Sara Wilshire Email & Phone Number

Columbus, Ohio Metropolitan Area

Ensure optimal scoop shop inventory levels for ice cream (buckets and pints) to maximize sales, margin and inventory productivity while staying within individual shops' capacity limitations. Responsible for allocating finished goods back to the planned forecast and reacting to sales and inventory trends. Accountable for a 95% In Stock Rate for replenishment based, long life cycle Signature flavors in both buckets and pints. Created an Allocation Strategy file that consolidates total production quantities, shop plans and historical sales trends to drive individual shop's initial launch allocations. For each new collection, I build the Allocation Strategy across all 60+ shops by reviewing Marketing's vision, total production quantities, minimum/maximum presentation quantities, shop plans and making adjustment recommendations to maximize sell through and inventory productivity based on trends. I align on this strategy with Shops Leadership, the Shops Planning team and occasionally Marketing to ensure a successful launch. Create weekly Dry Good allocations for all out of town warehouses. This includes both replenishment supplies for shops, new and existing merchandise for sale across multiple channels (shops, ecomm), meeting with market leaders to review need, and managing inventory levels at all facilities. Provide a weekly update to shops regarding ice cream inventory levels at our cold storage facilities, including outages and sell downs, and work with Market leaders to identify opportunities for improved allocations. Partner with Market leaders and Shopkeepers to identify and solve for capacity constraints. In July of 2021, I witnessed a delivery at a highly constrained shop and physically counted the number of cold storage spaces. I was able to recommend a different strategy for storage which resulted in a 20% increase in capacity, allowing that shop to sell more ice cream during peak season.

Columbus, Ohio

Facilitated the Allocation process for the entire Tops business (Sweaters, Knits, and Wovens) to ensure that location centric inventory levels were positioned to maximize sales, margin and inventory productivity. Partnered with Location Planning team to develop store forecasts in line with Merchants' vision and the Merchandising Plan as the major input into the development of sales and inventory indexes by location. Provided analytical support to the cross functional team (Merchants and Planners) and was responsible for coordinating allocation execution with the off-shore allocation team in Bangalore, India. Accountable for a 95% In Stock Rate for replenishment goods, by forecasting sales/inventory levels and making buy recommendations based on future inventory levels, future orders and store forecasts. Drove size profile creation by providing data inputs/requirements and reviewed profiles pre-season and in season. Collaborated with 8 Merchants, 3 Merchandise Planners, and 2 off-shore partners to formulate business strategies by providing relevant analytics on a regular basis. Built the Allocation Strategy for each monthly floorset across all 3 departments by reviewing Merchant vision, total buy quantities, minimum/maximum presentation quantities, size curve, store plans and making adjustment recommendations to maximize sell through and inventory productivity. Provided analytics and additional information to Merchants and Merchandising Planners for major milestone meetings (Strategic Alignment, Buy Review, and Hindsight) and was an active participant in these meetings. I was also responsible for training my back fill which required handling all 9 departments at the same time until she was able to take over.

Columbus, Ohio, United States

Managed the Allocation process for 6 departments (Footwear, Hosiery, Jewelry, Accessories, Dresses and Skirts) to ensure that location centric inventory levels were positioned to maximize sales, margin and inventory productivity. Partnered with Location Planning team to develop store forecasts in line with Merchants' vision and the Merchandising Plan as the major input into the development of sales and inventory indexes by location. Provided analytical support to the cross functional team (Merchants and Planners) and was responsible for coordinating allocation execution with the off-shore allocation team in Bangalore, India. Accountable for a 95% In Stock Rate for replenishment goods, by forecasting sales/inventory levels and making buy recommendations based on future inventory levels, future orders and store forecasts. Drove size profile creation by providing data inputs/requirements and reviewed profiles pre-season and in season. Collaborated with 5 Merchants, 2 Merchandise Planners, and an off-shore partner to formulate business strategies by providing relevant analytics on a regular basis. Built the Allocation Strategy for each monthly floorset across all 6 departments by reviewing Merchant vision, total buy quantities, minimum/maximum presentation quantities, size curve, store plans and making adjustment recommendations to maximize sell through and inventory productivity. Provided analytics and additional information to Merchants and Merchandising Planners for major milestone meetings (Strategic Alignment, Buy Review, and Hindsight) and was an active participant in these meetings. Selected for a small team that helped to train and on board the new Allocation team in Bangalore, India. This required utilizing WebEx to set up training sessions, creating procedures to document processes, and teaching the team about the Lane Bryant brand. During this time and for about 3 months after, I was still responsible for most of the allocating and reporting.

Columbus, Ohio, United States

Ensured optimal store inventory levels of 4 departments (Footwear, Hosiery, Jewelry, and Accessories) to maximize sales, margin and inventory productivity. Developed store forecasts in line with Merchants' vision and the Merchandising Plan, including both channel planning and store planning. Responsible for allocating finished goods back to the forecast and reacting to sales and inventory trends. Accountable for a 95% In Stock Rate for replenishment based, long life cycle goods in all 4 departments. This included forecasting sales and inventory levels out several months and making buy recommendations based on future inventory levels, future orders and store forecasts. Also made recommendations to discontinue goods that no longer justified being on a replenishment program. Collaborated with 3 Merchants and a Merchandise Planner to formulate current and future business strategies by providing relevant analytics on a weekly, monthly and seasonally basis. Built the Allocation Strategy for each monthly floorset across all 4 departments by reviewing Merchant vision, total buy quantities, minimum/maximum presentation quantities, size curve, store plans and making adjustment recommendations to maximize sell through and inventory productivity. Provided analytics and additional information to Merchants and Merchandising Planners for major milestone meetings (Strategic Alignment, Buy Review, and Hindsight) and was an active participant in these meetings. After just 6 months in the role, I was asked to become one of the trainers to onboard new hires. This included teaching the various systems we used (JDA, MSI, E3, MS Office, etc.) and introducing them to cross functional teams. During this time, I also worked with a co-worker to revamped the Onboarding binder by writing new procedures, updating old processes, and including valuable documents needed for success from the start.

Columbus, Ohio

Managed Mast Global Beauty and Home owned inventory at vendor manufacturing facilities; two assembly centers and two candle vendors. Worked closely with filler/assembly sites and cross functional teams to continuously improve inventory management and movement through the Mast supply chain. Responsible for scheduling, planning and executing Physical Inventories and Book to Book reconciliations for vendor sites in a timely and effective manner. Fiscal month-end responsibilities were the completion of the key Blackbook for Inventory, which includes all Finished Goods and Components owned by Mast. Presented this Blackbook to CFO, Controller and Financial Reporting team and answered questions related to the account. In charge of identifying all of an assembly center’s invoices to be released for payment and working with the site to correct issues preventing payment. Monitored all transactions posted in SAP by vendors and Distribution Centers for accuracy and make corrections as needed (receipts, production, shipments, damages, shrink, etc.). When necessary, completed journal entries to account for discrepancies in Bill of Materials and communicate to Mast Operations and Financial Reporting. Researched and resolved issues associated with blocked invoice reporting, GRIR reporting (Goods Receipt/Invoice Receipt mismatch), Failed IDOCs (vendor shipments to DCs) and Outstanding in Transits (vendor to DCs and site to site). On a quarterly basis, communicated to sites inventory identified as Damaged and Excess & Obsolete and transact out of SAP accordingly.

Columbus, Ohio

Process account receivables for Mast Global Finance, specifically Victoria's Secret stores and Victoria's Secret Direct. Create, monitor and settle dispute cases against international apparel vendors. Collaborate with our Hong Kong Finance team for all disputes. Approve, monitor and reconcile Victoria's Secret Beauty & Accessories and Bath & Body Works international commercial invoices for shipments to Turkey. Issue invoices and process payments for MGF Sourcing, a third party vendor. Process manual billing on a weekly basis and reconcile Billing Controls at month end. Responsible for an additional four month end AR Controls, which verify that all billing changes are properly authorized. Research and respond to queries from internal brands' Accounts Payable, Inventory Control, Planning and Procurement, International Finance, International Transportation, Inventory Control and Logistics in regards to dispute cases and invoice processing. Create and update procedures for all processes for which I am responsible. Cross training with AR team so that I can support multiple processes during vacations/leaves and busy times.

Columbus, Ohio

Analyzed, approved and cleared merchandise freight claims between stores and delivery agents. Filed, monitored and reconciled Domestic and International freight claims. Researched and responded to queries from Transportation, Inventory Control, Delivery Agents, Freight Forwarders and internal brands in regards to claims and invoice processing. Coded, analyzed and researched vendor refund checks and tracked metrics for amounts and reasons behind each refund. Researched and resolved payment issues such as duplicate payments, unauthorized receipts of service and policy compliance. Keyed, scanned and archived invoices, reviewed statements, followed up with vendors and reconciled balances. Processed invoices and created reports for internal brands using SAP and various internal programs. Reported carton counts for use in month-end entries. Responsible for six month-end journal entries and two Blackbook accounts. Created and updated procedures for all processes for which I was responsible. Cross trained with entire Freight Accounting team so that I could support multiple processes during vacations/leaves and busy times.

Managed current and past inventory of five publications by collaborating with Plain City warehouse, offices in New York City, Boston and Des Moines and by sustaining an up-to-date library. Prepared and analyzed monthly circulation and financial reports to present to the CEO, CFO and Editor in Chief. Initiated and monitored direct mailing campaigns by creating and editing in house prospect lists and by purchasing outside lists. Developed vendor relationships in customer service, design, printing and shipping. Assessed and authorized billing and renewal counts. Reviewed and approved vendor and consultants’ invoices for services. Assisted in the preparation of the semi-annual circulation audit by collecting data and creating reports. Produced orders weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, bi-monthly and semi-annually for each of the five magazine publications. Filled customer current and back issue requests for samples, tradeshows and events. Designed advertising layouts and create mock-ups of redesigns. Maintained agency and prospect databases to increase subscriptions and sales.

Managed teller supervisor and seven tellers by encouraging sales, approving transactions, handling customer complaints, coaching and writing monthly branch schedules. Conducted monthly audits of tellers’ and teller supervisor’s cash, main cash vault, negotiable instruments, required logs and internal operations of the branch. Lead monthly branch security meetings and maintain the branch’s facilities. Trained all new employees to the branch and coached other employees at different branches. Controlled between $5,000 and $15,000 in cash and produced between 100 and 200 transactions per day. Balanced all cash drawers to the general ledger accounts daily and researched outages. Maintained a $150,000 main vault and managed cash inventories by creating weekly cash orders. Responsible for monitoring and ordering branch supplies. Created new checking, savings and certificate of deposit accounts to achieve the branch’s goal of 225 checking accounts per month. Verified all new accounts to make sure they were compliant with the US PATRIOT Act, Bank Secrecy Act, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and to check for mistakes in spelling, date accuracy, etc. Input incentives into new accounts and provided maintenance on existing accounts. Generated new Visa debit cards and resolve issues with existing cards. Administered consumer online and telephone accounts.

Managed five tellers by encouraging sales, approving transactions, handling customer complaints, coaching and writing monthly branch schedules. Trained all new employees to the branch and coached other employees at different branches. Controlled between $2,000 and $5,000 in cash and produced between 50 and 150 transactions per day. Balanced all cash drawers to the general ledger accounts daily and researched outages. Maintained a $75,000 main vault and managed cash inventories by creating weekly cash orders. Responsible for monitoring and ordering branch supplies. Conducted monthly audits of tellers’ cash, negotiable instruments, required logs and internal operations of the branch. Created new checking, savings and certificate of deposit accounts to achieve the branch’s goal of 120 checking accounts per month. Verified all new accounts to make sure they were compliant with the US PATRIOT Act, Bank Secrecy Act, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and to check for mistakes in spelling, date accuracy, etc. Input incentives into new accounts and provided maintenance on existing accounts. Generated new Visa debit cards and resolve issues with existing cards. Administered consumer online and telephone accounts.

Controlled $2,000 in cash and generated between 50 and 150 transactions a day. Created new checking, savings and certificates of deposit accounts. Administered branch safe deposit boxes. Managed three peers and maintained a $40,000 main vault.Contributed value in such areas as:Verified the compliance of and, when necessary updated, one third (over 300) of all accounts ever opened at the Dublin branch in a three month time frame.Conceived and implemented new marketing techniques used to encourage growth.Designed programs to track and reach branch goals.

Bsba, Operations Management, Finance And English

Activities and Societies: Institute for Supply ManagementI maintained a full-time course load while working 25 - 30 hours a week. I also.

Transfer Student, Business