Lead Merchant, North America Kids Channel Merchandising

Nike • Beaverton, OR

7d

About The Position

Nike is seeking a consumer-led Lead Merchant with a strong affinity for product and kids’ sport who can help shape the Kids Footwear and Apparel business across North America channels. The role develops consumer-centric, channel-specific assortment plans by translating product strategies into clear assortments by channel and tier, while accounting for consumer needs, account realities, capacity constraints, and marketplace conditions.

The Lead Merchant manages multiple seasons at once, using in-market performance, bookings, and partner feedback to guide future decisions. The role leads seasonal workflows from Merch to Merch through GTM, OED, and post-GTM, and supports Go to Market and account sales meetings by equipping Sales teams with clear assortments, priorities, narratives, and tools for confident sell-in. It partners across merchandising, sales, planning, brand, finance, operations, and analytics to drive business results across the North America marketplace.

Requirements

• 5+ years of relevant industry experience in merchandising.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Merchandising, Marketing, or a related field; a suitable combination of education, experience, and training will be accepted.
• Experience merchandising footwear, apparel, and/or equipment.
• Expertise in franchise management and understanding of retail key performance indicators and profit-based metrics.
• Strong strategic thinking skills to shape the future of the business.
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse audiences and leadership levels.
• Ability to respond with speed, agility, curiosity, and motivation.
• Collaborative mindset and ability to bring people together to solve complex challenges.
• Ability to prioritize tasks and drive them to completion.
• Ability to communicate vision and purpose and lead effectively in complex situations.
• Problem-solving ability using limited information, with foresight into future implications.

Responsibilities

• Own the translation of North America product strategies into channel- and tier-specific Kids Footwear and Apparel assortments.
• Preserve consumer intent while accounting for capacity, door realities, account needs, and marketplace conditions.
• Serve as the single point of accountability for the final North America channel assortment view.
• Use understanding of wholesale and specialty channel dynamics to determine product placement and scale, and advocate for incremental opportunities while balancing growth, profitability, and brand consistency.
• Partner with North America Sport Merchandising, Sales, SSDs, Planning, and Brand teams to synthesize inputs, clarify priorities, and influence channel outcomes.
• Lead overlapping seasonal workflows from Merch to Merch through GTM, OED, and post-GTM, ensuring clear handoffs and on-time deliverables.
• Equip Sales and SSD partners with channel-specific assortments, narratives, and tools for sell-in.
• Use bookings, in-market performance, and partner feedback to develop actionable insights, refine channel strategies, and improve future assortments and ways of working.
• Support Go to Market sales meetings and account sales meetings by providing clear assortments, priorities, and narratives.

Benefits

• Interview accommodations are available, including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible single-location in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior