Merchandiser - Clothing

In a nutshell

Drive the department to deliver great product at supermarket price by fulfilling our Global Sourcing Strategy and successfully achieve our targets of the department

What I need to Know

·        Understand UK performance and immediate commercial priorities from weekly trade, proactively respond to trading needs in stock management and supply base requirements

·        Attend season intent and understand the season strategy; identify sourcing priorities in collaboration with your Sourcing Manager and Buying and Merchandising peers and support the strategy development process

·        Join selective development trips (physical or remote) to lead price negotiations

·        Support the development process for continuity product with the Buying and Global Design team

·        Negotiating prices on behalf of our business with direct and indirect suppliers across categories of responsibility; consolidate prices from the region and maintain accurate initial and final quote sheets and submit to relevant Buying teams

·        Obtain and leverage open cost sheets for all mandatory styles in line with our criteria

·        Support the Sourcing Manager in negotiating lead times and capacity with suppliers and provide UK colleagues with periodic visibility of available capacity in our key sites

·        Initiate the sourcing process for direct and indirect suppliers for relevant products; pre-vet factories; manage the supplier set up process and maintain an accurate database of suppliers in the region

·        Manage the critical path and production status management with direct and indirect suppliers across the region engaging with Origin Supply Chain to support the timely handover of goods

·        Understand the WSSI meeting outputs for my area and commercial dynamics; negotiate deferral of orders or pull forward orders with suppliers

·        Run progress meetings with my UK Merchandising colleagues independently

·        Provide solutions to critical path and production challenges ensuring all critical deadlines are met and robust progress meetings are in place

·        Coordinate sourcing activity between the Far East and the Near East through engagement with teams across our four offices in Asia

·        You will have a clear understanding of our Clothing Strategy and our Global Sourcing Strategy and write goals and objectives contribute to these

·        Achieve commercial objectives for margin rate improvement and cost of goods reduction; deliver great availability through on time delivery; buying areas achieve their sales and profit targets

·        Source value adding direct and indirect suppliers on a timely basis in line with the departmental strategy

·        Develop strong working relationships with team members in UK Merchandising and Buying

·        Embrace smarter working with colleagues in the wider Sourcing, Technical and in the Global Design teams

·        Follow operational procedures to achieve great results

·        Lead own development and champion Diversity & Inclusion within broader business. I actively embrace the Valued Behaviours.

·        Play your part in making Sainsbury’s a great place to work

What I need to know

·        Able to articulate a clear interest in sourcing, merchandising and production. Developing knowledge of production processes, techniques, and product components. Understand the levers that drive lead times for the different regions and products worked on

·        A developing awareness of the different cultures that I interact with

·        I can read commercial reports and I understand basic commercial metrics such as cover and have the confidence to learn new systems

·        Relevant education background, preferably a degree in fashion textiles or any business discipline

·        Excellent business written and spoken English and Mandarin

What I need to show

Our Valued Behaviours: Our Valued Behaviours are our common DNA that every colleague should live by, providing the benchmark for how we deliver our goals and individual contributions, and how we relate to other colleagues in the organization.

Own it

• Deliver a wide range of tasks, and take ownership for solving problems that you identify
• Actively share your thoughts and are prepared to challenge others in a positive way
• Use business context and other information sources to make decisions
• Regularly review your goals with your line manager

Make it better

• Open minded and try new ways of doing things, making things simpler where possible
• Adaptable and respond positively when circumstances change
• Show curiosity about the business beyond your immediate role
• Seek feedback from those you work with and understand your strengths and development areas
• Provide regular fair and accurate feedback to others

Be human

• Ask questions to understand where others are coming from. Show care and respect for how others are feeling and provide support to those around you
• Listen and ask questions about the needs and motivations of others to build effective relationships
• Regularly gather customer feedback and use this insight to continuously improve the customer experience

At Sainsbury’s we want to be a truly inclusive retailer, where every one of our colleagues can fulfil their potential, and where all our customers feel welcome when they shop with us. By truly embracing differences we can create a more inclusive workplace for every colleague, regardless of their background. Find out more about diversity, equity and inclusion (D,E&I) at Sainsbury’s, and the difference that you can make - https://about.sainsburys.co.uk/

We understand how important work life balance is and the benefits this brings for you, your role and our business. At Sainsbury’s Argos Asia we have a Working more flexibly policy in place to enable you to choose the best environment to get your job done productively. Exactly how you work will vary from role to role and between teams, depending on the nature of your work and specific goals. You will be able to manage your time better and concentrate on your wellbeing, giving you time to exercise, spend time with your family and friends when it matters or just to simply recharge your batteries.