Position Overview
As an Assistant Planner within the Merchandise Planning team at Ralph Lauren, you will assist the planning team in optimizing inventory management, forecasting, and strategic planning to drive business performance.
This position requires a detail-oriented individual with strong analytical skills, excellent communication abilities, and a passion for retail and merchandise planning.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities
Operation/Financial
1. Update reports on a weekly, monthly, and ad hoc basis.
2. Actualises the departments WSSI weekly.
3. Attends and prepares for weekly trade meetingsand able to formulate and deliver a trade message independently.
4. Provides accurate data to support analysis for key seasonal meetings including hindsight and sign offs.
5. Updates and forecasts department line cards to maximise sales potential and optimise stock availability across channels.
6. Systematically updates seasonal recodes.
7. Owns department stock delivery schedule and communicates updates to team.
8. Responsible for actioning seasonal markdowns & communication to stores.
Commercial Awareness
9. Participate in regular store visits, collating store reports prior and assisting in creating follow up presentations.
10. To undertake competitor analysis on a regular basis and present any relevant points.
Training and development
11. To adopt a positive and proactive approach to their own training and development as well as that of their peers.
12. Proactively promotes improvements to working practices and systems.
13. Participates in company initiatives as appropriate.
Communications & Partnerships
14. Creates and maintains strong working relationships within cross-functional teams: Buying, Allocations, ECOMand the retail store teams.
15. Liaises with Assortment Planning and Buying partners to review and assist in the formation of the seasonal lessons learnt. Influencing future Buys, using analysis and historical data to ensure commercial decisions are made.
Experience, Skills & Knowledge
16. Commercial and Analytical.
17. Effective communicator - able to communicate messages clearly and concisely to a variety of audiences.
18. Able to work autonomously.
19. Able to demonstrates logical analysis and problem-solving skills.
20. Able to organize, prioritise tasks and manages time well in order to meet deadlines
21. Able to build and maintain productive relationships within team environment.
22. Competent in using Microsoft excel
23. Attention to detail.
24. Show ability or aptitude in retail mathematics and able to learn technical applications quickly.
25. Able to demonstrate resilience and remain positive during challenging periods
26. Desire to have fun at work and an appreciation for product.