Category Assortment Planner

About the role

As a family company, we serve people and communities. When you work at Meijer, you’re provided with career and community opportunities centered around leadership, personal growth and development.

Responsibilities

• Develop comprehensive category assortment plans based on market analysis, sales data, and consumer trends.
• Identify product gaps and opportunities within the current assortment.
• Collaborate with buyers and merchandisers to select products that align with the company's strategic objectives.
• Balance the mix of products to ensure a diverse and appealing assortment for customers.
• Conduct and deliver space-to-sales analytics to meet shelf availability customer metrics, including item capacity and inventory management.
• Build physical test sets to showcase changes at shelf.
• Produce core planogram recommendations.
• Govern category transition milestones.
• Facilitate implementation of market research to understand industry trends, competitive landscape, and customer preferences.
• Analyze household performance data to identify top-performing products and categories.
• Monitor and report on market changes that could impact product assortment.
• Effectively manage key milestones of transition planning with buying partners.
• Partner with the buying team to enable customer-centric assortments, delivering against company OSA metrics set by senior management.
• Work closely with marketing teams to support promotional strategies that align with the assortment plan.
• Partner with supply chain teams to ensure timely and efficient product delivery.
• Coordinate with visual merchandising to ensure in-store and online displays align with the assortment strategy.
• Track and analyze the performance of the assortment plan, including sales, margin, and inventory metrics.
• Make data-driven recommendations for adjustments to the assortment plan based on performance analysis.
• Prepare and present regular reports on assortment performance to senior management.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Merchandising, or a related field.
• 3+ years of experience in merchandising, buying, or category management.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret sales data and market trends.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Proficiency in assortment planning and merchandising software.
• Demonstrated strength in presenting to varying levels of leadership.
• Detail-oriented with strong organizational and project management skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple priorities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in the retail industry, preferably in a similar category planning role.
• Knowledge of consumer behavior and retail market dynamics.
• Advanced proficiency in Excel and other data analysis tools.
• Experience with omnichannel retail strategies.
• Familiarity with data solutions such as Nielsen, IRI, dunnhumby, and Placr.ai.

Benefits

• Meijer Rewards
• Weekly pay
• Scheduling flexibility
• Paid parental leave
• Paid education assistance
• Team member discount
• Development programs for advancement and career growth