Assistant, Merchandise Planning (Finance)

About Us
Who we are:

Samsonite is the worldwide leader in superior travel bags, luggage, and accessories combining notable style with the latest design technology and the utmost attention to quality and durability. For more than 100 years, Samsonite has leveraged its rich heritage to create unparalleled products that fulfill the travel lifestyle needs of conscious movers everywhere. With a portfolio of brands including Samsonite, Tumi, American Tourister, High Sierra, Gregory, eBags, Hartmann, and Lipault Paris, our products are sold in over 100 countries in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America through our company-operated retail store, websites and a variety of retail partners.

Job Description
This role works with the Manager of Merchandise Planning to forecast future merchandise buys based on historical buys, reoccurring buys, and current inventory levels. The Merchandise Planning Assistant is responsible for reviewing stock-to-sales ratios, responding to changing sales trends, and ensuring sales plans are achieved by category. They will plan and coordinate merchandise flow through with key internal partners. In addition, they will collect, evaluate, and analyze all relevant data to forecast sales and inventory accurately for both the store and eCommerce channels.

• Forecast monthly sales for assortment to determine future demand.

• Create orders at a lead time to meet these inventory requirements.

• Provide forecasts on both direct-to-consumer exclusive products and shared products to the Wholesale Forecasting Department.

• Forecast sales and inventory monthly to determine inventory position compared to plan.

• Suggest actions to inventory shortage/ overage as necessary.

• Develop pre-season merchandise plans by category to achieve financial targets provided by Senior Management.

• Partner with the Merchandising and Allocation teams to ensure we are executing consistent strategies based on assortments and promotional cadence.

• Actively manage inventory accuracy in all merchandising and planning systems.

• Analyze sku performance to assist the Merchandising Team in determining optimal assortment and product strategy for all store types and e-commerce sites.

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with key internal departments that influence the D2C business, in particular Planning & Purchasing, Forecasting & Inventory, Costing & Sourcing and Import.

• 2+ years of experience in retail planning and forecasting required

• Bachelor's degree in a related field preferred

• Advanced knowledge and proficiency in Microsoft Excel: v-lookups, pivot tables

• Strong analytical skills, and ability to interpret trends and opportunities through comprehensive analysis.

• Ability to interact with the retail team in a fast-paced environment, remaining flexible, proactive, resourceful, and efficient.

• Must be open to and adaptable to changing business needs.

• Results focused with a strong sense of urgency, follow through, and drive.

About the Team
Why you'll love working here:

• Our employees matter. As a people-focused business, we work hard to provide meaningful rewards and development opportunities for our employees, recognizing performance, and creating a supportive working environment for them, wherever they are based.
• Vibrant culture. We are committed to a diverse and rich culture, welcoming people from all walks of life. Our long-standing commitment to diversity and inclusion empowers us to bring our authentic selves and unique differences to work every day.
• Socially responsible. We want to minimize our products' impact on the environment and help create positive journeys worldwide. We do this by creating the best products using the most sustainable and innovative materials, methods, and models.

What we value:

At Samsonite, we do more than create the bags that move with our consumer, we inspire and celebrate the moments that move them. We believe we have a responsibility to the world in how we operate, the products we sell, the communities where we live and work, and how we treat the people we employ. We're as diverse as travel itself, and like travel, your journey with Samsonite presents the opportunity to be a part of something bigger and explore your passions. This is why we offer various paths for professionals and celebrate the knowledge and skills they bring to our team. We are committed to a respectful workplace that allows our team members to bring their best selves to the workplace daily.

Samsonite is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to promoting and maintaining a work environment in which all applicants, associates, customers, and other individuals are treated with dignity and respect free from unlawful harassment, discrimination, or retaliation.