Amy Abbott Email & Phone Number

Fenton, MO

• Executive team member and strategist responsible for managing all aspects of business for 20+ boutique stores, catalog, and online.
• Innovative thinker offering new ideas to drive business in areas of stores, product, marketing, online, customer acquisition and retention.
• Partnered with team members to advise and select product assortment for the upcoming season. Ensured each store’s regional and customer focused needs were met within the buy.
• Procured and advantageously managed accessory business including handbags, jewelry, hats, socks, shoe care, etc.
• Analyzed current business processes and created new innovative ways to operate more effectively. Functional areas improved included auto replenishment, accessory buying and reorders, selling reports and OTB.
• Managed Assistant Buyer, training her on all aspects of buying and inventory management.

St. Louis, MO

• Procured, priced, and managed all shoes, boots, and slipper classifications generating $60M revenue annually for 79 stores, catalogs, and 2 websites. Collaborated with Product Development team to design products for.
• Created strong partnership with Canadian boot resource to design and develop climate appropriate product, generating over $6M in sales annually.
• Managed 1 direct report and led team of a Planner and Merchandise Allocator in making sound and profitable business decisions in alignment with defined business strategy and objectives, increasing sales and.
• Increased customer base and sales by partnering with Marketing Managers to determine product selection for 4 catalogs and 2 Direct Mail campaigns annually per country.
• Collaborated with Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) team to develop email and website strategies, positioning products competitively within trends and meeting strategic goals.
• Championed new company brand initiatives, including Natural Soul, Naya, and Bzees, contributing to launch of brands in stores / websites.

Greater St. Louis Area

• Selected products and negotiated discounted prices with vendors for 75 stores in US and Canada generating $29M annual sales in casual shoes, boots, slippers, and hosiery.
• Exceeded 2009 Sales 14% ($3M), 2010 sales 6% ($1.7M), achieving best performance in division.
• Managed inventory under plan and delivered margin rate of 55.4 vs 53.3 LY in 2009 and +2 points over plan 2010.
• Launched Powerwalk collection in stores, generating $2M annual sales

San Francisco, CA

• Oversaw planning, product design, development, selection, packaging, and international sourcing for 216 stores generating $32M annual sales revenue in soft and hard lines. Analyzed competitors and reacted quickly to.
• Developed fiscal business plans. Managed accurate sales, stock levels, receipt flow, and open to buy to beat plan, generating additional $600K in revenue while hitting margin plan of 63.4% in 2001.
• Partnered with other Buyers to create collections and seasonal assortments, boosting multiple sales across departments.
• Collaborated with Design team to create product assortment that was customer appropriate relative to historical data and intuition, transforming customer experience and driving sales.
• Maintained brand authenticity and cohesive merchandising strategy goals by teaming with Visual Merchandising and Packaging to ensure products were featured in store per vision and sales strategy.
• Drove customer satisfaction metrics by leading Inventory Planning team, ensuring reorder stock goals were met, and chasing all new sales opportunities.

San Francisco Bay Area

• Worked for 2 Buyers on all aspects of business, including product development, testing, packaging, orders, delivery, and merchandising.
• Advanced 2 job levels to Buyer in 1 year by quickly learning operations, international sourcing, and product standards

Arlington, VA

Apparel experience - Ladies Coats, Men's Knits, and Young Men's Collections