Inventory Planner - Outlet

Williams-Sonoma•The Colony, TX

6d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Inventory Planner, Outlet is responsible for strategic planning and inventory management across Williams-Sonoma, Inc.’s Outlet Stores and Outlet Online for all company brands. As part of the Outlet Inventory team, the planner owns the channel’s sales, margin, and inventory plan, managing brand overstock transfers and customer returns to deliver appropriate inventory to stores at the right time. The role partners with Outlet Buyers, Distribution, DC/Supply Chain, brand Merchandising and Planning teams, and field leadership to maximize sales, protect margin, optimize inventory turns, and support profitable growth. It reports to the Outlet Inventory Manager and is accountable for Outlet sales, MMU, inventory, and turn goals in the financial budget. The position is onsite in The Colony, Texas, Monday through Thursday, with a remote option on Friday. Occasional domestic travel is required. An Excel assessment is required before consideration.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and/or equivalent professional experience.
Three to five years of experience in Merchandise Planning or Inventory Management.
Proficiency in retail math and experience managing a traditional Open to Buy.
Ability to interpret data objectively and extract actionable business insights.
Advanced Excel skills; an Excel assessment is required before consideration.
Understanding of supply-chain and distribution processes, including inventory allocation, transfers, and returns.
Excellent collaboration and communication skills, including comfort addressing all organizational levels.
Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize work and meet deadlines.
Flexibility and adaptability to changing priorities and ability to thrive in a fast-paced, changing environment.
Ability to work onsite in The Colony, Texas, Monday through Thursday, with a remote option on Friday.
Ability to travel within the country occasionally.

Nice To Haves

Experience in outlet, off-price, or clearance businesses.
Five or more years of experience in the retail industry.
Experience with reporting and business-intelligence tools such as Qlik, and with MRP/ERP systems.
Experience leading project work, mentoring others, and solving complex problems.

Responsibilities

Own monthly Open to Buy forecasts for Outlet sales, MMU, receipts, and end-of-period inventory by brand and channel; recommend actions to meet sales goals and budgeted inventory levels.
Partner with Buyers and Finance to develop pre-season and annual Outlet plans aligned with financial goals and brand inventory strategy.
Manage the mix of allocated brand overstock and chip-and-dent inventory to achieve MMU dollar and rate goals.
Conduct in-season forecasting and analysis to identify inventory risks and opportunities and estimate the effect of shortages and excess inventory.
Plan inventory flow across brands, integrating overstock transfers, customer returns, and brand-store transfers to achieve annual turn goals.
Work with Distribution to allocate large-cube, clearance, and slow-moving products to Outlet Stores, support model-stock density, and alleviate distribution-center capacity constraints.
Review brand inventory positions and facilitate transfers to Outlet to drive sales.
Review returns disposition logic across distribution centers and develop strategies to add inventory to Outlet Online from across the network.
Support Outlet Online site and assortment strategies, including expanded offerings, filtering and sorting, and improved condition categories.
Recommend targeted promotions and progressive markdowns on aging inventory to maximize sales and margin and address inventory gluts.
Develop and execute liquidation strategies for store relocations and closures that limit margin erosion and support real-estate plans.
Determine end-of-life disposition strategies for aged and non-saleable inventory.
Provide actionable reporting on store and distribution-center inventory, pending transfers, seasonal ownership, allocation tracking, and category performance.
Use reporting and planning tools, including Qliksense and MicroStrategy, to inform forecasts and translate data into insights and actions.
Use historical data to identify product, pricing, and inventory learnings and apply them to future seasons.
Improve monthly shopping and planning processes across cross-functional teams.
Collaborate across Outlet Buying, Planning, and Distribution, sharing information and aligning priorities with colleagues and field partners.
Communicate proactively and clearly with stores, DC/Supply Chain, Transportation, and brand partners; flag risks and surface opportunities.
Contribute to a people-first, entrepreneurial, accountable culture that celebrates results.
Support new-hire onboarding and train and mentor assistant planners.
Travel domestically occasionally.