June 2026 Merchant Academy - Merchandising Specialist

What you’ll be doing: Our merchandising team aims to deliver the best value and selection to our customers through products, services, and solutions all centered around our customers’ needs. We are driven by customer insights and analytics to bring products and solutions to market seamlessly. We’re inclusive, well-rounded professionals who have deep experience in buying, selling, negotiating, operations, design, innovation, finance, and more. Program Start Date: June 15, 2026 What you bring to the table: Responsible for managing the SKU throughout its lifecycle: item set up, maintenance, inactivations, and RTVs/destroy. Partner with content and inventory throughout the process. Manage the Master Assortment tracker for all items to be utilized across all BUs; provide SKU needs: adds, deletes, and maintenance, so all channels know their active assortment. Facilitate communication of new items and forecasts across all BU Counterparts (.com, SBA, Quill, Essendant, HiTouch, and other acquisitions), Inventory & Planning, own brand, Vendor Management, etc. Identify, track, and provide matches to the merch ops team that can be used to ALT products when needed. Become a system expert and be responsible for running reporting covering sales and margin performance, vendor purchases, BU performance, and ad hoc reporting. Responsible for financial analysis of vendor and assortment and recommending opportunities to improve performance. Process and communicate any cost increases via PCW. Process with the vendors or own brand team. Ability to handle a high volume of Field inquiries daily, and provide support by utilizing problem-solving skills quickly and efficiently. Communicate effectively and proactively with the Distribution network and Wholesaler team to identify assortment gaps, and add new items at the best cost to the Master assortment as necessary. Support Merchandising teams as well as Generalist salesforce with RFPs and Proposals. Support merchant on the execution of activities to deliver vendor and category strategies. What’s needed – Basic Qualifications: Currently pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Business, Merchandising, Finance, or a related field; upcoming May 2026 graduate. 1–2 years of relevant experience in business or a related field preferred. Ability to convey thoughts and ideas both verbally and in writing. Proficient in Microsoft Suite (Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint). Previous experience working independently and executing across multiple groups. We Offer: Base Salary Flexible PTO (22 days) Holiday Schedule (7 observed paid holidays) Online and Retail Discounts Company Match 401(k) Physical and Mental Health Wellness programs The salary range represents the expected compensation for this role at the time of posting. The specific base pay may be influenced by a variety of factors to include the candidate's experience, skill set, education, business considerations, geography, and internal equity. Some roles may also be eligible for overtime pay, in accordance with federal and state requirements. #J-18808-Ljbffr Staples, Inc.