Manager

Buying & Category Management •Lead and manage the entire buying process, across Ladies brands and product lines, in order to ensure right and commercially viable product ranges, customer satisfaction, improvement on year-on-year sales, margins and stock levels. •Inspire the buying team to think creatively, in order to deliver newness in the product range. •Oversee category management in order to ensure maximization of sales and profitability. •Manage financial goals including pre-season plans, in-season projections, open-to-buy etc. in order to support retail requirements, whilst maintaining alignment with financial parameters. •Lead the process of aligning the merchandising planners with the OTB to ensure that the right assortment is delivered to the stores Product Development •Oversee and guide the category throughout the entire product creation process, ensuring alignment with key deliverables and milestones to meet specified factory deadlines. •Essential to thoroughly analyze and evaluate briefs, design tech packages, models, and samples. Additionally, identifying potential concerns related to construction, materials, fit, or cost is a crucial aspect. •Playing a critical role in team coordination, managing relationships, facilitating reviews, overseeing delivery, and securing approvals. •As an integral member of the buying team, involvement in providing valuable insights, suggestions, and information to ensure the timely delivery of quality products at the right cost is essential. Stock & Cost Optimization -Manage the inventory (including stock loss mitigation, booked inventory budget, terminal stock etc.) and maintain optimum stock levels in order to ensure that retail requirements are met within the given financial parameters. -Manage centralized bulk buying, margins, markdowns etc. as well as select vendor mix in order to optimize costs. Vendor & Order Management •Establish and manage relationships with vendors and suppliers in order to ensure financially beneficial partnerships through maximizing the ranges, sales, profit margin and delivery within budget. •Liaise with logistics to monitor supplier efficiency and effectiveness in order to ensure that potential risks and delays are identified, and appropriate remedial action taken. •Place orders and ensure the merchandise is delivered on a timely basis, and in line with the service level agreements in order to ensure compliance with buying plans. Analysis And Intelligence •Analyze and monitor reports, MIS analytics etc. based on actual sales, forecasts, inventory checks, replenishment needs etc. in order to accurately forecast and meet the needs of the business. •Analyze strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats vis-a-vis competition and market conditions in order to identify business opportunities. •Analyze customer buying trends, competitors, and market activities in order to predict future trends and seasonal product requirements.

Lead and manage the entire buying process across Ladies brands and product lines to ensure right and commercially viable product ranges, customer satisfaction, and improvements in year-on-year sales, margins, and stock levels. Inspire the buying team to deliver newness in the product range. Oversee category management to maximize sales and profitability. Manage financial goals including pre-season plans, in-season projections, open-to-buy (OTB) to support retail requirements within financial parameters. Align merchandising planners with the OTB to ensure the right assortment is delivered to stores. Oversee product development from briefs to design packages, models, and samples, evaluating construction, materials, fit, and cost concerns. Coordinate the team, manage relationships, facilitate reviews, oversee delivery, and secure approvals. Contribute insights to ensure timely delivery of quality products at the right cost. Manage stock and costs, inventory, stock loss mitigation, and terminal stock; maintain optimum stock levels and centralized bulk buying, margins, and markdowns; select vendor mix to optimize costs. Establish and manage vendor relationships to maximize ranges, sales, profit margins, and on-time delivery within budget; liaise with logistics to mitigate risks and delays. Place orders and ensure timely delivery per service level agreements and buying plans. Analyze and monitor MIS analytics and sales/forecast data to forecast needs; analyze market conditions and trends to identify business opportunities; monitor customer buying trends and competition to predict future trends and seasonal product requirements.