Laura Haymaker Email & Phone Number

Minneapolis, Mn, Us

Atlanta, Georgia, United States

- Founding Ambassador of the Design Group Women’s Development Network. Established goals, curated external vendors, designed programming, and led diverse groups.- Grow and mentor a team of talented product development professionals, set performance goals, provide regular feedback, and promote professional development.- Lead collaboration with sourcing, design, marketing, sales, and customer support teams to ensure efficiencies and simplification across the organization. Execute cohesive development and launch strategies, fostering a unified approach to product growth and ensuring alignment and buy-in across the organization.- Define, develop and implement comprehensive marketing and product strategies with a focus on innovation, market needs, and differentiation that align with corporate goals.- Oversee the planning, prioritization, and development of new products and features, ensuring they meet quality standards, user needs, retailer and consumer value expectations.- Develop and maintain a dynamic product roadmap to communicate the vision, priority, and progress of product initiatives to internal domestic and international teams and external suppliers.- Engage with key customers to gather insights, foster relationships, and validate product direction, ensuring solutions meet market demands and customer expectations.- Manage Décor P&L by establishing and monitoring KPIs including product success, customer satisfaction, and revenue impact; adjusting strategies as necessary to meet goals. - Utilize a deep understanding of financial metrics and business drivers to drive revenue and margin growth and achieve company targets for the $150MM Décor Business. - Expand country of origin manufacturing by working with sourcing and operations teams to identify product lines, countries and factories to grow supply base.- Conduct foreign factory audits and assist with onboarding to meet product specifications and pricing expectations.

Eden Prairie, Mn

- Recipient of 2018 Tip of the Spear Award for work done to update the assortment of the SERF DC and Quality foods across all GM/HBC Categories - Develop category business plans, including: establishing ad plans, defining and refining assortment, and creating executional communication to drive optimal sales for categories valued at $US 100MM in retail sales and an additional $US 159MM in warehouse shipments- Responsible for providing strategic direction, sales and profitable revenue for Apparel/Soft Goods/Hosiery, Dollar, Domestics, Giftware, Tobacco, and Video/Electronics through skillful negotiations, top-producing relationships with business partners, strong presentations, clear communications, and managing $5MM in vendor funds- Increased sales in the dollar category 52% over 4 years while Reinventing the Dollar category by Creating a comprehensive strategy, optimizing the SKU & Vendor assortment, cutting 34% of SKUs and 50% vendors, working with vendors to increase vendor promotions 1000% by create promotion plans, maximizing and taking advantage of all sales opportunities across the company including: Seasonal Cycles, Telemarketing Events, Semester Selling and special surveys, development of POG-based Dollar programs, and creating a playbook for independent retailers- Responsible for highly regulated tobacco category including: understanding and managing funds, contracts, retail pricing, and taxes and State minimums for retail and wholesale customers in 40 States and 70+ tax jurisdictions- Special Projects Lead on assignments directed by VP of GM/HBC. Projects include: SERF POG (SE Regional Facility Plan-O-Gram) Optimization and Assortment, Quality Foods Retailer Specific Assortment and POG Analysis and Development, and Tobacco Regional DC Consolidation- Key account contact for 51 store retail chain with $US 17.8MM in GM/HBC purchases.- Responsible for development of, and the training and workload prioritization for 4 indirect reports

- Develop category business plans, including: establishing ad plans, defining and refining assortment, and creating executional communication to drive optimal sales for categories valued at $US 100MM in retail sales and an additional $US 159MM in warehouse shipments- Responsible for providing strategic direction, sales and profitable revenue for Apparel/Soft Goods/Hosiery, Dollar, Domestics, Giftware, Tobacco, and Video/Electronics through skillful negotiations, top-producing relationships with business partners, strong presentations and clear communications- Meet and exceed sales and total profit expectations through innovation and execution of the category strategies at retail- Manage vendor relationships and negotiations including terms; 21 contracts and $US 5MM in vendor funds management for Retail, Wholesale and key retail accounts- Responsible for highly regulated tobacco category including: understanding and managing funds, contracts, retail pricing, and taxes and State minimums for retail and wholesale customers in 40 States and 70+ tax jurisdictions- Special Projects Lead on assignments directed by VP of GM/HBC. Projects include: SERF POG (SE Regional Facility Plan-O-Gram) Optimization and Assortment, Quality Foods Retailer Specific Assortment and POG Analysis and Development, and Tobacco Regional DC Consolidation- Reinvented the Dollar category by creating a comprehensive strategy and establishing plans to its successful execution. The strategy included: SKU optimization, development of POG-based Dollar programs, consolidating catalog and buying opportunities, increasing vendor funds, and creating a playbook for independent retailers- Key account contact for 51 store retail chain with $US 17.8MM in GM/HBC purchases.- Responsible for development of, and the training and workload prioritization for 4 indirect reports

Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

- Brokered and managed sales efforts of 17 vendors to eight national retailers- Managed team of seven sales professionals - Achieved sales increase of 80%, from $17.1 Million to $30.7 Million- Evaluated and implemented sales goals and growth plans to increase company revenue and promote year over year growth- Recommended and implemented product and service enhancements to vendors for improved customer satisfaction and sales potential- Developed seasonal, household and general merchandise programs with vendors and retailers to fill specific retailer category needs- Worked with vendors to establish price strategies and quotations for submission to retailers- Devised sales strategies for vendors to promote specific product assortment and special pricing for promotion and ad placement at retailers- Assisted vendors with product specification adjustments to best meet the retailer’s desired margin returns- Analyzed retailer inventory and sell-thru data to recommend order quantities, replenishment orders, and advise on delivery dates- Managed day to day operations and employee benefits, including: insurance, 401K, flex plan, and payroll - Created and managed company budget of $750,000- Reconciled all corporate accounting: accounts payable and receivable, commissions, and invoicing- Advised Account Managers and Interns in sales and sales support activities- Oversaw hiring process, including: job posting, interviewing, hiring and induction of new employees

Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

- Identified need for business alternative in the Manufacturer’s Representative sector- Created business plan including goals, marketing efforts, growth strategies, SWOT analyses, and pricing structures- Devised 3 sets of services: Sample Management, Full-time Showroom/Part-time Cost, and Warranty Replacement- Developed marketing materials: website, brochures, and direct mail and email pieces- Researched and pursued new business opportunities- Created customer quotations- Reconciled all corporate accounting, including: accounts payable, accounts receivable, and invoicing

Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

- Developed full scale project sales plans, including project scope, sales goals and product, presentation and quoted deliverables for projects valued up to $5.2M- Lead planning and implementation of sales plan, including coordination of internal and external staff - Managed project plan, schedule, and resources to ensure timeline continuity - Ensured sales projects were completed on time and within budget- Coordinated up to 5 separate major sales projects at a time- Prepared, delivered and followed up with vendors’ seasonal, household and general merchandise sales presentations to retailers- Assisted in order creation and tracked orders to completion: order entry, confirmation of order quantities and delivery windows, shipment booking, and overseas and inland shipment tracking to destination- Created plan-o-gram sets to optimize set sizes, adjacencies and in-store experience

Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

Marketing Specialist - Handled marketing communications and media relations to maintain visibility of Shea within the design, advertising and public relations arena- Designed and maintained corporate website- Created press releases- Selected and maintained print-ad and marketing communications Initiatives- Art directed, edited and published “Link” newsletter- Created marketing collateral materials- Managed internal projects New Business Development- Researched and strategically prospected new business opportunities - Administered Request For Proposals: assignment of team, budget, sdchedule, and compilation- Developed restaurant concepts- Handled competition entries- Managed sales database- Created marketing collateral materials

Bachelor Of Arts (B.A.), Architecture

Minor, Business Administration, Management And Operations