Junior Merchandiser - Womenswear

From Merchandising and Marketing - Product Development and Design, through to Supply Chain and Space Planning - our mission is to bring stylish wardrobe, home and beauty essentials to our customers via an easy, inspiring shopping experience online and in store that will delight them every time.

As we accelerate the transformation of our business to suit the changing needs of our customer, we need results-orientated colleagues that not only have a passion for our product, but a strong team working ethos, creativity and a healthy commercial aim to join us on our journey.

To stay close to customers, our support teams are in the office three days a week as we believe that skills are developed through collaboration, and that spending time together makes us more creative and connected.

Being a part of M&S is exactly that – playing your part to bring the magic of M&S to our customers every day. We’re an inclusive, dynamic, exciting, and ever evolving business built on doing the right thing and bringing exceptional quality, value, service to every customer, whenever, wherever and however they want to shop with us. Here are some of the benefits we offer that make working for M&S just that little bit more special…

• After completing your probationary period, you’ll receive 20% colleague discount across all M&S products and many of our third-party brands for you and a member of your household.

• Competitive holiday entitlement with the potential to buy extra holiday days!

• Discretionary bonus schemes awarded based on how you achieve your personal objectives and our performance as a business.

• A generous Defined Contribution Pension Scheme and Life Assurance.

• A dedicated welcome to our teams with a tailored induction and a wide range of training programmes to develop your skills.

• Amazing perks and discounts via our M&S Choices portal to maximise your financial and personal wellbeing.

• Industry-leading parental, adoption and neonatal policies, providing support and flexibility for your family.

• Access to a fantastic range of wellbeing support for all colleagues including access to our 24/7 Virtual GP and PAM Assist to support you and your family.

• A charity volunteer day

What you’ll do

Your key accountabilities will include

• Agree the strategy and targets for creating and achieving pre and in season department sales and stock forecasts by channel. Analysis of sales identifying winners and losers and taking appropriate actions. Working in collaboration with stakeholders to react to trade and maximise sales opportunity for the Department. Accountable for creating accurate long term and short-term Department or range forecasts
• Booking quantities of products to meet launch and respond to in season variables for all channels in the UK and International. Take lead in developing Department or range plan review and lessons learned. Managing departmental documentation relating to all sale periods including markdown plans
• Working with Sourcing Offices to manage critical path from buy to delivery for each stroke including global capacity management and the agreement and monitoring of global production plans with suppliers
• Providing information to Space Planning & Development team to allow them to generate layout plans to stores
• Maintaining awareness of competition’s product offer to provide input into price point strategy and catalogue by shape of chain
• Responsible for adopting One Best Way of working delivering standardisation and consistency across all BUs
• Maintaining communication links to retail, channels, allocation, suppliers, sourcing offices and international
• Assist the International team to maximise M&S departmental sales during International Buying events
• Motivate, develop and train relevant line reports e.g. Merchandise Admin Assistant

Who you are
Your skills and experience will include

• Working in a similar fast paced fashion retailer, working to at least Senior Assistant Merchandiser or Junior Merchandiser level.
• Strong Merchandising skills including managing GSM, development of Department Plan, stock / commitment management, creating sales estimates, and production plans
• Strong Knowledge of the end to end buy to store process. Including controlling unplanned in-season costs
• Able to fully utilise the relevant IT support systems, (Range Planner, SSI, GMOR) and to be fully conversant with standard business desktop applications
• Strong numerical, analytical and interpretive skills. Negotiation skills (managing in season unplanned costs)
• Ability to initiate and build strong relationships with Design, Buying and Technology Strong interpersonal/ communication skills. Influencing (internal & external)

Everyone’s welcome
We are ambitious about the future of retail. We’re disrupting, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era. We’re transforming how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. Marks & Spencer strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen.
We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best. We support each other and work together to win together. If you feel you'd benefit from any support or reasonable adjustments during any stage of the recruitment process,
please don’t hesitate to let us know when completing your application. This information will be picked up by our team, so we can try and put steps in place to help you be at your best through this process.

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