Associate Merchant (Soma – Apparel) – Chico’s FAS, Inc-Shared Services – Fort Myers, FL

With approximately 1,300 boutiques and outlets throughout the U.S., as well as an online presence for each of our brands, it takes sophisticated technology, resources and infrastructure to ensure the continued success of our businesses. From finance and accounting to technology and merchandising careers, we have diverse opportunities available for talented professionals to join our team of nearly 16,000 associates who share our commitment to excellence.

POSITION OBJECTIVE:
To support the Merchant through a variety of daily tasks including order writing, business analysis, presentations, buy meetings and vendor meetings.

FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES:
Buy a separate area with minimal supervision; manage this business through on time order writing, item analysis and cancellations when necessary, maintain weekly key item sheets for all items and update with projections through season end

Determine markdown cadence and styles in partnership with Merchant and planner.Enter and verify all markdowns.

Manage OTB for assigned area in partnership with Merchant and Planner.Review sales, margin, markdowns, and inventory

Shop the market and analyze the competition monthly.Have a strong understanding of the competitive landscape.

Attend core set meetings and participate in floor sets as needed.

Pull samples and produce reports to present the following: Best Sellers, Hindsight, weekly executive meeting and Mailer review.

Attend all concept, edit and buy sessions.Recommend assortments in partnership with Merchant and planner.Write orders and follow up with product managers as needed.

Attend monthly allocation meetings and advise on delivery issues and store inventory needs.

Partner with Merchant to help train Assistant Merchant

Attend weekly T and A meetings and update Merchant and VP Merchandising on hot items.

Manage store communications process.

Partner with planning to maximize sales and margin opportunities.

Drive mailer assortment in partnership with Merchant.Recap results.

Have a working knowledge of Class Plans and Key Item Projections.Work with Merchant and VP Merchandising on line/assortment plans.

Coordinate training, signage, contests and other initiatives with Merchant team and Store Support.

Partner with DTC team to drive brand sales. Communicate department strategies, opportunities, and product information.

COMPETENCIES:
Learning On The Fly: Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyzes both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn’t upset when things are up in the air; doesn’t have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.

Creativity: Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings.

Priority Setting: Spends his/her time and the time of others on what’s important; quickly zeros in on the critical few and puts the trivial many aside; can quickly sense what will help or hinder accomplishing a goal; eliminates roadblocks; creates focus.

Conflict Management: Steps up to conflicts, seeing them as opportunities; reads situations quickly; good at focused listening; can hammer out tough agreements and settle disputes equitably; can find common ground and get cooperation with minimum noise.

Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom-line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.

Organizational Agility: Knowledgeable about how organizations work; knows how to get things done both through formal channels and the informal network; understands the origin and reasoning behind key policies, practices, and procedures; understands the cultures of organizations.

Interpersonal Savvy: Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high-tension situations comfortably.

Customer Focus: Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.

Composure: Is cool under pressure; does not become defensive or irritated when times are tough; is considered mature; can be counted on to hold things together during tough times; can handle stress; is not knocked off balance by the unexpected; doesn’t show frustration when resisted or blocked; is a settling influence in a crisis.

QUALIFICATIONS:
BA/BS in related field from an accredited institution

3+ years of experience in product or merchandising. Preferred experience with apparel retailer

Excellent computer and skills

Strong interpersonal skills; excellent written and verbal communication.

Ability to multi task and complete projects on time

Effective presentation skills

Broad based business acumen with potential to grow to Merchant level

Chico’s FAS, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, lactation, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military service, veteran status, or any other category protected under federal, state, or local law.

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