WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

For Nike Inc. merchants, everything begins and ends with the consumer! We’re looking for a consumerist with an affinity for products, love for the Nike brand and who enjoys the energy of moving at the pace of retail and the consumer. A successful Lead Merchant will thrive and contribute to a positive and progressive team dynamic, as well as manage and lead in a way that elevates the team.

This role manages the Cross-Sport assortment and strategy for Graphic Tees in North America Brand Merchandising. This individual will use historical data, analytics, and real-time market feedback to inform the overarching strategy, while winning in season through maximizing the Cross-Sport line plan.

This candidate should possess solid retail acumen and analytical skills and is comfortable leading with and through peers. It’s important that this candidate can drive end-to-end strategies with strong influencing and project management skills.

WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON

You will build consumer-centric assortment plans with an understanding of the full marketplace, blending fact-based and intuitive inputs. You will participate in seasonal reviews & assortment building in partnership with sport and channel merchants.

You will balance multiple seasons; Your insights will contribute to future season plans and adoption by supporting Merchandising Leadership and upstream partnership within Global Merchandising. You will manage the Cross-Sport point-of-view during various seasonal creation gates and assortment building that exists within Graphic Tees. It will be critical to gather consumer trends and marketplace insights from in-market seasons, while also driving a future state strategy that aligns to the broader initiatives across Nike.

As a Lead Merchant on the Brand Merchandising team, you'll apply marketplace data, consumer insights, foresight, and hindsight to make decisions, influence and develop seasonal plans to serve our consumer. You'll provide qualitative and quantitative insights to cross-functional stakeholders, and work closely with Planning, Brand, and Product Creation Teams. You’ll lead the management of our merchandising KPIs through robust analysis of retail insights and performance! You'll build positive and trustworthy relationships with your partners to build and land assortments that meet the needs of consumers, take them to a new place, and differentiate the key points of distribution across Nike’s channels. You’ll work with your cross-functional team to maintain the optimal balance between a pull and push market.

WHO YOU’LL WORK WITH

You will work closely with fellow merchants and cross-functional teams within Global and Geo Merchandising, Planning, Product Creation, Sales, and Brand Marketing. We also work with Finance, Operations and the Insights, and Strategy teams; relying on business reporting for your area which includes quantitative and qualitative metrics on sales, inventory and consumer behaviors.

You will report to the Sr. Manager of Brand Merchandising for Nike North America, Apparel.

WHAT YOU WILL BRING

• Bachelor’s degree in business or a related field. Will accept any suitable combination of education, experience, and training.
• 6+ years of directly relevant work experience within Footwear, Apparel, Equipment, or relevant consumer product merchandising, product creation and/or retail in a vertical, multi-brand or digital environment
• Understanding of common retail and/or digital profit-based metrics such as sell-through, margin, AUR, UPT and others
• Strong communication skills and comfort navigating a cross-functional matrix, with an emphasis on influencing skills
• Proven ability to translate consumer, sales, trend, and marketplace insights into in-season and long-term breakthrough strategies
• Effective communicator that collaborates and brings people together
• Provides direction and mentorship to teammates
• Values differences and build strong relationships with high cultural awareness
• Proven balance of art and science in decision-making
• Cultivates innovation while also ensuring accountability
• Communicates vision and purpose and able to lead effectively in complex situations
• Solves problems using limited information and implements solutions with the ability to foresee most future implications
• Advises others on complex matters requiring in-depth knowledge or conceptual thinking
• Responds with speed and agility, curiosity, and motivation

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.