Leveraging my leadership abilities and extensive professional experience, I currently work in partnership with our Women’s Apparel division. My job is to build and execute a strategic plan that’s focused on improving style management and profitability using data and business insights. I closely coordinate with cross-functional leaders to build immediate and larger IM team roadmaps and initiatives. I also recruit, hire, train, and continuously develop staff members. Key Achievements:● Digital Transformation: Made critical contributions towards development and implementation of new processes and systems automation which significantly streamlined workflows.● Team Building: Played key role in establishing initial processes and frameworks for creation of Inventory Management team which positioned group to quickly achieve operational excellence.● Data-Driven Decision Making: Collaborated with senior leadership team to utilize metrics and data analysis for headcount realignment project impacting Merchandising and Inventory Management divisions.● Employee Relations: Maximized employee engagement and strengthened team-wide culture by devising onboarding framework and coordinating with subject matter experts to train new talent on best practices.- Developed future leaders and enhanced succession planning by identifying mentorship opportunities

During my time as a Senior Buyer, I managed a robust portfolio that included Kids Outdoor Footwear and Apparel. It was on me to analyze style and SKU productivity to ensure we applied the correct product mix and quantity using just-in-time inventory planning. I collaborated with Design Teams, Product Line Managers, and Brand Directors to develop exclusive products, colors, and designs. I also attended market appointments to purchase product for upcoming seasons, conduct business reviews with brand partners, and build relationships with the wider vendor community.Key Achievements:● Performance Excellence: Grew portfolio from $9M to $30M+ across three selling channels while concurrently increasing annual margins by 1,000bps.● Strategic Planning: Exceeded 37% goal for operating profit per unit by championing all areas of promotional strategy during seasonal and post-seasonal events.● Business Acumen: Maximized portfolio profitability by leading negotiations for exclusive assortments, line-item discounts, COOP marketing funds, markdown funds, and vendor returns using business savvy and emotional intelligence.● Risk Management: Mitigated future inventory risk while positioning business to maximize sales by creating financial roadmaps and conducting in-season reforecasts of portfolio unit and dollar plans.● Leadership Development: Enabled several merchandising assistants, buyers, and interns to progress in careers and assume leadership roles while actively participating in new hire training, upskilling initiatives, and peer development.● Product Mix: Strengthened image of business and brand by influencing partners to invest in additional size variants and widths expansion to create additional growth opportunity within existing product franchises.

Earlier in my career, I was responsible for analyzing product opportunities and capitalizing on seasonal trends. A big part of this role involved creating seasonal product plans, gauging SKU productivity, and performing in-season and post-season hindsight reporting across multiple channels, including E-commerce. I also worked closely with our wider merchandising team to drive growth and maximize sales via brand initiatives. Key Achievements:● Cross-Team Collaboration: Served as conduit between Merchandising team and business channels to overcome product challenges and continuously improve seasonal strategies.