer requirements and business objectives. Work closely with design and sourcing teams to create innovative, cost-effective, and sustainable bag solutions. Oversee packaging, branding, and in-store presentation standards for private label programs.
• Financial Management Partner with the Director of Sales to develop budget forecasts by customer. Build investment and ROI plan by customer to meet annual forecast goals. Monitor sales performance and implement strategies to maximize margin and reduce waste.

Benefits

• Bunzl Distribution offers competitive salaries, a comfortable work environment, and a full range of benefits including a 401k with a company match.
• Bunzl Distribution has a tradition of commitment to equal employment opportunity. It is the established policy to attract and retain the best qualified people without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex/gender (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, age, disability or veteran status as provided by law.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees