Merchandise Planning Senior Director (New York City Metropolitan Area)

About the Role

Ring Concierge is a female-founded fine jewelry company specializing in custom engagement rings and fine jewelry. We're looking for a Merchandise Planning Senior Director to lead the financial strategy behind our merchandise business, turning customer demand, market trends, and business insights into inventory and assortment decisions that drive profitable growth.

The ideal candidate is analytical and strategic, thrives in ambiguity, and can influence senior leaders through data-driven recommendations.

Responsibilities

Financial Strategy

• Own the investment strategy for Fine Jewelry and Bridal, balancing growth, profitability, inventory productivity, and customer experience
• Partner closely with Merchandising to develop and execute annual and seasonal merchandise strategies aligned with company objectives
• Develop annual financial plans, sales forecasts, inventory plans, and gross margin targets, re-forecasting throughout the year to capture sales trends
• Own the Open-to-Buy process and recommend inventory investments across categories and channels
• Build financial scenarios to support strategic business decisions and investment opportunities
• Evaluate new product categories, launches, and assortment opportunities through financial modeling and business case development

Inventory & Assortment Optimization

• Optimize stock levels, sell-through, inventory turns, and weeks of supply across all channels
• Lead allocation strategy and store inventory planning
• Identify opportunities to improve SKU productivity through lifecycle management and assortment optimization
• Develop strategies to minimize aged inventory while protecting customer experience and profitability

Business Performance & Customer Insights

• Analyze business performance, sales trends, and customer purchasing behavior to identify risks and opportunities
• Monitor market trends, competitive landscape, and customer demand to inform planning decisions
• Deliver regular executive reporting and present financial insights and recommendations to leadership in a concise, compelling manner

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner with Product Development to inform launch quantities, lifecycle planning, and investment strategies
• Collaborate with Marketing and Ecommerce to support promotional planning and demand forecasting
• Align cross-functional teams to successfully execute seasonal launches and key business initiatives
• Influence assortment architecture, pricing strategies, inventory investments, and launch decisions through data-driven insights

Process Improvement & Operational Excellence

• Build scalable planning tools, reporting, and frameworks that improve forecasting accuracy and support company growth
• Identify AI and automation opportunities that reduce manual work and drive operational efficiency across the planning function

Leadership

• Mentor and develop planning talent while fostering a culture of accountability, curiosity, and continuous improvement
• Lead with an ownership mentality, proactively identifying opportunities to improve the business

About You

• Strategic thinker with a strong commercial mindset and passion for retail, balancing big-picture thinking with attention to detail
• Proven ability to translate data into actionable business strategies
• Naturally curious with exceptional analytical and problem-solving skills
• Comfortable making decisions in a fast-paced, high-growth environment
• Highly collaborative with strong executive presence, able to influence cross-functional partners and senior leadership
• Hands-on leader who enjoys both building strategy and executing against it
• AI-forward, actively look for ways to apply new tools and technology to improve how the team plans and makes decisions

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Merchandising, Business, Finance, Economics, or a related field
• 12-15+ years of experience in Merchandise Planning or Inventory Planning within luxury retail, fashion, or consumer goods
• Strong retail math and financial acumen, including forecasting, inventory productivity, margin planning, and assortment planning
• Advanced Excel skills, including pivot tables, lookups, complex formulas, and financial modeling
• Experience working with Shopify, NetSuite, or merchandise planning systems is a plus
• Knowledge of the luxury fine jewelry market is preferred
• Experience using AI tools to support forecasting, reporting, or process improvement is a plus

Details

• Full-time role located in NYC, requiring 4 days per week in office
• Office Hours: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm, with the knowledge that we have a startup culture and your day may extend past listed office hours (with the possibility of weekends during busy season or sales)
• Must be available to provide evening, weekend, and holiday coverage during peak periods, including major promotions, launches, and the holiday season
• Health, Vision & Dental Insurance for full-time employees
• Generous employee discounts on our fine jewelry
• Paid time off, Summer Fridays, and an extra allowance of 3 days annually for religious observances
• Compensation for the role will be determined based on the candidate's qualifications, skills, and experience. The estimated annual compensation for this role is $190,000+