Buying & Merchandising Lead - Retail Fashion Business

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Partner Management & Business Development:

- Serve as the primary buying and merchandising interface for external brand partners, managing relationships, seasonal alignment, and commercial negotiations.

- Drive partner performance through structured review cadences, OTB planning, and sell-through accountability.

- Lead business negotiations with partners on range selection, pricing architecture, and intake phasing to ensure brand and margin objectives are met.

- Identify and onboard new external partners in alignment with the brand's growth strategy.

Seasonal Buying & Range Planning:

- Develop and own the seasonal buying strategy, balancing the global range with India-specific requirements across all partner channels.

- Build end-to-end range plans covering width, depth, and price architecture aligned with market positioning and consumer insights.

- Define seasonal big bets and key merchandising stories based on trend analysis, competitive benchmarking, and historical performance.

- Manage Open-to-Buy (OTB) budgets across partners, making timely adjustments in response to trading performance and market dynamics.

- Conduct seasonal store visits across partner locations to gather on-ground market intelligence and feed insights back into the buying process.

Merchandising & Sales Performance:

- Analyse performance KPIs including AVU, sell-through, inventory turns, and stock-to-sales ratios to identify risks and opportunities, and take corrective action.

- Drive sell-out performance by synchronising merchandise inflow with partner marketing calendars and promotional initiatives.

- Lead sales forecasting, demand planning, and budget setting in close collaboration with partner finance and sales teams.

- Prepare and present seasonal assortment reviews, trading updates, and performance insights to the Business Head and key stakeholders.

Sourcing & Vendor Management:

- Define and execute vendor strategy for India-developed product, including liaison with global sourcing offices.

- Manage vendor and sourcing office relationships to ensure product quality, cost efficiency, and on-time delivery.

- Negotiate costs and commercial terms with manufacturers in line with target margins and seasonal requirements.

Cross-functional Collaboration:

- Work closely with Marketing and Visual Merchandising teams to ensure effective product launches and in-store execution across partner stores.

- Collaborate with partners on team capability building, sharing buying and merchandising best practices to raise commercial performance.

- Track and report on weekly, monthly, and annual business objectives, ensuring alignment across all partner accounts.

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

- Experience in Buying and/or Merchandising within fashion retail or a branded environment, with exposure to partner/franchise business models preferred.

- Strong commercial acumen with a demonstrated ability to manage business negotiations and external relationships at a senior level.

- Deep understanding of women's western wear trends, product, fabric, and construction.

- Analytical mindset with proficiency in translating data into actionable buying decisions; advanced MS Excel skills essential.

- Experience managing OTB, range planning, and sales forecasting in a multi-channel or multi-partner context.

- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; comfortable presenting to senior leadership and external business partners.

- High ownership orientation with the ability to operate independently while managing multiple partner relationships simultaneously.