Job Description
Department: Merchandising
Reports to: Head of Merchandising
Our Values:
* Every day the energy, creativity and passion of Manolo permeates through our business.
* We believe in the artist and the artisan; we are innovative while still protecting our heritage.
* We strive for timeless beauty and quality craftmanship.
* We celebrate curiosity and believe in working proactively and being solution focused.
* We believe in upholding family values; we treat everyone with honesty, respect and kindness while nurturing our teams to deliver excellence.
* We believe in making people smile.
Purpose:
To work with the Head of Merchandising to bring exciting and relevant products to our Retail, E-commerce & Wholesale customers through a spectrum of analysis and product planning in seasonal Merchandising and Project Briefs. Responsible for monitoring the sell through and gross margin through strategic analysis, planning and stock management.
This is a 12 month fixed term contract, maternity cover, starting in April-May 2026.
Key Responsibilities:
Collection Development & Product Strategy
* Partner closely with, Design and Product Development and Head Of Merchandising to shape seasonal collections aligned with brand DNA, customer demand, and commercial objectives.
* To provide and foster an in-depth knowledge of the luxury marketplace and the competitive landscape in relation to product range, pricing architecture and commercial marketing standpoints to support in building seasonal frameworks
* Ensure collections balance creativity, innovation, and profitability.
Buying & Assortment Planning
* Own the retail and E-commerce buying strategy, ensuring the right assortment by store, region, and channel.
* Develop buy plans based on sales history, forecasts, store profiles, and capacity.
* Partner with retail teams to localise assortments and optimise store-specific performance.
* Collaborate with the Planning Manager to devise and manage seasonal Open to Buy (OTB) budgets aligned with sales forecasts, stock targets, and margin objectives.
* Ensure buys reflect brand positioning while driving sell-through and margin.
* Present seasonal product trainings
Retail & Commercial Analysis
* Analyse weekly and seasonal sales performance, identifying risks and opportunities.
* Monitor KPIs including sell-through, stock cover, margin, and markdown exposure.
* With Planning Manager translate data into clear actions on replenishment, re-orders, and in-season trading decisions.
* Partner with Retail and Digital to drive sales as well as converting slow sellers.
* Regularly visit Retail stores and concessions to ensure the collection is faithfully represented both commercially and from a brand image point of view.
* Provide regular performance reporting and insights to senior leadership.
Stock Management & In Season Trading
* Manage stock levels to ensure healthy availability while minimizing overstock and markdown risk.
* Partner with supply chain and operations teams to optimize allocations and deliveries.
* Lead in-season actions such as re-buys, transfers, and exits based on performance.
* Support markdown strategy and end-of-season planning.
Cross Functional Collaboration
* Act as a key commercial voice within the business, working closely with, Production, Retail, Commercial Partnerships, E-commerce, Communications and Finance.
* Align merchandising strategies across channels to deliver a consistent customer experience.
* Support retail teams with product knowledge, performance insights, and assortment rationale.
* Work with wider team on detailed ad-hoc projects and pro-active analysis on new strategic opportunities to drive business KPI’s.
Skills and Experience Required:
* Previous experience as a Senior Merchandiser within footwear is essential, ideally within a luxury brand.
* Excellent and proven planning and analytical skills, with the ability to present, articulate and reason confidently with others.
* Excellent financial, budgeting and forecasting skills.
* Excellent problem-solving skills with a strong, solution-based mindset.
* High level of accuracy required in all tasks.
* Ability to prioritise tasks and ensure delivery of results within tight deadlines.
* Excellent organisation and numerical skills.
* Excellent Commercial awareness and business acumen.
* Passionate about product, strong market and brand awareness
* Ability to build and maintain relationships across all levels.
* Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written. Strong and effective presentation skills and ability to converse with a diverse range of people at all levels.
* Experience in effective team management and development
* Highly proficient in the use of Microsoft Office with strong Excel skills
* Ambassador: Representing Manolo Blahnik products and values with passion.
* Excellence: High level of finesse and excellence required in delivery of all tasks.
Our Benefits:
* 4 pairs of Ambassador Shoes per year.
* 50% Friends and Family Discount.
* 25 days holiday with an additional day off for your birthday, plus bank holidays.
* Option to buy an additional 5 days holiday.
* Hybrid working model (core hours 10am-4pm).
* Pension Contribution.
* Private Medical Insurance.
* 2 Executive Coaching Sessions per year.
* Enhanced Family Friendly Policy.
* Workplace Nursery – salary sacrifice based childcare scheme.
* Cycle to work scheme.
* Employment Engagement Calendar.
Manolo Blahnik is an equal opportunity employer and are committed to preserving a caring, diverse and inclusive culture with people who feel a real sense of belonging. We recruit and reward based on capability and performance. By joining Manolo Blahnik, you will be part of our 50 to 500 Commitment to “be a force for good” which seeks to create a lasting legacy and positively contributing to its continued expansion and success balancing our impact on people and the planet. Our diverse and multicultural teams ignite our creativity, and we celebrate the differences that we collectively bring. We are committed to equal employment and progression opportunities and the elimination of any form of discrimination. We all hold a responsibility to recognise and respect our diversity and to support this in our words and actions.
If you need reasonable adjustments at any point in the application or interview process, please let us know.