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Head Planning and Merchandising
Head Planning and MerchandisingENSEMBLE • Kochi, IN
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Head Planning and Merchandising

Head Planning and Merchandising

ENSEMBLE • Kochi, IN
4 days ago
Job description

Company Description

ENSEMBLE is India’s first multi-brand luxury fashion store, established in 1987. The brand is dedicated to discovering, mentoring, and nurturing Indian design, with a focus on preserving the country’s rich heritage of craft, embroidery, and textiles. With nine stores across India and a growing online presence globally, ENSEMBLE curates the best of Indian fashion in a modern and refined way. Led by Tina Tahiliani, the company also emphasizes providing customers with excellent and efficient service.

Pan-India Strategic Merchandising Plann in g & Forecasting

Vendor & Designer Management

  • Develop and implement long-term merchandising strategies based on market trends and sales data.
  • Develop and manage the holistic annual and seasonal Open-to-Buy (OTB) plan for the entire network of 11 stores
  • Create sales and inventory forecasts by region, city, store cluster, and door, accounting for demographic, climatic, and cultural buying patterns using historical data analysis where it already exists
  • Lead the development of a cluster-based strategy (e.g., defining which stores are "Flagship," "High-Volume," "Emerging," etc.) and tailor assortments and budgets accordingly. Essentially build our brand portfolio and assortment from the store level up
  • Define and monitor pricing, promotion, and markdown strategies on a national and regional level

Multi-Location Inventory Management & Allocation :

  • Plan and manage all inventory flows from central distribution to each of the 11 stores.
  • Implement a dynamic replenishment model that responds to real-time sales data across all locations.
  • Lead the strategy for intra-inventory transfers between stores to balance stock and maximize full-price sell-through
  • Mitigate regional overstock and stock-out risks through proactive analysis and action
  • Cross-Functional Leadership :

  • Partner with Buying & Merchandising to build a cohesive national assortment plan with localized depth where needed
  • Collaborate with Regional / Store Managers to understand ground-level performance, customer feedback, and competitive landscape in each city
  • Provide the leadership team with a consolidated view of national performance, plus deep-dive analyses on regional opportunities and threats
  • Work with Logistics and Supply Chain to ensure efficient and timely inventory distribution
  • Team Leadership & Systems :

  • Build and lead a high-performing planning and allocation team capable of managing multi-store complexity
  • Establish, track, and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) for the entire network and individual stores (e.g., GMROI, Sell-Through %, WOS, Sales per Sq. Ft., stock cover
  • Champion the use of advanced planning systems and BI tools to enhance forecasting accuracy and operational efficiency
  • Key Result Areas (KRAs) & Performance Metrics :

    The success of the Head of Product Planning will be measured against the following key performance indicators, which are vital to driving profitability and inventory efficiency across the 11-store network :

    1. Financial Performance

  • Gross Margin Return on Investment (GMROI) : Maximize the return on every rupee invested in inventory
  • Gross Margin % : Achieve or exceed the planned gross margin targets by minimizing markdowns and optimizing sell-through
  • Sales vs. Plan : Achieve or exceed the overall sales budget as well as category-level sales targets
  • 2. Inventory Productivity & Efficiency

  • Inventory Turnover : Increase the number of times inventory is sold and replaced within a given period
  • Weeks of Supply (WOS) : Maintain optimal inventory levels to support sales plans without incurring excess stock
  • End-of-Season Stock % : Minimize leftover seasonal inventory to reduce carrying costs and markdown liabilities
  • 3. Commercial Performance

  • Sell-Through Rate (%) : Achieve target sell-through rates at full price, particularly for key items and collections.
  • Sell-Thru % (Category / Store Level) : Monitor and improve sell-through performance across different product categories and individual store locations.
  • Markdown % / Discount Efficiency : Control the depth and timing of markdowns to protect profitability
  • 4. Forecasting & Planning Accuracy

  • Open-to-Buy (OTB) Adherence : Ensure actual inventory commitments align closely with the planned OTB budget
  • Sales Forecast Accuracy : Measure the accuracy of pre-season and in-season sales forecasts versus actual results.
  • Demand Forecasting Error : Minimize variance between forecasted and actual demand at the SKU level
  • 5. Range & Allocation Effectiveness

  • Performance by Store Cluster : Ensure sales and inventory plans are effectively tailored to and met by each store cluster (e.g., Metro, Tier-1)
  • Stock-to-Sales Ratio : Maintain a healthy ratio of inventory to sales for each store and category
  • Size Curve Optimization : Minimize size-related stockouts and overstocks through improved analysis and allocation
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    Head Planning • Kochi, IN

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