Merchant, Intimates - International

Your Role:

The Merchant supports the Director, in delivering the volume and growth expectations of a book of business, through comprehensive management of categories, understanding and applying their financial acumen. They are the subject matter expert in areas including, but not exclusive of, assortment content, SKU management, testing initiatives, competitive intelligence and customer intimacy. Possesses strong leadership skills as he/she is ultimately responsible for driving cross-functional communication and motivating the team to be customer focused, innovative, fast and team oriented in their work.

Why You Belong Here:

At Victoria’s Secret, we acknowledge your value. We recognize that every associate has something unique to add to our brand and business. We strive to recruit, retain, and advance diverse talent that reflects the customers we serve and the communities where we live and work. We foster a culture where everyone belongs because we know our business thrives most when we look for, listen to, and amplify diversity, equity, and inclusion.

We place the customer at the heart of everything we do. We dream big, embrace curiosity and creativity while always learning from our mistakes. We lead with integrity, trust, and respect to achieve the best outcomes as one team.

Your Impact:

Leadership & Strategy

• Partners with leadership in driving the International brand businesses by connecting financial patterns and market insights to identify growth opportunities, while pioneering the new buy model.
• Contributes to the success of the category through adapting brand strategies in markets around the world while meeting or exceeding the financial goals
• Provides recommendations and gains alignment from merchant leaders to influence work streams of cross-functional teams to support key initiatives
• Drives category business by “outside of the box” thinking that connects the lines between financial patterns and market/store insights to identify growth opportunities.
• Leads day to day communication between all members of the international team as well as the domestic team
• Acts as the category expert in key brand & cross-functional meetings, driving prioritization and distortion
• Entrepreneurial mindset in creating, evolving and perfecting new processes to enable international growth

Financial

• Accountable for sales and growth targets for book of business, recognizing opportunities for incremental growth and risk management
• Collaborates across departments to build and cascade seasonal hindsights, focusing on impact to forward strategy by leveraging and understanding historical data to ensure business is compared appropriately to last year
• Drives category alignment and collaboration with planning partners
• Analyzes, interprets and reports financial results on a weekly basis to influence business strategy
• Understands product selling trends and historical data at the category level in order to manage in season and future opportunities
• Acts as the expert of their category and understanding regional differences through market trends, analytical analysis and therefore making appropriate recommendations.

Product

• Influences and executes decisions around assortment edits/distortions by market
• Maximizes customer experience by driving execution of all sales education, marketing, and visual requests for the product category (pre-season and in-season)
• Understands customer intimacy and competitive environment; proactively seeking knowledge through exposure and travel to market
• Manages all assortment details, including International MAT tool maintenance, and cascading strategy changes to cross functional teams
• Supports seasonal hindsighting process by compiling the regional customer insights to influence go-forward strategies
• Drives the communication of product detail to cross functional partners
• Supports key meetings through deck preparation and completion of ad hoc requests, always staying agile and flexible

Collaboration, Communication and Partner Support

• Maintains strong line of communication with field team and directly partners with regional teams when applicable through business reviews, assortment strategy cascades, regional analysis, monthly TBs, etc.
• Builds productive relationships with US Brand merchants to facilitate exchange of information, share best practices, and stay abreast of assortment strategy updates
• Establishes and maintains strong partnerships with cross functional teams by building rapport and communicating effectively
• Possess category/business knowledge in order to gain internal buy-in
• Consistently demonstrates open mindedness and free thinking when problem solving
• Regularly share customer and floorset insights and business recommendations through store visits.

Talent

• Effectively on-boards new cross functional partners
• Motivates the team to ensure effective performance and growth with consistent on-the-job feedback and training
• Acts as a role model within the company by coaching and teaching team members to work together and remain focused
• Demonstrates mentoring and strong leadership to the merchant team and cross functional partners

Click here for benefit details related to this position.