Merchandiser

Merchandiser - GoldThe Merchandiser – Gold Category will be responsible for driving the commercial performance of the Gold category across Damas markets. The role will own assortment planning, inventory management, OTB, forecasting, product lifecycle and pricing, ensuring the right products are available in the right stores and markets at the right time.Working closely with Category, Retail, Finance, Supply Chain, VM and IT, the Merchandiser will translate business and market requirements into data-driven merchandising decisions, balancing sales opportunities, inventory productivity, availability and margin.Day-to-day responsibilities include, but are not limited to:Own the merchandising strategy and commercial performance of the assigned Gold category/collections across stores and markets.Develop and manage assortment plans by market, store cluster and product category, ensuring the right breadth and depth of products.Manage the Open-to-Buy (OTB) process, including sales, inventory, intake and forecast planning, ensuring spend is aligned with business objectives.Develop and continuously update demand and inventory forecasts using historical performance, current trends, seasonality, gold price movements and market requirements.Analyse sales and product performance by category, collection, product group, store and market, identifying opportunities and risks and translating insights into clear actions.Monitor stock availability, weeks of cover, sell-through, ROS, inventory turn and aged stock, proactively addressing overstock and out-of-stock situations.Manage inventory flow across stores and markets, including store-to-store transfers, replenishment and stock rebalancing, to maximise sales and inventory productivity.Partner with Retail and Supply Chain teams to ensure appropriate stock availability and timely execution of merchandising actions.Manage the product lifecycle from launch through replenishment, markdown, clearance and final liquidation, ensuring appropriate actions are taken at each stage.Develop and execute aged-stock and liquidation strategies, balancing inventory recovery, margin and brand positioning.Own and execute pricing activities, including gold-rate-driven price changes, ticket price updates, promotional pricing and permanent markdowns, ensuring accuracy and timely implementation.Monitor the impact of gold price changes on product pricing, demand, sales performance and inventory value, and recommend appropriate merchandising actions.Prepare and present weekly and monthly commercial performance reviews, highlighting key trends, gaps, risks and recommended actions.Maintain high levels of product and merchandising data accuracy, including product hierarchy, attributes, collection mapping, pricing, discount codes and lifecycle status.Work closely with IT and relevant business teams on product data architecture, system enhancements and merchandising tools, ensuring data supports effective planning and decision-making.Support annual and seasonal merchandising strategy and business planning, including sales, inventory, assortment and intake targets.Continuously identify opportunities to improve inventory productivity, assortment efficiency and sales performance across the Gold division.Ensure merchandising decisions are aligned with Damas' overall brand, commercial and inventory strategy.Qualifications & Skills Required5+ years of experience in retail merchandising, preferably within jewellery, luxury, fashion or another inventory-intensive retail environment.Strong experience in assortment planning, OTB, inventory management, forecasting and product lifecycle management.Strong commercial understanding of sales, stock, margin, sell-through, ROS, weeks of cover and inventory turn.Advanced proficiency in MS Excel, including data analysis, forecasting and large data sets.Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate data into clear commercial actions and recommendations.Experience working with planning and allocation systems; strong understanding of product and master-data structures is an advantage.Ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively in a fast-paced, highly commercial environment.Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to work cross-functionally with senior stakeholders and multiple departments.Strong attention to detail and a high level of ownership and accountability.Proactive, commercially minded and data-driven, with the ability to challenge existing processes and identify opportunities for improvement.Experience in gold or jewellery merchandising would be highly advantageous.