Ashley Houck Email & Phone Number

Anoka, Mn, Us

Bentonville, Arkansas, Us

- Develop and drive market informed, customer centric assortment from ideation through launch for stores and online- Craft, execute and drive the private brand product vision and strategy for multiple categories within home management supporting $2B - Influentially lead and develop strategic business relationships with numerous cross-functional partners including merchants, planners, replenishment, packaging, technical teams, suppliers, and global sourcing counterparts to drive the product lifecycle execution- Utilize market data analytics including benchmarking analysis, market share, product performance metrics, quality reviews, in-stocks and commodity costing shifts to identify business impacts and drive improvements- Experience presenting, sharing and advocating for work done across supporting cross-functional teams to all levels of senior management across the organization- Drive the merging of resources, assortments and processes across stores and online to create a total omni ecosystem

New Hope, Minnesota, Us

- Lead the business development proposal, go-to-market strategy, P&L management, and new product development roadmap for a new strategic company initiative- Crafted the budget and managed the P&L across newly established educational furniture vertical market

New Hope, Minnesota, Us

- Direct and facilitate team efforts at the category, product, and collection level that meet team objectives - Create, lead and implement a strategic product roadmap through the development and sourcing of product solutions that meet the detailed understanding of insights and related applications - Rationalize and identify future opportunities for top line incremental growth - Own and drive initiatives that meet category, collection, product, channel, and business strategy objectives while delivering upon ROI for the business

New Hope, Minnesota, Us

- Manage, develop and lead the product lifecycle activities including marketing and advertising materials for new and existing skus with revenues exceeding $16M - Act as point of contact for all international supplier communication -- negotiating costs and materials, establishing packaging requirements, conducting quality control testing and ensuring product timeline is on schedule - Evaluate product strategy and road map our position for new development by researching and analyzing market trends, market growth, product opportunities and conducting competitor analysis- Utilize VOC suggestions to design, develop and manage a new product line in a four month timeframe driving an increase in category sales by $2M- Provide forecasting and inventory analysis to identify decreasing sales and down-trends in the business and make necessary assortment adjustments that reduce markdowns and product failures- Continuous communication with supply chain, engineering, quality and overseas factories to ensure timelines and production requirements are met- Execute strategic plans for category growth through sales, competitive and industry trend analysis- Enhance language and communication skills traveling throughout Asia sourcing products and suppliers, conducting vendor management and negotiations, and guiding product through development enhancements

New Hope, Minnesota, Us

Minneapolis, Mn, Us

- Managed the item set-up and product maintenance for over 10,000 SKU’s - Increased item presales from 10% to 40% of demanded sales year to date by identifying performance gaps- Utilized cross-functional teams promotional tracking systems to identify $100,000+ of unclaimed vendor marketing income and exceed vendor income forecast by 10%

Fargo, North Dakota, Us

- Managed the merchandise buys, assortment planning and monitored store stock levels for assigned categories while maximizing sales across 200 locations and ensuring margins, turns and profitability are within plan- Worked in conjunction with the Buyer to communicate target costs and negotiate pricing with overseas offices - Partnered with the Buyer in the transformation of our underperforming woven business by identifying missing market trends and refining the assortment to result in a 50% product sell-through increase - Planned and forecasted new category and item product assortment opportunities by analyzing current market trends through shopping competition to compare products, pricing and merchandising strategies- Maintained open to buy by recognizing decreasing sales and down-trends in the business and making necessary adjustments to the assortment to avoid markdowns and reduce product failures- Developed strong vendor relationships through negotiating costs, issuing chargebacks and distributing purchase orders

Fargo, North Dakota, Us

- Established business relationships with international vendors, factories, and agents through verbal and written communication while determining their strengths and weaknesses in order to promote the vendors performance- Aided Buyers in creatively designing and planning merchandise assortments to drive profitable sales - Assisted accounts payable department with approving commission invoices, and verifying cost discrepancies- Generated spreadsheets that coordinated the production process and tracked the delivery of all imported product - Identified strategic solutions to cost, quality, delivery and production issues - Conducted quality control assessments to ensure brand integrity and promote the life and revenue of a program- Partnered with Buyers in driving the initial markup of all imported programs to meet or exceed sourcing goals- Placed, submitted, and monitored purchase orders to guarantee timely merchandise delivery- Participated in fit sessions reviewing product details to ensure product meets the intended design- Collaborated with the marketing department in the design and development of labels, hangtags and promotional items- Performed weekly competitor shopping visits to stay on top of quality, styling, and pricing of the competition- Partnered with the visual department to ensure photoshoot samples are running on time for promotional events- Maintained close vendor partnerships while executing cost and shipping negotiation strategies to maximize margin opportunities