Company Overview
A rapidly expanding multinational consumer business with growing operations across multiple international markets. The organization is strengthening its regional operational, supply chain, and compliance capabilities to support scalable business growth.
Job Summary:
Senior Merchandise Strategy Manager will lead the overall merchandise and commercial strategy for the business, encompassing product assortment planning, brand and category development, commercial activations, and strategic growth initiatives.
This role is responsible for driving business performance through data-driven merchandising decisions, innovative product strategies, market trend identification, and impactful go-to-market activations. The position works cross-functionally with Buying, Marketing, VM, Operations, Logistics, and external brand partners to ensure strong commercial execution and sustainable business growth.
The ideal candidate is both commercially strategic and creatively driven, with strong leadership capabilities and a deep understanding of retail trends, customer behavior, product development, and merchandising operations.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategic Merchandising & Assortment Planning
- Develop and lead long-term merchandising and assortment strategies aligned with company objectives and market opportunities.
- Drive category growth through trend identification, customer insights, competitive benchmarking, and market analysis.
- Oversee product mix, pricing architecture, and assortment optimization to maximize sales, margin, and inventory productivity.
- Identify new business opportunities, emerging brands, licensing opportunities, and strategic category expansions.
- Lead seasonal planning and commercial calendar strategies across all merchandise categories.
Product Strategy & Brand Development
- Lead product development initiatives through in-house creation, sourcing strategies, and brand collaborations.
- Build and strengthen relationships with key suppliers, licensors, distributors, and strategic partners.
- Drive exclusive product initiatives and differentiated offerings to strengthen market positioning.
- Ensure product strategies align with customer demand, brand positioning, and commercial targets.
- Oversee product lifecycle management from ideation to launch execution.
Commercial Activation & Go-To-Market Strategy
- Lead integrated product launch strategies and commercial activation campaigns to drive awareness, traffic, and sales conversion.
- Collaborate with Marketing and Visual Merchandising teams to create impactful campaigns and customer experiences.
- Develop innovative activation concepts that strengthen brand storytelling and customer engagement.
- Ensure seamless execution of launches, promotions, seasonal campaigns, and key commercial events.
- Monitor activation effectiveness and optimize future strategies based on performance insights.
Financial & Business Performance Management
- Own sales, gross profit, inventory, and margin performance across assigned categories.
- Drive forecasting, budgeting, OTB planning, and financial analysis to achieve business targets.
- Monitor inventory health, stock productivity, and sell-through performance.
- Identify cost optimization opportunities while maintaining product quality and customer value.
- Prepare business reviews, strategic recommendations, and management reporting.
Data Analytics & Market Intelligence
- Utilize sales analytics, market trends, and customer insights to support strategic decision-making.
- Analyze campaign effectiveness, product performance, and category productivity.
- Forecast demand and identify opportunities to improve inventory efficiency and commercial performance.
- Develop actionable insights and recommendations to improve business outcomes.
Process Improvement & Governance
- Drive continuous enhancement of merchandising processes, systems, and reporting capabilities.
- Develop SOPs, reporting dashboards, and governance frameworks to strengthen decision-making and operational efficiency.
- Ensure compliance with company policies, merchandising standards, and commercial governance practices.
Cross-Functional Leadership & Stakeholder Management
- Work closely with Buying, Marketing, Operations, Logistics, VM, and Finance teams to align strategies and execution plans.
- Collaborate with external agencies, licensors, and business partners to strengthen brand initiatives and activations.
- Ensure alignment between merchandising strategies and overall business objectives.
- Lead strategic discussions and presentations with senior management and stakeholders.
Team Leadership & Organizational Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop high-performing merchandising and strategy teams.
- Foster a collaborative, innovative, and performance-driven culture.
- Set clear KPIs, performance expectations, and development plans for team members.
- Strengthen team capabilities in commercial strategy, trend analysis, and project execution.
Key Deliverables
- Strategic merchandise and assortment plans aligned with company growth objectives.
- Successful product launches and commercial campaigns with measurable ROI.
- Achievement of sales, margin, inventory turnover, and profitability targets.
- Strong vendor and brand partnerships that support long-term business growth.
- Data-driven reporting and strategic business recommendations.
- Improved customer engagement, category performance, and market competitiveness.
- High-performing and commercially driven merchandising team.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's Degree in Business, Retail Management, Marketing, Supply Chain, or related field.
- Minimum 10–15 years of experience in merchandising, category management, buying, commercial planning, or retail strategy within the retail industry.
- Strong exposure to FMCG, general merchandise, lifestyle, fashion, toys, ecommerce, or value retail industries.
- Proven experience in regional merchandising strategy, retail expansion, commercial optimization, and business transformation initiatives.
- Strong leadership experience managing cross-functional teams and large-scale commercial projects in a multi-store retail environment.
- Strong commercial acumen with expertise in assortment planning, product development, sourcing, inventory management, and financial planning.
- Strong analytical, strategic thinking, and data-driven decision-making capabilities.
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint; experience with Power BI,
- Tableau, SAP, or merchandising/ERP systems is an added advantage.
- Excellent communication, stakeholder management, negotiation, and presentation skills.
- Able to thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic retail environment.
- Languages: English, Bahasa Malaysia, and conversational Mandarin preferred.
