Merchandiser - In Market

The Breakdown:
At Burton, we are a purpose-led brand rooted in snowboarding and the outdoors. We fight for the future of our people, planet, and sport. We aim to maximize our positive social impact and minimize our negative environmental impact while delivering high-quality performance products. As a global leader in snowboarding, we are committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion for the long-term health of our company, sport, and community.The In-Market Merchandiser serves as the categorical expert in the Japan region. This role is responsible for translating the global category strategy into actionable regional plans. By working closely with regional marketing and marketplace teams, the In-Market Merchandiser ensures the successful execution of category positioning, product assortments, pricing strategies, and sell-through performance.This is a global role based in Japan, requiring significant in-market travel as well as regular travel to headquarters.
What You Get to Do:
Market Expertise

Deep knowledge of the softgoods competitive landscape including snowboard, ski, and outdoor categories, and Japan-specific market dynamics, retail structure, and consumer trends.
Share insights and identify key market opportunities and requirements with the global team.

Regional Business Planning

Translate the global category strategy into a comprehensive regional business plan that includes category positioning and marketing strategies.

Product Assortment and Planning

Fine-tune the global softgoods product line to address the needs of local consumers across DTC and wholesale channels, including assortment planning, pricing, and promotions.
Identify, create, coordinate, and manage local SMUs (Special Make-Ups). This includes Japan-specific collaborations (e.g., with Japanese brands and creatives such as Fragment) and the Regional Printer Project.
Identify regional gaps or opportunities to drive and scale the business.

GTM (Go-To-Market) Alignment

Collaborate with global marketing and merchants to ensure the regional assortment is clear and seamlessly activated in GTM plans.

Forecasting and Reporting

Collaborate with Category Planners to build item-level bottoms-up sales and inventory forecasts for DTC and wholesale channels, including style/color ranking and size strategy.
Communicate context for preseason and in-season landing estimates for the Wholesale channel.
Analyze in-season sell-through and sales performance weekly and monthly; report to global team.

Training and Support

Lead marketplace teams for preseason line showings and sell-through clinics.
Support key account pre-line and line showings; relay early reads and feedback to the global team.

Promotion and Inventory Management

Make discounting and promotion decisions based on market conditions and inventory positions; leverage insights for broader trend analysis.

What You'll Bring to The Team:

Minimum 5 years of category management expertise
Proven experience working cross-functionally and internationally
Regional assortment planning across all channels of distribution, aligned to global strategic intent
Demonstrated ability to grow a business by setting and achieving revenue targets and KPIs
Superior analytical and decision-making skills with the ability to translate data into executable strategic plans
Strong knowledge of Japan-specific wholesale structure, retail environment, and key category competitors
Technical Apparel background required: Candidates with Fashion or Luxury-only experience will not meet the technical product requirements of this role
Language: Native-level Japanese and business-level English required for communication with headquarters and the global team

Preferred Qualifications:

Background or working knowledge of product development, particularly in the context of regional collaborations and SMU execution
Experience managing Japan-unique product initiatives (e.g., special collaborations, regionally tailored assortments)
Burton brand affinity: Genuine connection to snowboard culture and the Burton brand ethos
Centric Planning (or equivalent forecast tool) experience a plus

Key Metrics:

P&L, Revenue, and Margin performance
Market growth, sell-through rates, SKU efficiency, and market share
Inventory turn, GMROI (Gross Margin Return on Investment)
Weekly high-level reporting to the global team at merchandising stand-up meetings

Travel & Work Environment:

Estimated travel: 30–50% (in-market Japan travel + periodic travel to headquarters in Vermont, USA)
Work arrangement: Hybrid — Monday to Thursday in office, Friday remote
Core hours: 11:00–15:00