George Schmidt Email & Phone Number

• Schmidt DMES is a boutique consulting firm that helps multi-channel retailers grow their revenue and increase their profits by improving the productivity of their marketing, merchandising and inventory management.
• Implemented merchandise planning best practices for a $250M specialty bookstore that decreased average inventory by $10M. Built a data warehouse in less than six months. Lead a Lean Management project focused on Go To.
• Developed pricing and promotion strategies for a $500M ecommerce retailer that drove 30%+ improvements in gross margin during peak holiday season.
• Provided interim merchandising leadership to a $100 million business-to-business distributor of healthcare products. Developed analytics, built assortment, led new product development, created planning calendar.
• Developed CRM strategies and campaigns for a 700-plus unit eyeglass retailer; coached director; provided analytics.
• Evaluated inventory planning systems and processes for a multi-channel home specialty chain. Designed planning processes, integrated promotional planning, improved integration with marketing and finance targets.

Miami, Florida, US

• Business leader with P&L responsibility. Ecommerce growth subject matter expert for Safilo brand portfolio.
• Turned around an ecommerce business and revitalized the culture. Significantly upgraded leadership of marketing, ecommerce, merchandising and finance with priority on building a growth oriented team.
• Refocused and enhanced the brand strategy using internal resources and customer research.
• Building a center of excellence to drive ecommerce and marketplace revenue for proprietary brands.

Westerville, Ohio, US

• Brand president with P&L responsibility. Drive growth through marketing, merchandising, and operational strategies.
• Increased annual ecommerce revenue +60% and new customer acquisition by 90% through aggressive investment in digital marketing, improved brand strategy and positioning, and good inventory / operational planning
• Reinvented B2B Business Gifting and Wholesale organizations and business strategies; drove 30% revenue growth.
• Improved gross margin over 250bps through assortment, pricing and promotion strategy.
• Led the development and implementation of a cross-functional multi-year strategic plan focused on growth
• Upgraded crucial leadership talent. Led culture development, communication and employee engagement efforts.

West Chester Township, Ohio, US

• Responsible for ecommerce, catalog and digital marketing, inventory planning, finance, business intelligence and for leading the creation and implementation of strategic business plans.
• Challenged with reinventing the channel strategies for a traditionally catalog-dominant retailer. Through testing and strategy, reduced catalog investment by 33% and increased digital marketing by 50%.
• Led strategic planning process focusing the team on brand differentiation and business discipline.
• Diversified sources of new customer acquisition by increasing investments in digital search marketing, digital display advertising, Facebook direct selling and lead generation.
• Improved communication and role clarity, contributing to 20% improvement in employee engagement.

Sunderland, VT, US

• Senior marketing executive responsible for ecommerce, multi-channel marketing and creative/brand strategy, with total marketing budget in excess of $50 million.
• Recruited by president and led development of digital marketing, digital merchandising and ecommerce site strategies and organizations. Grew ecommerce business by 25%, email file by 50%.
• Oversaw multiple high-level brand identity projects, including a strategic shift in women’s business, shifting buyer file to more active customers and exceeding plan in catalogs and digital marketing.
• Implemented horizontal circulation strategy, reducing selling expenses and improving profit by 20%.
• Significantly redesigned organization, hiring two new VPs and four directors.
• Implemented multi-channel acquisition strategies driving new buyers using cost-of-acquisition and value analyses.

Sunderland, VT, US

• Responsible for $110 million in inventory purchasing, $20 million in liquidations and staff of 70 employees.
• Met or beat company inventory plans every month for 53 consecutive periods.
• Increased inventory productivity by 25% from 2006 to 2010.
• Improved end-of-year cash position by $25 million in one year during a recession.

Sunderland, VT, US

• Met or beat company inventory plans every month for 53 consecutive periods.
• Increased inventory productivity by 25% from 2006 to 2010.
• Improved end-of-year cash position by $25 million in one year during a recession.

Freeport, Maine, US

• Oversaw all catalog, Web and direct sales marketing, advertising, promotions, trade shows and communications efforts for the business-to-business division.
• Increased revenue by 60%; grew house file by 75%.

Freeport, Maine, US

Served as primary expert on corporate performance.

Freeport, Maine, US

Key member of the start-up and launch of the new Freeport Studio business, L.L.Bean’s first new brand in 86 years.

Freeport, Maine, US

Responsible for the liquidation of $30 million of discontinued and irregular inventory.

Freeport, Maine, US

System Administrator for inventory planning system coordinating $1 billion in merchandise.

Bachelor Of Arts - Ba, Economics

Master Of Business Administration - Mba, Business Administration And Management, General