Job Postings From Our Member Companies Title:
General Merchandise Manager

Post Date
6/13/2016

Expiration Date
8/11/2016

Details:
Bluestem Brands, Inc., a Top 100 Internet Retailer, is the parent to 16 fast-growing retail brands. We make it our mission to improve our customers’ lives by providing the merchandise and services they need with the flexibility of paying over time. Our smart, passionate, empowered employees drive our success, and we like rewarding people at the top of their game. Our leadership is responsive and supportive – we take risks, learn from mistakes and celebrate success as a team.

A day in the life at Bluestem also includes casual dress, flexible work arrangements, a sweet employee discount and time off for giving back to our communities. Join the Bluestem Brands team to make an impact, be inspired and be valued, every day.

We are seeking a General Merchandise Manager for the Appleseed’s family, to be located at our office in Middleton, Massachusetts. Appleseed’s has been serving women in the prime of their lives for over 60 years, offering high-quality apparel and modern updates to classic styles for women.

Our ideal candidate is a successful General Merchandise Manager who will take the business to the next level. S/he will develop and implement a well-planned, winning merchandise strategy for the five titles that comprise the Appleseed’s Group: Appleseed’s, Norm Thompson Outfitters, Sahalie, The Tog Shop and Linen Source, while growing revenue, gaining market share, and maximizing profitability.

What you will Do:
The company is looking for a balanced merchant, who is both a left and right brain thinker and understands how to build a business that is both trend right and financially sound. The GMM Appleseed’s Group will leverage market intelligence to stay ahead of trends, changing demographics, buying patterns, etc. This person will have a disciplined vision for the business and successfully communicate that to the team, ensuring that it carries through to the assortment, throughout all categories, across all five titles.
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Providing creative leadership and strategic direction to the Appleseed’s Group merchandising team in order to deliver results.
• Creating winning short and long term merchandising strategies that will ensure the delivery of positive results, season after season, while remaining true to each brand.
• Lead the merchandise strategy to improve profitability and increase top line demand.
• Identifying emerging trends and ensuring the company has the right products to address those trends while staying true to the Bluestem Brands/Appleseed’s Group brand promise.
• Monitoring the competition in order to act quickly to meet the evolving needs of the consumer.
• Reacting quickly to consumer feedback in order to get behind trends or get out of poor performing items.
• Successfully leading and developing a team of talented merchants, working with them to hone their skills and to create bench strength in the Bluestem Brands/Appleseed’s Group business.
• Work with creative and catalog production on the vision and tone for all items and books.
• Develop and establish the annual and seasonal financial plans.
• Providing direction in sales planning, pricing and merchandise assortment to drive sales and increase margins.
• Building and maintaining strong vendor relationships that consistently give the Company a competitive edge.
• Monitoring stock, sales and markdowns to ensure that plans are met and the appropriate inventory levels are maintained across all 5 brands.
• Functioning as a strong partner with Marketing to ensure that Merchandising and Marketing are aligned on all promotional efforts and calendars.
• Partnering closely with Site Merchandising to drive sales and push new merchandising initiatives.

Qualifications:
What you will need:

The successful candidate will be a broad-based merchant with an excellent taste level who has the ability to lead strategic, operational and organizational change within this multi-channel direct marketer. Key qualifications are:
• Candidates should possess a minimum of 15 years of merchandising experience, 5 of which have been spent as a lead merchant of a direct business.
• Strong strategic thinker with the ability to translate strategies into tactics.
• A balanced merchant – who is both a left brain, analytical thinker as well as a right brain, creative merchant with a strong affinity for product and spotting new trends. S/he will have a proven track record of driving top line demand.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to influence, both up and down.
• Exceptional relationship building capabilities across various functional groups (planning, marketing, product development, IT, etc.) as well as with senior leadership.
• Proven leadership, team development, and consensus-building abilities.

Personal qualifications:

• The GMM Appleseed’s Group will be a dynamic, enthusiastic and persuasive leader who inspires and positively motivates others to action.
• S/he will possess the ability to build relationships and work well across different levels and functions within the Bluestem Brands/Appleseed’s Group organization.
• The GMM Appleseed’s Group will possess a strong consumer orientation and ensure that the consumer is the driving force behind all that they do.
• Strong sense of urgency and the ability to infuse that in others.
• S/he will have a passion for developing people.
• Confidence to state an opinion and influence others.
• Demonstrated good judgment, high integrity and will authentically connect with the company’s values.

EDUCATION:
• Bachelor’s Degree in Design, Arts, Marketing, Business Administration, or equivalent.


Comments:
Please apply online.

Image:


Employer:
Appleseed's

Website:
http://bit.ly/28wVUCH