Merchandising & Trade Marketing Manager

Description

JOB PURPOSE

The Merchandising & Trade Marketing Manager - who reports into the EVP Sales & Merchandising - is responsible for driving long term growth and enabling both the Sales teams and all support groups that engage with sales. The role is a combination of retail pricing strategy and management, channel management, sales strategy and analytics, as well as creating and managing sales tools to enable strong execution of our most important sales priorities. This can include line review management and support, retail analytics and insights to drive a sharp-shoot strategy to win more business (external and internal), being a key liaison for many departments. This key role is at the center of the sales matrix that supporting the EVP in working with all teams, including Sales, Products, Finance, and strategy.

A successful Merchandising & Trade Marketing Manager will have strong leadership and strategic planning skills to go along with excellent project management, analytical, and decision-making skills. This role will significantly influence and drive sales, contribution margin, cost avoidance, and prevent lost sales. This role can be either on-site or remote, but preference for on-site management. Remote employees will need to be flexible to travel to the company HQ periodically as needed (up to once a month).

Essential Functions And Other Duties

Be a key driver of retail pricing strategy (MAP and promotional), channel management programs and other merchandising/strategic functions that can be executed across all channels, while policing compliance of the strategies between all internal groups. The national promotional calendar will help to drive volume and better planning for inventory management, while driving focused volume with strong consideration for seasonality and new product launches.

Strategic planning should be data driven, through advanced analytics, consumer and retailer insights, as well as, category and account objectives to direct and execute with excellence.

Pricing Strategy

• Help develop and manage national assortment between sales & products teams, with MAP pricing and relevant promotional cadence. Minimize disruption with sound pricing strategy and preventing market price fight. Manage amnesty periods for key events.
• Manage the pricing calendar with the right amount of seasonal relevance by category, including key events like Black Friday, Cyber Week, Holiday, and Prime.
• Help develop US MAP pricing (Reg and promotional retails) + policy management, and national unified promotional calendar to maximize sales, turn inventory, and push sell through of overstock
• Analyze promotional performance for effectiveness and optimize for the future.
• Manage the Special price lists for Discontinue When Gone and Clear out Lists.
• Conduct financial modelling between sourcing/products, finance and sales. Leverage groups to make sound pricing decisions and provide first layer of approvals on sales pricing to meet corporate contribution margin goals, while enabling sales and securing revenue. Must have a strong understanding of financial pricing models, customer portfolio management, retailer programs and allowances, retailer hidden costs and client profile building is key to success of this role by managing mixed margins to meet objectives.

Channel Strategy

• Develop channel assortment and being a close partner to sales and products teams to harmonize our go-to-market strategy.
• Find efficiencies and commonalties between retailers that can be grouped in like models, while protecting key volume customers with a more custom assortment; while mitigating channel disruption. Assess the optimal assortment required by category to service our retail development needs.
• In conjunction with pricing role, develop a channel strategy that matches US market price ladder building - Retail Price vs Value (Features, Innovation, Bundles etc).

STRATEGIC SALES SUPPORT: INSIGHTS-ANALYTICS-TOOLS ENABLEMENT:

• Conduct deep retail and mark analytics from both paid and free market share tools (Circana, Ipsis, Google Trends, Amazon market data, and other trend reports etc).
• Regularly conduct retail walks for insights, especially for key customers. Develop that merchant mentality of constantly optimizing assortment and retail execution strategy.
• Assess key retailer planograms and scope opportunities to strike by recognizing weaknesses/gaps on modular whether assortment or price gaps, duplication, or poor competitor value.
• Prepare comp shops and customer face off's for key customer presentations.
• Analytics and Tools enablement to help bridge between sales account managers and products teams. This role provides insights to enable both parties. Works closely with finance as well.
• Track and monitor KPIs on key programs such as category and product launches with successful account setup, fail rates, revenue, turn, etc.
• Manage the line review process for key clients. Facilitate cross functionally with sales managers and all support groups the critical kick off meeting, the workback schedule, and ensure we hit milestones
• Participate in key customer meetings and industry trade shows as required (Travel required)'
• Development of sales dashboards, tracking tools, preparing training, and supporting to help simplify and enable efficient, yet more sophisticated sales information sharing
• Help to be an internal voice of the customer and sales
• National Sales meeting management (Strategy, coordination of content and liaising with all parties from Reps to Products teams)
• Prepare and share post mortems with key stakeholders and leadership teams

Position Requirements

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

• Ability to drive projects from concept through implementation, to analyze results and provide strong rationale for recommendations
• Strong communication, presentation, collaboration and influencing skills
• Detailed organizational capability
• Experience with MS Office – especially Excel / PPT, ideally Power BI as well
• Can demonstrate a ‘can do’ / entrepreneurial attitude
• Quick thinker to solve problems, draw financial conclusions and make fast, accurate decisions
• Ability to deliver projects in full, on time, on budget and to the highest quality
• Adaptability – the ability to remain fully functional by adapting to changing circumstances (environment, procedures, people)
• Attention to detail – thoroughness in accomplishing a task through concern for all the areas involved, no matter how small. Monitors and checks work or information and plans and organizes time and resources efficiently. Strong problem-solving skills.
• Building collaborative relationships – the ability to establish credibility and develop, maintain, and strengthen partnerships with others inside and outside the organization
• Communication skills - shares and receives information using clear oral, written, and interpersonal communication skills. Actively listens, provides constructive feedback, and demonstrates respect for differing views. Shares information with others. Ability to establish and manage relationships with internal and external partners. Ability to change communications style between peers, departments, customers and executive leadership.
• Fostering teamwork and collaboration - collaborative style – advocating a positive team concept to resolve problems and achieve optimal results
• Technical skills Ability to plan and willingness to learn, ability to credibly talk with Sales, Customers, Leadership, Products Team, Finance and all related support groups in the organization.
• Time Management - Strong time management skills including ability to handle multiple projects, prioritize and organize.
• Leadership skills – the ability to influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal.
• Self-motivator – ability to be self-reliant and have the leadership skills to figure out how to prioritize and get the input he/she needs to be productive and effective

Education And Experience

• 5+ years of marketing experience required.
• Proven success working with all levels of management
• Bachelor's degree in business, management, marketing, or a related field.
• Preferably 5+ years’ experience with financial analytics and/or building pricing models

WORKING CONDITIONS Traditional work environment –the noise level in the work environment is usually quiet to moderate.

• The passage of employees through the work area is average and normal.
• Fast paced, entrepreneurial environment with changing priorities
• Travel requirements are minimal but travel for occasional meetings may be required (less than 25%)
• Extended hours may be required to meet deadlines

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• While performing the responsibilities of the job, the employee is required to talk and hear. The employee is often required to sit and use their hands and fingers, to handle or feel.
• Vision abilities required to perform this job include close vision and working frequently with computer monitors.
• The employee will have prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Occasionally help set up samples and presentations for internal and external customers.

About the Organization Founded in 1987, FKA is a leader in consumer health, wellness, home environment, consumer electronics, and lifestyle products. Our family of brands includes HoMedics, the #1 brand in massage; and The House of Marley, a high-performance audio brand developed in partnership with the Bob Marley family. We distribute our products to more than 60 countries throughout North and South America, Central America, the Asia-Pacific region, and Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

EOE Statement We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.