Managing all aspects of the business at our full-service manufacturers' representation firm, solely focused on your eCommerce strategy as a vendor. We provide a complete scale of services for manufacturers of multiple leading national brands, across multiple consumer product goods (CPG) categories, enabling new and existing manufacturers to tackle all eCommerce world intricacies and generate profitable, sustainable sales growth within Amazon.com, Walmart.com, Target.com and other key eCommerce stores. Our rep group boasts the talents of individuals with diverse professional backgrounds that allow us to cover the full gamut of the eCommerce world. Detailed Amazon-specific services include:- Search Engine Optimized (SEO) product content copywriting- ASIN item setups, image and video services- Brand page / Amazon Stores page creation- Marketing campaign budget strategy, creation and deployment- Promotional execution, including Amazon Advertising, price promotions and more- Integration of brands' social media campaigns with Amazon- Amazon ad-hoc program management and analysis (Born To Run, Vine, Direct Fulfillment Order Management and more)- In depth business performance reporting, monthly POS recaps, translated into actionable opportunities- Future Amazon PO forecasting- Logistical Score Card breakdown with recommendations to improve metrics/reduce operational costs and chargebacks- eCommerce packaging guidance, utilizing Frustration Free Packaging (FFP) / SIOC / ECR standards- Managing import and domestic fulfillment models- Management and support of AmazonBasics private label bid process and implementation- Problem solving all ad hoc issues for our manufacturers, being the first point of contact for Amazon, allowing manufacturers to focus on strategy and Vaso Group delivering first-class execution- Collaborating with Amazon Vendor Managers (buyers), In-Stock Managers, Marketing Managers, Amazon Student teams and others to drive execution

- Responsible for managing existing and opening new national accounts with a number of Fortune 500 companies across Retail, B2B Commercial and Ecommerce channels in the US Market. Selling to multiple buying groups within each account- Diverse account base includes industry-leading players within the following channels of trade: Grocery (Kroger / Fred Meyer), Supermarket (Meijer, Marc's), Drug (Rite Aid), Office Products (United Stationers, S.P. Richards, W.B. Mason), Ecommerce (Amazon.com, Walmart.com), Value (Big Lots, Ollie's, TJ Maxx) and a few other accounts- Selling and managing everyday retail plan-o-grams and seasonal promotions within multiple Art and Stationery brands: Board Dudes, Leap Frog, RoseArt and Write Dudes- Managing complex relationships with top-two Office Products wholesalers and entire office products Independent Dealer Channel. Working with multiple internal cross-functional teams to ensure growth and execution- Managing over 30 office products field sales reps, supporting the Office Products channel for the Mega Brands product and marketing initiatives- Responsible for strategic financial planning of each account. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to: annual sales budgets for each account, account program negotiations of various terms and allowances, inventory forecasting, PO management, discontinued product disposition, vendor returns and more- Working with multiple internal groups at Mega Brands (brand, product development, inventory management, marketing, finance, overseas manufacturing, quality control, customer service) to develop customer-specific programs that provide measurable growth and positive impact towards company EBITDA performance

The Senior Category Manager (Senior Buyer) role is responsible for full P&L management and unique growth opportunities in all channels: B2B Commercial, Retail and E-Commerce. The SCM develops financial plans, merchandise assortments across all channels, marketing strategies, seasonal merchandise plans and plans for in-field execution. SCM directly manages the most complex and comprehensive categories both in difficulty and scope within OfficeMax North America.EXPERIENCE WHILE IN THIS ROLE:- Led a buying team, accountable for the following product categories across all channels of distribution: Cleaning, Janitorial, Breakroom Supplies & Consumables, General Merchandise, all Front End Impulse & Seasonal categories- Managed a diverse team, which was held responsible for key performance metrics that directly impacted the financial performance of the company. Metrics included: sales and revenue growth, gross and net margin, open-to-buy, GMROI, inventory turns, vendor income and expense control- Created and implemented a five-year Cleaning/Breakroom/Janitorial category expansion plan, which was identified as 1 of 4 company-wide growth initiatives by the executive team. Presented and continuously collaborated with senior level executives within the organization to gain alignment and ensure cross-functional execution- Led multiple simultaneous projects with senior level management teams in all areas of the company: merchandising, inventory management, commercial B2B sales force, marketing, direct sourcing, store operations and others- Defined strategic merchandise assortments by category and developed marketing and pricing strategies for each channel: Retail, B2B Commercial and Ecommerce- Established multiple vendor partnerships with Fortune 500 companies from the ground up. Negotiated and directly managed all aspects of the business with over 80 active vendors on an ongoing basis- Managed over 4,000 unique active SKU's across all channels of distribution

The Category Manager (Buyer) has full vendor, product and financial responsibilities for a group of product categories. The CM must manage all aspects of the business for all channels within OfficeMax North American territory: B2B Commercial, Retail and E-Commerce. The CM has management responsibilities for all metrics of sales, margin, vendor income and inventory productivity goals. EXPERIENCE WHILE IN THIS ROLE: - Established new and managed existing relationships with multiple large vendors- Negotiated new and renewal agreements with new and existing vendors. The terms included, but not limited to: marketing allowances, volume and growth rebates, payment terms, freight terms, logistics metrics/fines, store/catalog/ecommerce allowances and more- Responsible for sales, gross margin, inventory performance metrics, open-to-buy within the following product categories: Presentation Boards, Mailroom/Packaging, Office Consumables/Appliances, all Front End Impulse & Seasonal categories- Researched, designed, developed, fully managed and launched a new premium private label presentation board brand - INFUSE. The brand launched simultaneously across all channels: Retail, B2B Commercial and E-Commerce- Managed the INFUSE / OfficeMax private brand product life cycle from product design, manufacturing, packaging, visual store presentation, catalog layout, web content, pricing, field execution, inventory management, promotions, off-shelf analysis, as well as end-of-life disposition of discontinued product- Forecasted and developed financial sales plans for all product categories, across all channels of distribution- Created category-wide marketing plans, including Sunday ad circulars, in-store promotions, B2B commercial sales flyers, web and email campaigns, loyalty program campaigns and more- Collaborated with inventory management team on sales trends, order forecasting, inventory turns, GMROI performance, seasonal buys and product transitions

The Associate Category Manager (Assistant Buyer) is responsible for learning all aspects of merchandising and financial planning. This position assists the Senior Category Manager (Senior Buyer) or Category Manager (Buyer). In addition to supporting the SCM or CM, the Associate Category Manager has financial ownership for a class, product grouping, or products associated to one vendor or plan-o-gram. The ACM mirrors same financial objectives as those of the SCM or CM they report to and must meet all sales, margin, vendor income and inventory productivity goalsEXPERIENCE WHILE IN THIS ROLE: - Managed the complete review cycle for the Art Supplies plan-o-gram. Responsibilities included vendor evaluation, negotiation, product selection, plan-o-gram layout, new inventory buys, discontinued inventory management, store execution and financial forecasting- Supported the SCM in launching the new premium private label writing brand - TUL- Responsible for assisting in assortment planning, product selection, daily vendor negotiation, and marketing execution within Writing, Art, Education, Desktop Tools and Storage categories- Established a rapport with existing vendors, while assisting the Buying Team in management of all aspects of the vendor’s business with OfficeMax- Closely collaborated with internal cross-functional teams (merchants, advertising, visual merchandising, store operations, replenishment, pricing and merchandising administration) to ensure enterprise-wide execution and measurable success - Negotiated and executed channel specific promotions with the vendor community- Assisted in the forecasting and merchandising of in-store flyers, Sunday ad circulars and other marketing vehicles. Managed the internal submission process, tracked and analyzed sales data- Maintained the weekly markdown file for all discontinued inventory- Worked within SAP and Mainframe systems to execute all necessary merchandising functions

- Evaluated financial reports to develop strategies to consistently deliver results to the company’s specified standards for sales, gross margin, wages, shrink and other key metrics- Assisted the store manager in management of total store P&L- Managed the store the resolution of customer issues, requests and complaints, including but not limited to those which have been raised with the corporate office, district office and the store- Developed and cultivated strong working relationships with key local businesses in the area- Worked with the leadership group at the local Chamber of Commerce. Led the store's participation and involvmement in community trade shows and other events- Hired, trained and managed full store personnel, consisting of 25-30 employees. Responsible for complete payroll management- Part of regional training store team. Assisted in training newly hired retail managers for the Midwest region- Conducted associate performance reviews and implemented performance improvement plans when necessary