Regional Merchant

Ashley Furniture Industries•, FL

19h•Onsite

About The Position

The Regional Merchant is responsible for driving store-level product performance, assortment execution, and revenue growth across a defined group of retail stores with a territory of 10-20 Stores. This role serves as the critical bridge between National Merchandising strategy and in-store customer demand, ensuring that product assortments, inventory flow, pricing execution, and visual presentation align with regional customer demographics and sales opportunities. Operating within a multibillion-dollar furniture retail environment, the Regional Merchant manages 10-20 stores within a defined geographic territory, partnering closely with National Merchandising, Merchandise Planning, Visual Merchandising, Store Operations, Store Sales, and Supply Chain to maximize product velocity, margin performance, and customer experience. The Regional Merchant plays a pivotal role in ensuring that store assortments are optimized for local customer needs while maintaining alignment with national brand strategies.

Requirements

Bachelors Degree in Merchandising, Business, Retail Management, Supply Chain, Finance or related field
5-10+ Years retail merchandising experience
Experience in furniture, home furnishings, or big ticket retail strongly preferred
Proven track record of improving store sales and product performance
Experience managing multi store retail environments
Analytical Thinking
Customer Insight
Merchandising Judgement
Cross Functional Leadership
Store Execution Excellence
Communication Cross Functionally
Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without the need for visa sponsorship now or at any time in the future.

Responsibilities

Localize national assortments based on regional customer demographics, home styles, and buying behavior
Identify assortment gaps and regional opportunities within core categories such as Bedroom, Dining, Motion Upholstery, Stationary Upholstery and Occasional Furniture
Recommend product swaps, expansions, or exits to maximize sales productivity
Ensure store assortments reflect regional demand while maintaining brand consistency
Analyze store-level sales performance and product velocity trends across the region
Identify top performers, underperformers, and emerging trends
Partner with Merchandise Planning & Supply Chain to adjust inventory allocation and replenishment strategies
Drive improvements in Sales Per Square Foot, Sku Productivity, Category Mix and Margin Performance
Conduct monthly store visits and velocity walks across assigned stores
Evaluate floor placement effectiveness, product storytelling, competitive positioning, price perception, and product adjacencies
Provide feedback and recommendations to improve visual merchandising and customer flow
Lead product assortment planning and floor execution for new store openings, store relocations and major remodels
Partner with Visual Merchandising and Store Operations to ensure optimal product presentation and assortment mix
Validate that floor sets reflect regional sales opportunities and customer demographics
Provide regional insight to National Merchandising for future product development and assortment planning
Align with Merchandise Planning on inventory levels, allocation strategies, and demand signals
Ensure product placement aligns with customer flow and storytelling with Visual Merchandising
Support store teams with product knowledge and sales enablement with Store Operations
Identify supply issues impacting store availability and sales opportunities with Retail Supply Chain
Partner with RSA’s, Store Managers, and Regional Directors on assortment performance, assortment gaps as well as customer insight for assortment regionalization
Monitor local market conditions and competitive positioning
Track competitor assortment strategies and pricing trends
Identify regional customer lifestyle trends and emerging product opportunities
Provide insights that inform national assortment strategies and product innovation