Joshua Withrow Email & Phone Number

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Greater Chicago Area

• Operations manager and account manager for a startup menswear tailoring and alterations company based in Chicago.• Oversees all stages of workflow for team of tailors.• Deepens relationships with key accounts to identify new sales opportunities.• On-boards and continually trains accounts to improve communication between sales associates/stylists and our team of tailors to ensure proper alteration of garments.• Responsible for accounting and billing of all company accounts.• Works with tailors to maintain quality control in accordance with account requests.• Tracks all garments in workflow to ensure all deadlines are met.

Greater Chicago Area

Greater Chicago Area

• Assistant store manager of a store located in an urban area of the greater Chicagoland area with a focus on specialty sales.• Increased store yearly comp sales by 8.3% during the two fiscal years at the store by increasing specialty sales by 16.2% and outside service sales by 28.7%. Both of these figures far exceeded district and market averages over the same period.• Focused on new channels to expand the business through deepening the relationships with the store’s existing contractor base to find opportunities for them to subcontract work through The Home Depot. These arrangements were mutually beneficial to both the store and the contractors. The contactor base saved money and time over utilizing their own labor for the projects, therefore increasing customer retention and satisfaction. My store realized an increase in sales in the services area – an area which causes a dramatic impact on both inventory turns and gross margin.• Grew customer base through finding new prospects for our products. An example of such growth would be facilitating the supply of appliances to a major steel manufacturer in a neighboring town.• Helped deepen the relationship with the village by organizing and hosting car shows and community events.

Greater Chicago Area

• Led two different merchandising teams which covered Home Depot stores in the western and southern suburbs of the Chicagoland area.• Was tasked with representing the vendors in Home Depot stores through ensuring proper product placement, planogram integrity, and store associate training.• Created and refined processes to increase associate productivity and effectiveness.• Transformed a struggling merchandising team to one of the best in the region through process and associate development. From that team, seven of my direct reports have been promoted to manage merchandising teams of their own throughout the Chicagoland area.• Increased associate retention and satisfaction in both teams by focusing on servant leadership and assisting employees in furthering their careers regardless of their path.

Orland Park, Il

• Managed a team of 30 associates consisting of both full and part time employees.• Exceeded sales plan by over $1M for the fiscal year.• Tasked with maintaining store appearance, growing sales, and team management.• Planned and held outings to assist in team building.

Orland Park, Il

• Tasked with department maintenance, customer service, and sales.• Began as a part-time associate while in college.• Was recognized with an executive award from the CEO for customer service.• Recognized a need in the store for a specialist in the grill category. Devoted spare time to advancing my breadth of knowledge concerning the subject by meeting with vendor and manufacturer reps. • Grew overall knowledge base in the garden/seasonal department from nothing to near expert in under a year through experience, personal research, and education from fellow associates.

Fashion/Apparel Design

Philosophy