Merchandise Planner

What you’ll do

The Merchandising department is searching for the right applicant to fill a critical position in our Calgary Head Office. The Merchandise Planning group is growing and we are looking for business-minded people who have a flare with numbers. Reporting to the AVP, Merchandise Planning, this exciting and fast-paced role involves working in small, yet highly interactive teams, analyzing and predicting future trends, and working with merchants to build an assortment. If you understand our product mix, our stores, and our customers, you may be a candidate for the Merchandise Planning group. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who enjoys building and being part of something truly unique in the retail industry. Create 5 year, annual, and semi-annual merchandise plans.

Responsibilities

• Make recommendations towards the development of strategic annual and seasonal plans consistent with company goals.
• Work with Buyers and Analysts to form recommendations that will maximize Sales, Gross Margin, and Inventory turn for assigned commodities.
• Receive information from the Analyst group regarding weather forecasts and integrate into the merchandise planning.
• Provide recommendations regarding the creation of seasonal plans.
• Create seasonal category strategies.
• Provide recommendations to the Buyer to publish merchandise directions.
• Support and recommend promotional event plans through appropriate pre-event inventory builds and post-event management.
• Scale merchandise assortments to the store size and volume once clustering activities are completed.
• Develop and execute an assortment plan which specifies the number of customer choices appropriate for different store clusters and the correct depth for each choice.
• Prepare recommendations for key item listings.
• Make recommendations towards the building of master assortments.
• Assist in planning item lifecycle.
• Identify risks and opportunities to the business and recommend strategies to achieve financial goals and optimize inventory investments.
• Solicit store input into seasonal planning process and make recommendations toward the consolidation/adjustment of input back into merchandise plan.
• Provide recommendations to the Buyer for In-Season Management and performs monitoring and re-forecasting as required – trending receipts, sales and markdowns and reacting accordingly.
• Provide ongoing communication with the Buyer and GMM of performance compared to plan, in-season parameters, identifying areas of potential opportunity and risk.
• Provide ongoing assessments and recommendations of impact of current performance on future plans.
• Provide in-depth analysis and reporting in support of all critical decisions.
• Evaluate and report on product testing from both a pre-season and an in-season perspective and responsible for imbedding testing into the business decision-making process.

What you bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Mathematics, or Statistics.
• 3 to 5+ years of relevant experience.
• Strong analytical and organizational skills.
• Strong computer knowledge and proficiency in MS Excel.
• Ability to work under pressure and grow in a fast-paced environment.
• Team-oriented.
• Strong analytical experience and ability.
• Demonstrated ability to use a systematic approach in solving problems through analysis of alternate solutions; to use logic, mathematics, or other problem-solving tools in data analysis.
• Excellent collaborative/team skills.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Strong organization skills and the ability to handle a variety of tasks simultaneously.
• Drive for continuous improvement.
• Business savvy with a strong sense of fashion is an asset.

Work Environment

At Canadian Tire, we value flexibility. We have adopted a hybrid work model whereby employees use a combination of working in office and virtually in service of outcomes. Each leader is empowered to decide what work is best achieved in person based on the unique needs of their team.

About Us

At Marks, we want you to experience an extraordinary career in helping to lead our brand's evolution to be Canada’s number one destination for industrial and casual apparel and footwear. As one of Canada’s leading apparel retailers, and a valued part of the Canadian Tire family of companies, Mark’s stands out for its commitment to comfort, quality and style. Mark’s is a leader in product development, innovation, and quality through its assortment of industrial apparel, footwear, and accessories, with strong private and exclusive brands. Join us, where there's a place for you here.

Commitment to Diversity

We are committed to fostering an environment where belonging thrives, and diversity, inclusion, and equity are infused into everything we do. We believe in building an organizational culture where people are consistently treated with dignity while respecting individual religion, nationality, gender, race, age, perceived ability, spoken language, sexual orientation, and identification. We are united in our purpose of being here to help make life in Canada better.

Accommodations

We stand firm in our Core Value that inclusion is a must. We welcome and encourage candidates from equity-seeking groups such as people who identify as racialized, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQIA+, women, people with disabilities, and beyond. Should you require any accommodation in applying for this role, or throughout the interview process, please make them known when contacted and we will work with you to help meet your needs.