Merchant II – Direct, North America (BOSTON MA)

ABOUT CONVERSE 

Are you interested in working for the most iconic and well-loved sneaker brand in the world? Born in sports and made for the street, Converse is a place to explore your potential, obliterate boundaries, and push out the edges of what can be. We seek people who can lead, grow, think, dream, and create. Our culture thrives by embracing diversity and rewarding imagination. Converse seeks achievers, leaders, and visionaries. At Converse, it’s about each person bringing their authentic self, skills, and passion to serve the daring spirit of youth.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

As the Merchant II – Direct, NA, you will create and drive assortment strategies. By being the expert on customer needs and marketplace capacity, you will be the lead of building consumer focused assortments. You will select products that meet financial plans and deliver business results. The Merchant II will drive cross-functional alignment with planning, Buying, allocation, marketplace merchandising to ensure the right product is delivered on- time and meets key KPIs. This position will serve as the strategic business driver for the product development, ensuring product and presentation enhances the brand while achieving sales targets and maintains brand integrity for both Stores and Web.

WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON

In collaboration with the broader Direct team and Cross-Functional partners, you will support the creation of the in-season and long-term product strategy for Converse’s Direct.

This role plays an integral part in building consumer-right assortments and collecting insights across the marketplace.  You will be responsible for connecting the consumer with the product strategy and crafting assortments based on our global product line offering.  You will support ensuring that in-season and future executions, geo nuances, and financial targets are met.

You will be responsible for: 

• Developing seasonal strategies that meet or exceed sales goals, margin targets, and align to the overarching company strategy
• Creating and communicating seasonal line plans to guide design, product development and production in support of company objectives
• Merchandising and present seasonal product assortments that meet sales and margin targets
• Presenting seasonal product assortment to upper management, wholesale and global teams
• Creating assortment strategies with an understanding of fabric and materials, as well as lead times
• Tracking business performance; Identify risks and opportunities for reacting to current business
• Creating and communicating pricing strategies that align with brand positioning
• Communicating to appropriate cross-functional partners
• Maintaining and demonstrating expert knowledge of customer base through strong field relationships, frequently visiting stores and constantly reaching out for direct consumer feedback
• Maintaining and demonstrate constant understanding of the competitive environment
• Participate in key business meeting throughout the product creation process

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

In this role, your key partners will be:

• Direct Planning
• Allocation
• Marketplace Merchandising
• Marketing

WHAT YOU BRING

• Requires a minimum of 3-4 years of relevant merchandising experience; apparel/accessories experience preferred with a data-driven mindset.
• Knowledge and understanding of product development, marketing, and merchandising product commercialization
• Understanding of retail key performance indicators and profit-based metrics
• Requires strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel (data manipulation and analysis), PowerPoint, and Keynote
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work and influence cross-functionally
• Demonstrated ability to lead and influence cross-functional teams