Role Purpose:
To work with the production merchandising team and wider business to plan, deliver and trade product ranges, tailored to the target customer, establishing and maintaining a clear brand positioning that sets to achieve and exceed sales plans and expectation. Managing the critical path and product life cycle, working effectively and efficiently, to ensure a smooth and consistent running of the brands.
The Company:
A leading UK-based manufacturer specialising in the development, formulation, and supply of fine fragrance, as well as a wide range of health, beauty, and personal care products.
Responsibilities:
- Manage UK and Far East suppliers to deliver a smooth flow of product into the business/customers.
- Demonstrate strong negotiation skills to achieve and maintain target margin.
- Demonstrate technical knowledge and an understanding of supplier capabilities. Able to source original samples with suppliers based on their production strengths.
- Building relationships with accounts/brands – gain insights from brands (trading reactions, holding stock etc).
- Product & Packaging Development – Improving on speed to market.
- Attend and present in department meetings where appropriate to gain exposure to management teams.
- Manage project trackers, being directly accountable for accuracy.
- Undertake competition shops to ensure aware of competitors ranges and to look for NPD. Collate and present market trends, competitor strategy, emerging product areas.
- Takes an active role in coaching and training junior team members.
- Aware of and embodies the Laurelle DNA, and can influence this across their team and the wider business. Helps to create a positive working environment for all colleagues.
- Demonstrate the ability to develop good cross-functional relationships at Laurelle; with design, logistics, accounts, warehouse and sales teams.
- Develop product which is inline with the customer profile, brand identity and requirements. Following product development through from initial concept to completion & delivery.
- Prepare information required for internal and external meetings & development trips. Take responsibility and accountability for making sure all information is accurate & follow up with implementation and tracking of relevant actions.
- Liaising with all necessary departments to ensure clear and accurate sharing of information.
- Work with own initiative and as part of the wider team.
- Oversees the management of the below or undertakes themselves:
- Update spreadsheets and databases with the critical order information.
- Updating the critical path and chasing daily to ensure orders run to schedule, anticipating and managing risks.
- Manage shipment schedules for your product.
- Monitor the delivery dates and bookings for deliveries to customers.
- Responsible for managing the raising and maintaining of purchase orders and sales orders on Sage & MANU.
- Creating and updating the business and necessary departments on internal production requirements.
- Monitoring of sales and production planning on core lines and chasing for repeats.
- Action and maintaining the PIFF for all products on customer portals or on our own drive.
- Ensuring customer contracts are completed when orders are agreed.
Skills, qualifications and experience:
- Ideally educated to degree level or equivalent, in academic or fashion subject and or relevant experience.
- Competent numerical skills for negotiation and trading.
- Fully understand the impact of all range decisions on margin % and value for the business.
- Good working ability with relevant IT systems (Microsoft Office).
- Strong and developed understanding of the retail market, fashion trends and brand positioning, both UK and internationally.
- Strong interpersonal skills, a good assertive influencer with the ability to communicate and present, competently and clearly.
- Strong organisational and task management skills, with the ability to manage own workload and oversee the work of others.