Planner | Retail | Watsons Dubai

Established in the 1930s as a trading business, Al-Futtaim Group today is one of the most diversified and progressive, privately held regional businesses headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Structured into five operating divisions; automotive, financial services, real estate, retail and healthcare; employing more than 35,000 employees across more than 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, Al-Futtaim Group partners with over 200 of the world's most admired and innovative brands. Al-Futtaim Group’s entrepreneurship and relentless customer focus enables the organisation to continue to grow and expand; responding to the changing needs of our customers within the societies in which we operate.

By upholding our values of respect, excellence, collaboration and integrity; Al-Futtaim Group continues to enrich the lives and aspirations of our customers each and every day.

Overview of the role

Manages OTB, stock, sales and margin at detailed level to maximise sales and minimise inventory levels.

What you will do

Delivering Top Line Performance and Profitability

1. Sets overall guidelines for margin by product area and ensures processes are established to analyse margin deviation.
2. Forecast weekly sales and margin by store and region highlighting risks and opportunities.
3. Manages markdown and promotional strategies to ensure margin is maintained to achieve bottom line.
4. Manages and owns Good/ Better/ Best pricing strategies.
5. Drives the Business Planning process for the brand to arrive at the budgeted sales & Margin (BP).

Manages OTB, inventory levels and stock turn

1. Oversee full OTB process, sell through and markdown policy. Analytical and proactively manages sales, inventory and margin through effective range planning.
2. Provides accurate OTB plans for each category maximising sell through.
3. Forecasts intakes in line with OTB to give an accurate picture of weekly stockholding by brand.
4. Manages and creates category planning.
5. Manages store clustering and distribution of stock to stores.
6. Creates, manages and maintains MSSI/ WSSI reports.
7. Manages monthly intake and timely deliveries in accordance with the brand and Market.
8. Ensures all markets have optimum inventory levels at any given point of time.
9. Manages the stock profile to ensure that aged inventory is kept to a minimum.

Works in conjunction with buying team to develop effective, profitable assortment range. Collaborates with Financial Planner to forecast budgets and latest estimates by region and store. Builds and manages the range plans in conjunction with buying ensuring OTB is controlled. Works closely with other departments including Buying, Retail, VM, Operations and Wholesale to ensure the product offer is optimised at all times and sales opportunities are maximised. Collaborate with Marketing, Operations and the Brand teams to confirm the commercial calendar for all brands, which would include all key promotions in line with the markdown strategy. Provide support and direction to the allocators / admin assistants and groom them to become future managers in the organization. Provide periodic updates to the relevant stakeholders and conduct recurrent stakeholder meetings to ensure effective relationship and align with their expectation.

SAP Inventory Management & Reporting

1. Ensure that SAP is maintained and is regularly operating effectively from an inventory point of view.
2. Develop and publish reports which will give accurate and reliable information to the management and facilitate decision making.
3. Support expansion by providing sales estimates and ensuring the availability of a proper stock package.
4. Understand gaps in the existing inventory control process & take corrective action to address these gaps in a timely manner.
5. Assist with the development and enforcement of robust inventory/ stock policies, procedures (SOPs) and ensure that the replenishment system in SAP is operating efficiently.

Required skills to be successful

Strategic planning and analytical skills, All Microsoft Office Programs and knowledge of retail systems.

Behavioural Competencies: Strong communication skills, confident decision maker, leadership skills, collaborations, managing complexity, influencing others, taking initiative, engaging leadership, developing talent, drive for results and delighting our customer and is a strategic thinker. Keeps up to date with the latest trends and brands, Strong sales focus and eager to learn.

What equips you for the role

Minimum Qualifications and Knowledge:
College or University level graduate.

Minimum Experience:
Retail and fashion experience is preferred.

We’re here to provide excellent service but a little help from you can ensure a five-star candidate experience from start to finish.

Before you click “apply”: Please read the job description carefully to ensure you can confidently demonstrate why this opportunity is right for you and take the time to put together a well-crafted and personalised CV to further boost your visibility. Our global Talent Acquisition team members are all assigned to specific businesses to ensure that we make the best matches between talent and opportunities. We not only consider the requisite compatibility of skills and behaviours, but also how candidates align with our Values of Respect, Integrity, Collaboration, and Excellence.

As part of our candidate experience promise, we also want to make ourselves available to you throughout the application process. We make every effort to review and respond to every application.