AKIRA VP of Merchandising

In 2002, AKIRA opened the doors to its first women's clothing boutique in Chicago. Since then, the company has extended its reach to 35+ stores across the United States, as well as a thriving eCommerce business (.) AKIRA is extremely well-poised for sustained growth as we continue to build a nationally recognized brand.

AKIRA's culture has one very large, distinct difference from other high fashion competitors: Fanatical, Obsessive Attention to the consumer's needs and desires. The core principle for all employees at AKIRA is to Act and Think Like an Owner, and this belief can be reflected across all areas of the company.

The Position

VP of Merchandising

Location

Chicago, IL (On-site)

Overview:

The Vice President of Merchandising at AKIRA is responsible for leading product and brand strategy to drive growth across apparel, footwear, and accessories. This role involves developing trend-driven, market-ready product assortments that align with AKIRA's brand identity. The VP will manage a team, collaborate cross-functionally with design, planning, retail operations and marketing, and ensure cohesive execution of business strategies. They will also oversee financial plans and sales forecasts, analyze market trends, and act as a brand ambassador to ensure the brand's success and alignment with customer expectations. The VP will report directly to the partners of the business.

Essential Functions:

Category Strategy:

• Develop and implement a comprehensive merchandising strategy that drives sales, profitability, and market share growth.
• Align merchandising initiatives with the overall business goals and brand vision, curating a diverse and compelling product assortment that reflects current trends and customer preferences.
• Lead merchandising teams in identifying current and future trends along with potential white space opportunities to create a unique offering for the consumer.
• Lead development of global line plan, assortment mix and strategy for Category. Partner with Design, PDC, Sales/Planning, Operations and other Merchandising VPs to ensure strategies are clearly communicated throughout the organization.
• Influence others and gain alignment on strategies to drive business, style and innovation forward
• Lead business and creative decisions for final assortment and act as the key liaison with cross functional partners on assortment, visual and pricing strategies
• Work closely with design and planning teams to ensure cohesive product development and inventory management.
• Optimize merchandise assortment across store and e-commerce channels, supporting key growth initiatives and capabilities that evolve or grow the business within the channel, across channels, and/or across the brand.

Brand Strategy:

• Lead product strategy development including driving milestone meetings and executing product development calendar.
• Develop a balanced product assortment with a strong price-value relationship to achieve consistency within all business classifications.
• Conduct market research and analysis to identify emerging trends, opportunities, and competitive threats.
• Utilize data-driven insights and establish KPIs to inform merchandising decisions and strategies. Analyze sales data and customer feedback to continuously improve the product offering and enhance the customer experience.

Financial Objectives:

• Drive achievement of margin, sales goals based on financial plans for all channels
• Develop Long Range Plans with cross functional teams and Leadership Team
• Maintain awareness of competition relative to product value relationship and customer profitability within the category.
• Lead the team to analyze sales, competitive and market trends, and customer behavior to establish or update overall product assortment strategies.
• Clearly communicate business, margin, markdown, and inventory opportunities to cross-functional teams and leadership.

Qualifications:

• 10+ years of successful experience in retail buying or merchandising with at least 5+ years in a leadership role within an omnichannel retail environment
• Proven experience leading the product development process within a startup or emerging brand
• Successful apparel merchandising experience, at the director level, in multiple channels of distribution
• Strong ability to build business strategies and implement shorter-term tactical plans that are cost-effective, efficient and realistic
• Proven successful leadership developing high performing talent and teams
• Demonstrated ability to problem-solve, develop creative solutions and influence and motivate diverse audiences
• Comprehensive understanding of the retail industry, macro and micro market, product and customer trends
• Successful experience with large scale apparel brands managing > $100M
• Strong interpersonal skills; excellent written and verbal communication including presentation skills
• Experience working with a wholesale channel
• Must be comfortable with travel ~20%

Diversity & Inclusion:

At AKIRA we believe that treating everyone in a first-class manner is essential to fostering an inclusive environment that reflects our values and our community. This is deeply rooted in our company's principles, culture, and fashion. We continuously strive to cultivate a company where employees feel a sense of belonging and contribute to a culture that values differences, ideas, and experiences. Our unique workforce is directly linked to our success and makes us stronger collectively.

Benefits and Perks:

AKIRA offers competitive benefits for full time employees, including Medical, Dental, Vision, Pet, Life, LTD, FSA/HSA/Dependent Care FSA, Flex Transit (CTA), 401(k), and employee discount. We are committed to encouraging internal development and providing significant career enrichment opportunities. Most importantly, what has propelled AKIRA's growth and success over the years has been the dynamic culture within the company - if you're filled with passion, have a strong desire to get things done, and if you want to go to a place where you know your work matters and where you can implement your ideas and decisions, then AKIRA just might be the place for you.

Job Type: Full Time