Merchant - Concessions Europe

Claire's are recruiting a commercially-minded Merchant to join the business on a 12 month fixed-term contract to cover maternity leave.

The 'Merchant' role at Claire's is a hybrid Buying and Merchandising role. It therefore requires a creative individual with a love for the product, but also someone who is extremely analytical and commercially-minded.

The role will take responsibility for managing the range assortment and merchandising process for a selection of retail partners that operate within the Grocery sector across Europe

The Consumer Products business at Claire's is growing at a phenomenal rate and is presenting some fabulous opportunities for Claire's. This role requires an individual who thrives in a fast paced and changing environment and is comfortable dealing with a range of internal and external stakeholders.

This role can be offered on a hybrid basis working 2-3 days a week from our European HQ in Birmingham.

Role Objectives:

• Drive partner relevant assortments to excite the Claire's & external consumers across multi country, current and future partners


• Ensure commercially sound buy investments to drive strong comp & new store growth


• Comprehensively understand the relevant business sector to formulate winning strategies (pricing, product, competition etc.)


• Agility to trade business through consistently evolving environments - analyse & report on sku & partner performance in season, drive tactical decisions to maximise trade, assess new product opportunities to support incremental growth


• Be part of establishing ways of working within a new Channel within the wider Brand - formulating ideas, solutions & processes to enable and unlock new business growth, Own product & investment strategies for leading retailers within the Grocery sector formulating building blocks that can drive comp and new store growth


• Partner with European Sales counterparts to build commercially viable strategies to drive the Claire's business within external Concessions partners


• Partner with other Merchants to drive cohesive brand handwriting across sectors & Concessions partners, finding synergies & learnings to win


• Formulate and analyse comprehensive data to make informed decisions regarding assortment, investment & trading - report back on a monthly & seasonal basis with action plan to drive revenue growth


• Understand the mind-set of the Claire's consumer as well as external partners through comprehensive market & competitor understanding, in conjunction with business wide trends & performance


• Build brand relevant, partner relevant assortments to drive velocity - focusing on improving stock turn, and maximising margin


• Ensure strong in-store execution in conjunction with Concessions & ISP teams through building visually compelling ranges, that mirror consumer needs


• Ability to drive new processes and tools from start to finish


• Establish & drive key KPIs alongside Planning & Inventory partner


• Lead, develop & coach a direct report


What are we looking for?

To be considered for this role we are keen to speak to applicants with the following background and skills profile


• Balance of analytics & creativity


• Innovative & open minded individual


• Proactive & solution oriented


• High degree of agility to navigate constantly evolving environments


• Excellent communication skills & ability to partner across a wide number of stakeholders


• Team player with the ability to flex from independent working to partnership & collaboration


Profile:


• Analytical buyers/merchants from selection backgrounds/account managers with merchant backgrounds (not supplier/design facing)


• Consumer-led, multi-channel organisations


• Strong European acumen desired


• Understands trends and consumer behaviours, with analytical ability to turn into commercial output


• Strong foundational merchandising knowledge


• Ability to work in the detail to drive results and decisions


• 5+ years' experience