Lead Merchandise Planner

BJ's Wholesale Club•BJ's Club Support Center Marlborough, MA

39d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Planning & Allocation Lead supports the Planning & Allocation Manager that is aligned with a Merchandising DMM and/or Category Director. The Lead will be responsible for select categories and/ or specific P&A activities to support the business. The Planning & Allocation Lead will assist in leading the team of Merchandise Planners and Allocation Analysts who work to ensure the overall Member experience by overseeing that the right amount of product flows to the right Clubs at the right time to maximize sales and minimize inventory investment.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
At least 5+ years relevant experience, managerial experience preferred
Exhibits leadership competencies that exemplify BJs core values.
Exceptionally articulate in oral and written communications built on strong analytical skills
Detail oriented, with excellent follow-through and problem-solving skills
Flexible and adaptive to changing priorities
Results driven and able to work in a fast-paced environment

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with AI tools, including ChatGPT

Responsibilities

Develop annual bottom-up merchandise plans that deliver company sales, margin, and inventory goals.
Lead all financial forecasting within categories using data-driven analytics, trend insights, and business intelligence to project future results.
Partners with cross-functional team on inputs to forecast and shares output with team to drive alignment.
Understands implications of trend to each metric and is able to guide teammates on actions to improve results.
Lead and manage end-to-end omni channel inventory management.
Pre-season: collaborate with merchants in developing tailored product assortment inventory needs that support sales trends and customer preference in each store including assortment frameworks , sku productivity, flow plans, ideal depth.
In Season: support milestone meetings by providing assessments to sales that result in actions to support the business: weekly team meetings, OTB, financial forecasts.
End of Life : ensure exit strategies are assigned and executed.
Lead and manage end-to-end allocation process.
Optimize inventory flow timing across all channels.
Develop allocation processes across the product life cycle that ladder up to retail merchandise sales and inventory plans.
Understand store profiles/tiers and build assortment allocation strategies with merchandising.
Adjust allocation strategies in-season where needed and provide appropriate and timely direction to react to member and business needs.
Clearly and concisely communicate business performance to business leads and cross functional partners.
Coach and train a team of Merchandise Planners and Allocation Analysts.
Foster a strong customer service environment to improve efficiencies for the DC network and Clubs.
Develop new and enhanced business processes to drive the efficiency of your team.
Collaborate with vendor partners to create an efficient supply chain.
Monitor vendor performance to improve reliability.