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Are you searching for a merchandising manager job description? Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of a merchandising manager. Feel free to use our merchandising manager job description template to produce your own merchandising manager job description. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as a merchandising manager.

 

Who is a Merchandising Manager?

A company’s products and promotional materials are sourced, managed, and curated by merchandise managers, who are analytical experts. To achieve volume and profit targets, it is their responsibility to oversee merchandising operations, and establish, and implement merchandising plans. They create efficient merchandising strategies for both categories and locations. Their job description also includes using data that represents customer insights, consumer trends, purchasing habits, sales and inventory metrics, forecasts, and the competitive environment. You work with procurement, marketing, and finance to find new suppliers and items that represent customer tastes and boost sales as a merchandise manager.

A bachelor’s degree in marketing, merchandising, business, or a closely related field of specialization is often required for the position of merchandise manager. A job in merchandising management calls on a firm grasp of business and marketing, as well as the capacity to evaluate data and recognize trends.

The merchandising manager may also act as the store manager, in charge of all retail operations including personnel hiring, scheduling, and training, depending on the size of the business. The merchandising manager typically oversees a certain department in larger businesses, works with other managers and employees, and reports to the general manager of the establishment. Merchandise managers can carry out more specific tasks within their purview of responsibility when they work for a bigger retailer. To influence their decisions about what to buy and how to merchandise it, merchandise managers also perform market research, assessing the needs of the consumers.

In addition to traditional stores, e-commerce is another option for merchandise managers to work in. Many of the same duties are included in this position, although there are clear spatial differences. Similar to the method employed in a store, an e-commerce merchandising manager must take into account how products are organized on a website. To increase sales and website traffic, they must also optimize their products for search results utilizing keywords. Managers of e-commerce merchandising also plan web marketing campaigns and product photo sessions. A regular merchandising manager doesn’t need as much technical expertise to work online.

 

Merchandising Manager Job Description

What is a merchandising manager job description? A merchandising manager job description is simply a list of duties and responsibilities of a merchandising manager in an organization. Below are the merchandising manager job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write a merchandising manager job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.

The duties and responsibilities of a merchandising manager include the following:

• Control the development and application of marketing plans.
• Design appealing retail layouts that highlight the company’s brand and look.
• Negotiate inventory costs for various stores.
• Create annual and quarterly budgets, then present them to the appropriate parties.
• Keep track of inventory movement and systematically roll out special offers, specials, price reductions, and other things.
• Observe trends, supply, and demand.
• Come up with fresh initiatives, campaigns, and company concepts, and collaborate with the marketing division.
• Describe sales reports and offer suggestions on how to boost numbers and consumer involvement.
• Find new product opportunities and innovations that creatively enhance brand positioning.
• Coordinate the Seasonal Market Week, sample requests and tracking for previews, sell-in meetings, and lead product presentation and communication.
• Assist Design and Marketing in the development of seasonal concepts, and simplify the movement of important data between functional areas, such as adoptions, expenses, and recaps.
• Develop and keep up-to-date forecasting techniques for product lines, gross margins, and stock-keeping unit projections for all financial plans.
• Identify ways to increase communication and marketing efficiency through cost-cutting measures and process improvements for all merchandising departments.
• Take the lead on important contributions to the line reviews for the quarterly product/circulation process meetings.
• Ensure that all merchandising-related tasks, including line plan product development, line finalization, adoption of suggested line assortment, color assortment, product mix, and competitive direction, are carried out.
• Review sales data to make product recommendations.
• Manage all facets of product management, including costing, product implementation, and product flow.
• Maintain the teams’ daily productivity and accountabilities while managing performance on a daily, monthly, and annual basis.
• Encourage good communication between the visual and warehousing teams, as well as between store management and headquarters.
• Work in tandem with internal partnership teams to create and roll out successful content and marketing campaigns.
• Help partner and technical teams troubleshoot issues that affect customers.
• Draft seasonal ranges with a thorough range structure and national or regional launch flow.
• Implement the category development plan in line with the overall goal.
• Rework copy, specs, technical data, images, line art, and index entries while writing with suppliers, advertising, and sales.
• Verify that catalogs adhere to client expectations and meet quality requirements.
• Participate in product design for merchandising.
• Update important stakeholders on merchandising activity.
• Execute particular trade-off decisions that are in line with global strategies, and make sure that regional partners and Managing Directors are informed of these decisions.
• Develop and lead analysis of major initiatives to enhance performance with objectives.
• Keep up the momentum while seeking fresh chances to boost growth across all gender categories.
• Ensure that the assortment is constructed in a way that both the brand and the buyer can profit the most.
• Send marketplace insights to all relevant product category merchants to guarantee that the global product line management team is aware of trends.
• Manage and have an impact on large marketing, legal, merchandising, and vendor teams.

 

Qualifications

• Possession of a General Education Diploma or a High School Diploma.
• A Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business management, retail, or a closely related profession.
• Having at least five years’ experience in a supervisory capacity
• Experience in marketing, communications, or design is very ideal.

 

Essential Skills

1. Effective Communication Skills: To explain products to customers, respond politely to their queries and concerns, and satisfy their needs, a merchandising manager needs to be able to speak with them successfully. Because of the growth of online sales and the probability that you’ll need to interact with customers on the phone or with coworkers in other locations, effective communication is a major priority in the industry.
2. Possession of Customer Service Skills: In addition to speaking clearly, merchandise managers should have a wide range of customer service skills. They shouldn’t be rude or unattractive, but rather a “people person,” or someone with a kind, optimistic, and helpful attitude.

The two basic objectives of merchandising management are to provide customers with a greater shopping experience and to improve their lives through a product. Staff members should therefore go above and beyond to help customers with their problems. They also need to be patient and think about the customer’s best interests, especially when dealing with rude clients.

3. Keen Attention to Details: Depending on the retailer you want to work with, attention to detail may be high on the list of required skills. The majority of the time, hangers must be positioned in a single orientation, piles of clothing must be folded evenly with the trademark visible, and window displays must be immaculate. Accurate change distribution and collection are equally as important as the order and display. The retail sector requires meticulous stocktaking as well as an evaluation of the floor for any potential robberies, therefore attention to detail is a top skill.
4. IT Proficiency Skills: Practically every job you can apply for requires you to know about information technology, but it’s also helpful in the field of merchandising management. A merchandise manager may process transactions using an electronic cash register or point of sale system. Financial management and inventory control may be handled via a management information system. You can also be tasked with managing online customer orders. Regardless of the circumstance, technical competence is yet another professional trait to highlight in your CV when applying for a merchandising management position.
5. Arithmetical Skills: A competent merchandiser would possess high numeracy skills. You’ll need to conduct accurate transactions, calculate discounts, and give customers change because running a retail business involves managing cash, handling money, and obtaining credit.
6. Selling Skills: For the job in retail, basic sales skills including persuasion and product knowledge are required. You must be able to convince clients to buy from you and win their loyalty. This requires a lot of listening, patience, and sincere communication. Selling is undoubtedly one of the most crucial skills for a sales assistant to have because it will help you complete the deal and give you an edge over the competition.
7. Commercial Awareness: To market a product, you must be able to explain its features and benefits. You should be knowledgeable about both the product and the industry to which it belongs. Without product or market understanding, you’ll never thrive in retail. To succeed, develop your commercial awareness while investigating market data and industry trends.
8. High Learning Skills: The retail industry is dynamic and constantly changing. This necessitates both flexibility and a quick rate of learning. As a merchandise manager, you will continuously have to deal with new goods, fashions, and costs.
9. Multi-Tasking Skills: You should place the ability to multitask at the top of your list of merchandising management skills. You will be responsible for managing one or more clients at once in addition to keeping the store tidy. Consider yourself a great candidate for any merchandising management position if you find that you are a multi-tasker. In merchandising management, abilities like prioritizing, time management, and stress management are crucial.
10. Physical Stamina: Working as a merchandise manager is physically demanding because you are on your feet all day, you could lift heavy boxes, and you don’t have much time for a lunch break. Physical endurance is another quality needed for merchandising management, therefore if you want to work for your local retailer, be sure to build that endurance.

It’s possible that you haven’t even considered the skills required for working in retail. While some of these abilities need education and practice, many of them come naturally to many people. You will obtain the retail position of your dreams by building on them, and you may even be better prepared for future promotion or alternative career choices.

 

How to Become a Merchandising Manager

1. Obtain an undergraduate degree: Even if a high school diploma or GED is sufficient to become a merchandising manager, most employers favor applicants with a bachelor’s degree. For merchandise managers, the most popular undergraduate degree pathways are business, merchandising, marketing, or economics. You learn about many of the abilities required for merchandising managers in these education programs. Consider studying courses in computer science or information technology if you want to work in the e-commerce area of retail. An e-commerce merchandising manager may find benefit from taking communications lessons.

Some businesses mandate a bachelor’s degree for merchandising managers but do not specify a particular field of study. Therefore, if you already hold a bachelor’s degree, you can start working in this field without having to go back to school.

2. Obtain Relevant Experience in Retail and Management:  Getting experience is the best path to becoming a merchandise manager. Companies search for workers with retail expertise, particularly with some leadership or management experience, since this is a management position. On your path to becoming a merchandise manager, working as a team leader or a department supervisor might be a beneficial experience.

A merchandising manager is not the only person who may pursue a career in merchandising. Several purchasing agents may support merchandise managers in larger businesses. Before you become a merchandising manager yourself, a purchasing agent position can help you obtain experience in merchandising and learn from the merchandising manager directly.

3. Carry on with your education: If you want to improve your chances of landing a job as a merchandise manager, you might consider continuing your schooling. A master’s degree can help merchandise managers increase their expertise and learning capability. The most common graduate degree for merchandise managers is a master’s in business administration or MBA.

You can also enroll in merchandising-related individual courses or work toward a professional certification to boost your resume’s credentials. The American Purchasing Society and the Institute for Supply Management are two organizations that provide certification programs and merchandising courses.

 

Where to Work as a Merchandising Manager

• E-commerce Stores.
• Physical Stores.

 

Merchandising Manager Salary Scale

In the United States, the typical merchandising manager’s pay is $89,331, or $42.95 per hour. The bottom 10 percent of that range, or those individuals, earn about $61,000 annually, while the highest 10 percent earn $128,000. However, as of March 3, 2021, the average Merchandising Manager’s pay in the United Kingdom is £62,447, with the normal range being between £44,281 and £81,018. Salary ranges can vary significantly depending on a variety of crucial aspects, including schooling, credentials, supplementary talents, and the length of time you’ve been working in a given field.

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