Planner

Dufry•Hudson, OH

About The Position

The Planner drives sales, margin, and demand performance across assigned categories and locations through data-driven planning and tactical decision-making. The role develops forecasts, manages product assortments, and aligns working capital investments with business objectives to support demand planning, sustainable growth, and profitability. The Planner analyzes sales and financial performance, develops category and article-level forecasts, and adjusts assortment strategies based on product lifecycle results, customer trends, and market dynamics. The role collaborates with Category Management, Supply Chain, Operations, Finance, and other teams, and supports new store openings, resets, and concept changes. The Planner uses tools including Power BI, SAP, and Excel to develop insights and present performance reviews, forecasts, and recommendations to leadership. The Planner reports to the Senior Planner. Major interdependencies include Operations, Supply Chain, and Business Development. The company describes itself as an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment.

Requirements

The combination of education and professional experience must exceed 6 years.
Requires 6 years of retail experience engaged in developing and delivering planning programs; a bachelor's degree in a program related to the functional area can count for 3 of the 6-year requirement.
Requires 3–5 years of retail experience in the industry.
Knowledge of financial tools and concept profitability, and understanding and use of market research and market trend information.
Extensive experience implementing and utilizing an OTB system when managing sales forecasting.
Demonstrated continuous-improvement mindset and ability to optimize work processes and achieve positive results.
Advanced business acumen and strategic mindset to understand the long-term implications of planning decisions and advance organizational goals.
Demonstrated ability to anticipate and balance business needs with the needs of complex stakeholders, the employee population, and individual circumstances.
Demonstrated history of creating and maintaining positive work environments.

Nice To Haves

Two years of experience supervising a team of planning professionals in a leadership role is preferred.

Responsibilities

Analyze weekly and monthly sales, margin, sell-through, demand productivity, and performance trends across assigned categories and locations; monitor KPIs and identify risks and opportunities.
Develop and maintain sales and financial forecasts aligned with budget and business targets, incorporating promotional, seasonal, and market-specific factors.
Build and refine article-level demand forecasts using historical data, trends, and business inputs to support supply chain and replenishment planning.
Manage product assortments within assigned categories, setting working capital investment targets and financial guardrails aligned with sales and margin objectives.
Establish category- and article-level expectations based on demand plans and align working capital investment strategy with business financial goals.
Evaluate product lifecycle performance and adjust assortment strategies, identifying opportunities for item expansion, introduction, or rationalization.
Analyze store-level and regional performance to tailor assortment strategies to customer trends and market dynamics.
Partner with Category Management, Supply Chain, Operations, and Finance to align business priorities and execution with commercial intent.
Support new store openings, resets, and concept changes through assortment planning aligned with customer demand and store formats.
Use Power BI, SAP, Excel, and other analytical tools to identify trends and opportunities; prepare and present performance reviews, forecasts, and recommendations to leadership.
Provide clear demand signals to support supply chain and replenishment planning.