Andile Xaba: SENIOR MERCHANDISE PLANNER in Midrand

Duties: ? Sales and Stock forecasting at category level across 29 categories in Home Hards ? Maintaining stock levels and flow according to sales trends and store needs ? New store planning (sales,stock requirements based on space availability and expected trading densities) ? Preseason assortment planning/building ? DC/warehouse integration of a homeware business into an apparel dominate business ? Allocation of all home hards product across 29 categories ? Supplier relations (Diversifying risk against deliveries, shipping lead times and margin expectations) ? In-Season planning (maintaining stock covers, margins, promotional activities/markdowns, sell off rates, delivery flows and reforecasting sales & stock demand) ? Store visits to get real time feedback and quicker response to wanted products and distressed product ? Replenishment planning ? Profit margin management ? Mentoring planning interns ? Post Seasonal Analysis at SKU level rolling up to Department level ? Reporting on a weekly basis to planning and merchandise Head on current, actions plans on maximising profits, minimising risk/exposure and optimising stocks ? Monthly Reporting on missed opportunities and corrective measures for next month and season.

Duties: ? Prepare weekly sales Report on Current Season SKUs / Styles ? Analyse weekly sell through / clearance performance, margins and Gross Profit per Category, Brand and at item level. ? Manage in-season promotions / markdowns by margin managing and ensuring bottom line Gross Profit is maintained ? Negotiating rebates with suppliers for certain product lines going into promo or markdown ? Presenting sales reports to suppliers and aligning forecasts in sales and stock on bi-weekly intervals ? Forecast sales, stock and maintain covers on replenishment items ? Manage margins / Gross Profit on aged stock deals with suppliers ? Post Seasonal analysis and presentation to Department Heads, General Managers, Managing Director, CFO and Group Chairman ? Forecast OTB by brand, category and gender/end use. Present to Department head and Buyers ? Liaising with General and Regional Managers on Inter Branch Transfers of stock ? Setting up store grids for certain product lines based on sales performance, seasonality & climate, end use/gender and fashion use. ? Allocating stock based on the store grids, end use, sales history at item level or category or brand performance. ? Travelling to regions and stores to obtain feedback at store level on customer requests, complaints and recommendations ? Brands managed in portfolio 1. Adidas 2. Nike 3. Puma 4. Reebok 5. The North Face 6. Ellesse 7. Polo Kids 8. Nike SB 9. Air Jordan 10. Levi's Kids

Duties: ? Monitor store current trade and analyse previous week's performance across portfolio, season and initiate quick reaction to maximise sales and profit ? Forecast sales and store demand whilst ensuring stores achieve like for like growth ? Compile a current trade report and present to the team ? Convert sales plan into a stock plan ? Analyse store cover ratio, size service levels and allocations ? Compile monthly Zero-based plan accounting for previous month's base corrections ? Handle supplier queries and assist with packing instructions/requirements ? Ensure stock contributions across stores and profiles are in line with the planned store sales forecast ? Compile a post mortem report outlining missed opportunities, risks and key learnings ? Financial post mortem report by portfolio, season, grade and store profiles ? Analyse monthly trade reports, KPI's and variance to plan ? Category grading of stores utilising rate of sales principles and provide unit buy recommendations ? Present post mortem to management ? Prepare seasonal strategy store plan on RPAS (ERP system) ? Prepare review presentations on variances to strategy by store, grade and profile ? KPI's: ? Gross Profit by Brand/Portfolio ? Sales by Brand/Portfolio ? Trade Responsiveness ? Size Service Levels ? Shape of assortment by profile ? Stock turn and depreciation

Duties: ? Coordinate all promotional product and price adverts within the company ? Liaise with Buying Team to coordinate promotions ? Liaise with advertising agencies on product and price advertising campaigns ? Assist in the process of designing promotional leaflets within advertising team ? Liaise with suppliers on adhoc collaborative campaigns ? Coordinate product information for advertising ? Receives promotional feedback from store/regional managers and communicate to Business ? Create concepts and competitions for relevant divisions to drive sales turnovers ? Supply advertising briefs based on campaign requirements ? Supervising photoshoots and approve final artwork prior to printing