Director of Merchandise Planning & Allocation

Director of Merchandise Planning & Allocation

The Director of Merchandise Planning & Allocation is a senior leadership role responsible for driving sales, margin, and inventory productivity across all 28 store locations and five signature departments: Garden, Clothing, Pet, Livestock, and Hardware. This individual partners closely with buying, store operations, and finance to develop merchandise financial plans, lead assortment strategy, and ensure the right product is in the right store at the right time. The Director brings analytical rigor, retail expertise, and cross-functional leadership to optimize inventory investment and support sustainable growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Merchandise Financial Planning
• Own and lead the development of annual and seasonal merchandise financial plans (MFPs) across all five departments and 28 locations.
• Set sales, margin, receipt, inventory, and turn targets by department, class, and location in alignment with company financial goals.
• Deliver regular hindsight reporting and rolling financial forecasts; identify variances and recommend corrective action.
• Partner with Finance to align merch plans with P&L expectations and open-to-buy (OTB) budgets.

Allocation & Inventory Management

• Oversee the store-level allocation strategy to optimize inventory distribution based on sales trends, store volume tiers, and regional demand.
• Develop and enforce allocation rules and replenishment logic for seasonal, staple, and perishable categories including Livestock and Garden.
• Monitor in-stock rates, sell-through, weeks of supply, and aging inventory; drive action plans to reduce markdowns and improve turn.
• Lead the team in class level forecasting on a weekly basis.

Assortment & Category Strategy

• Collaborate with buyers to align assortment breadth and depth with store capacity, customer demand, and financial targets.
• Support localization strategies that reflect regional differences across the 28-store fleet (e.g., climate-driven Garden and Livestock variation).
• Provide pre-season and in-season analytics to guide buy decisions, vendor negotiations, and exit strategies.

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of planners and allocators, fostering a culture of accountability, analytical excellence, and continuous improvement.
• Define team structure, workflow, and toolsets to scale planning capabilities as the business grows.
• Conduct regular performance reviews and create development plans that build bench strength within the planning function.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Serve as the primary planning liaison to Store Operations, Buying, Marketing, and Finance.
• Partner with store leadership to communicate inventory plans, seasonal transitions, and promotional support needs.
• Support new store openings by building location-specific assortment and inventory plans.

Qualifications:

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Retail Management, or a related field.
• 7+ years of progressive experience in retail merchandise planning, allocation, or inventory management.
• 3+ years in a leadership or management capacity overseeing planning or allocation teams.
• Demonstrated experience managing planning across multi-store retail environments (20+ locations preferred).
• Strong proficiency with merchandise planning tools (e.g., Blue Yonder, Aptos, Oracle Retail, or equivalent).
• Advanced Excel skills; comfort with large data sets, pivot tables, and financial modeling.
• Deep understanding of retail KPIs: sell-through, GMROI, turn, OTB, weeks of supply, and margin.

Preferred

• Experience in specialty retail with hard and soft goods categories, particularly Clothing, Hardware, Garden, or Animal/Livestock.
• Familiarity with seasonal and perishable inventory challenges.
• Experience with store clustering, localization, and tiered allocation models.
• Exposure to BI/analytics platforms such as Tableau, Power BI, or Looker.

Core Competencies:

• Strategic Thinking — Connects merchandise plans to broader business goals and anticipates market shifts.
• Analytical Excellence — Translates complex data into clear, actionable insights and recommendations.
• Collaborative Leadership — Builds strong partnerships across buying, operations, finance, and store teams.
• Results Orientation — Drives accountability to financial targets and manages multiple priorities effectively.
• Adaptability — Thrives in a fast-paced, seasonal retail environment with shifting priorities.
• Communication — Presents planning strategies clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Benefits:

• STIP Eligible
• Compensation includes a competitive base salary commensurate with experience, and a comprehensive benefits package.
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance
• 401 (k) Retirement Plan with up to 6% Employer Match
• Advancement Opportunities
• Employee Assistance Program
• Referral Bonus - refer a friend or family member
• Long-term disability and Life/AD & D Insurance
• Generous Employee Discount
• Tuition Reimbursement
• On-Demand Pay
• Holidays and paid time off