Manager – Planning & Merchandising

Diamond Home is seeking a commercially focused Manager – Planning & Merchandising to oversee category planning, assortment, inventory management, forecasting, and merchandise performance across both retail stores and e-commerce platforms. The role demands ensuring the right products are available in the right quantities, locations, and price points to drive sales, gross margin, and inventory productivity. This position requires strong collaboration with multiple departments to align product lifecycle management with business objectives.

Key Responsibilities

- Lead category, assortment, and seasonal planning in alignment with business targets, customer demand, and store display capacities.
- Develop sales, inventory, and Open-to-Buy (OTB) plans while managing inventory investment by category.
- Manage demand forecasting, allocation, replenishment, and stock coverage across stores and e-commerce channels.
- Own the commercial product lifecycle, from launch and performance monitoring to maturity, markdown, and phase-out.
- Identify winning products, slow movers, ageing stock, and declining items, recommending appropriate actions such as replenishment, continuation, markdown, or discontinuation.
- Monitor and improve key performance indicators including Sales, Gross Margin, Sell-Through, Inventory Turn, Stock Cover, and Inventory Ageing.
- Support pricing, markdown, and promotional decisions through detailed commercial and performance analysis.
- Develop category mix, opening inventory, and replenishment plans for new store openings.
- Identify excess inventory and recommend corrective measures including transfers, promotions, markdowns, or liquidation.
- Create merchandise dashboards and provide actionable commercial insights to senior management.
- Collaborate closely with Design, Product Development, Retail Operations, E-commerce, and Finance teams to ensure alignment throughout the product and commercial cycles.
- Continuously enhance forecasting accuracy, planning processes, and inventory productivity by improving systems, controls, and reporting mechanisms.

Required Qualifications

- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Business, Finance, Supply Chain, ACCA, or a related field.
- 5 to 8 years of relevant experience in Planning, Merchandising, Category Management, Commercial Planning, or Inventory Planning.
- Strong understanding of retail mathematics, forecasting, Open-to-Buy (OTB), inventory management, and merchandise performance metrics.
- Demonstrated analytical and commercial decision-making skills.
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel; experience with ERP, POS, and reporting systems is preferred.
- Ability to translate data and market trends into clear commercial actions and strategic recommendations.
- Excellent cross-functional coordination, communication, and stakeholder management capabilities.

Preferred Qualifications

- Experience in furniture, home, lifestyle, fashion, or organized retail sectors will be considered an advantage.

This role offers the opportunity to lead critical commercial functions within a dynamic retail environment, contributing directly to business growth and operational excellence.