Merchandising Director

About TESO Group

Founded in 2017 and headquartered in New York, TESO Group is a rapidly growing Asian lifestyle retail group in the United States. Its portfolio includes TESO Life, its flagship general merchandise retail brand; TESO X, a collectible toy retail concept; TESO Mini, an Asian convenience store concept; and proprietary brands including MONKIMON and O’HOMNI.

The Group currently operates 35 stores across 14 states, with another 67 locations under construction or in development, and aims to open more than 300 stores by 2030. Its product categories include beauty, snacks, collectible toys, home goods, stationery, and pet products, serving more than 450,000 customers per month.

Position Overview

Oversee beauty, snacks, collectible toys, everyday lifestyle merchandise, and other approved expansion categories. Lead domestic and international sourcing, brand partnerships, OEM product development, and overall merchandising operations.

Job Responsibilities

1. Merchandising Strategy and Category Architecture: Develop annual and quarterly merchandising strategies, defining category roles, price tiers, SKU breadth and depth, and a balanced assortment of traffic-driving, profit-generating, brand-building, and innovative products.
2. Brand Acquisition and Purchasing: Oversee supplier sourcing and qualification, commercial negotiations—including pricing, payment terms, minimum order quantities, returns and exchanges, and rebates—purchasing plans, and order fulfillment.
3. OEM, Private-Label, and Exclusive Product Development: Lead annual product roadmaps, product definitions, target costs, sampling and testing, compliance reviews, mass production, product launches, and post-launch evaluations.
4. Pricing, Gross Margin, and Promotions: Establish pricing structures, target gross margins, price adjustment rules, and promotional plans, and evaluate promotional results.
5. New Product Launches and Lifecycle Management: Manage launch calendars, conduct 30-, 60-, and 90-day performance reviews, and establish processes for discontinuing slow-moving products and retiring SKUs.
6. Inventory Health: Manage inventory turnover, out-of-stock rates, and clearance of products nearing expiration or experiencing slow sales.
7. Merchandising Technology: Define business requirements and acceptance criteria for merchandising dashboards and systems supporting assortment selection, pricing, and automated replenishment.
8. Team Development: Design the team structure, translate business objectives into team goals, provide functional coaching, and standardize SOPs for assortment selection, supplier management, pricing, and promotions.

Qualifications

• At least eight years of experience in retail merchandising, category management, or purchasing, including at least three years of team management experience. Ability to oversee multiple categories and take accountability for business targets.
• Understanding of the U.S. retail market and consumer demand for Asian lifestyle products, with category experience in beauty, food and snacks, collectible toys, or everyday lifestyle merchandise.
• Demonstrated, verifiable achievements in brand acquisition, supplier negotiations, and assortment optimization, supported by specific improvements in sales, gross margin, and inventory performance.
• End-to-end OEM or private-label project experience covering product definition, costing, design, sampling, quality, production, and launch, with the ability to coordinate compliance reviews.
• Proficiency in Excel, merchandising and inventory systems, and business analytics tools. Ability to implement practical applications of data and AI in business processes, along with budget management skills.
• Fluency in English and Mandarin Chinese, with the ability to conduct business communication, commercial negotiations, and supplier collaboration in both languages.
• Ability to work at the New York headquarters and travel as business needs require.

Preferred Qualifications

• Merchandising management experience across multiple store formats or regions within a retail chain.
• Established Asian supplier networks or cross-border sourcing experience.

Compensation

• $130,000-$145,000 per year
• Annual Performance Bonus: This position is eligible for an annual performance-based bonus, subject to the eligibility requirements, performance criteria, and terms of the Company's bonus program.

Benefits

• 401(k) & 401(k) matching - subject to the eligibility requirements
• Paid Sick Leave
• Employee discount
• Health insurance
• Paid Time Off

Job Type: Full-time (On-Site)