The Lead Merchant role exists within Nike Direct (Nike’s own retail business) in North America, specifically to serve the SNKRS assortment & business. The role is responsible for setting the Merchandising strategies and Assortment Frameworks for our SNKRS platform. By partnering cross-functionally with Consumer Merchandising, Planning, Site Experience, Allocation, and Marketing – we help bring to market the products that best serve our consumers, enhance our brand, and drive profitable, sustainable growth.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We’re looking for consumerists with a high affinity for product and the culture of sneakers that enjoy the energy of moving at the pace of retail and the consumer. A successful Lead Merchant will thrive and contribute to an inclusive, positive, and progressive team dynamic, as well as manage and lead in a way that elevates the total team.

This role is responsible for driving the NA Nike Direct Digital business: building consumer right assortments, using consumer insights, historical data, analytics and real-time market feedback to advise the future (coming seasons) while winning today (trading real-time)!

The candidate should possess solid retail competence and analytical abilities as well as experience in retail environments, particularly digital commerce. They should understand the cross functional collaboration vital to win at the moment of truth. They should be comfortable overseeing and advising the work of individual contributors within a structured mentor framework, in addition to being a leader among their peers!

• Strong passion and connection to the sneaker community. Ability to translate upcoming trends and coveted franchises to a pull market model that serves our biggest sneaker enthusiasts 

• Provide Nike direct POV on Product Line, Strategic Intent, and Marketplace Insights.

• Drive franchise health across the portfolio, aligned to product strategic intent and lifecycle balance – newness and consistency.

• Influence Geography, Brand, and Platform teams to ensure we are supporting our most important products.

WHAT YOU WILL WORK ON

You will drive the comprehensive offense for NA Nike Direct Digital concepts. You will own the seasonal assortment plan including product, pricing, flow and concept or initiative’s intent. You will understand related aspects of the business and marketplace in making your plans, including coordinating between digital merchants, genders, brands (Nike & Jordan) and how individual products or collections affect each other. You will collaborate cross functionally to ensure assortment plans meet consumer demand and strategies implement in retail.

You’ll build consumer-centric assortment plans with an understanding of Nike Direct Digital platforms position in the market, blending fact-based and intuitive inputs. You will participate in seasonal reviews, submits and trading for your respective area. This includes assortment building and submits working with Associate Merchants and system entry. Lead Merchants may also lead projects across teams or topics.

You will balance multiple seasons and your insights will contribute to future seasonal plans and adoption by supporting Gender Merchandising Leadership upstream (10%). You will manage your areas of assortment planning in depth during the seasonal process (70%) and gather insights from and support optimal trading of in-market seasons (20%).

You will be a leader through captaining critical initiatives and moments across functions as well as aligning the team on standard processes. In addition, you will be responsible for training, coaching and mentoring Merchant II individual development.

WHO YOU WILL WORK WITH

We work closely with fellow merchants and cross-functional teams within Nike Direct; in particular Stores Merchandising, Planning, Allocation, and Site Experience & Marketing. We also work with finance, operations and the insights/analytics teams; relying on business reporting for your area which includes quantitative and qualitative metrics on sales, inventory and consumer behaviors.

WHAT YOU BRING

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent combination of education and experience 

• 4 years experience in footwear or apparel merchandising, product creation and/or retail in a vertical, multi-brand or digital environment

• Strong affinity for current market trends for Her and how Nike apparel can continue to be a style leader in the marketplace

• Footwear, Apparel, Equipment or relevant consumer product merchandising experience

• Strong command of common retail and/or digital profit-based metrics such as sell-through, turn, ASP, UPT and others

• Ability to contribute to and drive thinking into breakthrough strategies

• Ability to demonstrate leadership among peer group, inclusive of coaching and mentoring of teammates

We are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment for all employees and job applicants. We offer a number of accommodations to complete our interview process including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible and single location for in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications as needed. If you discover, as you navigate our application process, that you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please complete the Candidate Accommodation Request Form.