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

We’re looking for a Lead Merchant.  As a key member of the North America Merchandising team, this candidate must demonstrate a deep understanding of the consumer, marketplace and business, and an ability to drive strategy and influence cross-functional partners throughout the go-to-market process.  An expert in merchandising principles and deeply engaged in the business, this candidate will develop, lead and execute best-in-class product strategies.

WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON

This position defines and oversees merchandising strategy, vision and execution for one of Converse’s largest North America wholesale partners, aligned with the company’s strategy to achieve growth and profitability, while creating best-in class experiences for our consumer. Responsibilities include:

Strategic Planning:

Develop and implement merchandising plans including line planning, product segmentation, lifecycle management, pricing, assortment maximization, and identifying new growth opportunities.

Consumer-Centric:

Obsess our consumer. Putting the consumer at the heart of everything we do.  Use trend and market data to gain insights and shape seasonal product priorities.  Deliver seasonal product plans aligned to key consumer moments.

Marketplace Analysis:

Balance long term strategic growth and immediate business needs based on sales trends, market landscape, consumer insights and business KPI’s to both manage in-season risks, and identify / maximize opportunities for future innovation and growth. 

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

Collaborate with other functions, such as marketing, sales, planning, and global product and consumer merchandising, to align merchandising strategies with overall business goals.   

Building strong external relationships:

Build trust with key external buyers, through regular collaborative touchpoints and seasonal presentations.  Take a leading role in account communications at key milestones to create alignment against strategic objectives and generate value for both parties.

Effective communication tools:

Create strategy communication tools and product storytelling decks (PPT/keynote) to advance support of long-range and seasonal merchandising and product strategy.

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

Your key partners include:

• Geo and Global Merchandising

• Global product creation

• Commercial (sales)

• Marketplace Planning

• Brand and Retail Marketing

• Merchandising and commercial operations

WHAT YOU BRING

• 5+ years of relevant experience in merchandising or buying roles with an emphasis on consumer, product management, merchandising/planning and marketplace knowledge

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Merchandising or related field. Will accept any suitable combination of education, experience and training

• Ability to think creatively, strategically and technically; balancing working at both the operational and strategic level

• Strong understanding and passion for product, consumer, and store / digital experiences

• Deep knowledge of merchandising principles, consumer and market trends

• Understanding of retail key performance indicators and profit based metrics

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to work across functional lines and levels to advance strategic objectives and vision

• Excellent organizational skills with demonstrated ability to prioritize workload and concurrently manage multiple projects

• Requires bachelor’s degree in business, merchandising or related field

• Footwear industry preferred

• Ability to travel 20%

We offer a number of accommodations to complete our interview process including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible and single location for in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications as needed. If you discover, as you navigate our application process, that you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please complete the Candidate Accommodation Request Form.

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