Director of Merchandising

This is a full-time, in-office, player-coach leadership role reporting to the VP of Purchasing. You will own the end-to-end sourcing and buying strategy — from vendor identification and negotiation through assortment planning, pricing, and inventory performance. The role sits at the intersection of supply, demand, and margin: you help decide what we buy, who we buy it from, what we pay, and how much we carry.

About the Company

2nd Swing is a forward-thinking, customer-centric golf retail company. Employees are highly valued, working in a positive and supportive culture with vast exposure to the golf industry, a commitment to total well-being, opportunities to discover your fit and make an impact, and a collaborative and flexible environment.

Responsibilities

• Team Leadership & Performance
  • Lead, coach, and develop a team of buying and sourcing professionals
  • Establish the team's KPI framework — set targets, define measurement methodology, and build the scorecards and dashboards that make performance visible
• Budget, Planning & Analytics
  • Own the annual category budget — revenue, gross margin, inventory investment, and cost-savings targets — and manage performance against it throughout the year
  • Build and maintain the open-to-buy plan by category, aligned to sales forecasts and financial targets; reforecast monthly and quarterly as demand, supply, and cost conditions shift
  • Design and maintain the reporting infrastructure the team runs on: category dashboards, vendor scorecards, sell-through and margin reporting, and cost-savings tracking
  • Translate analysis into recommendations — identify the trend, size the opportunity or risk, and bring a decision-ready point of view to leadership
• Vendor & Supply Management
  • Identify, negotiate, and onboard new suppliers; maintain a diversified vendor base that balances cost, quality, lead time, and risk
  • Monitor supplier performance against scorecard metrics (fill rate, on-time delivery, defect rate, chargebacks) and drive corrective action where needed
  • Proactively manage supply risk — single-source exposure, tariff and duty changes, capacity constraints, and lead-time volatility
• Assortment, Pricing & Inventory
  • Develop assortment strategy: good/better/best structure, price-point architecture, breadth vs. depth, and exclusive or private-label opportunities
  • Set pricing, markdown, and clearance strategy with Finance and Merchandising, and execute cost-savings initiatives against target
  • Analyze sell-through, attach rates, and category trends to inform reorders, expansions, and discontinuations; partner with Merchandising and Marketing on launches and promotional calendars
  • Manage inventory to balance in-stock service targets against carrying cost and aged-inventory exposure; partner with Distribution and Store Operations on allocation, replenishment, and new-store opening buys
• Process & Project Execution
  • Break complex initiatives into workstreams with named owners, dependencies, and milestone dates; escalate blockers before they become delays
  • Drive process improvement across the buying function — reduce manual work, tighten cycle times, improve PO accuracy, lead-time reliability, and data integrity at the source
  • Identify where processes and systems are breaking down, then partner with Development and Operations to scope, prioritize, and see fixes through to implementation and adoption
  • Maintain project documentation and standardized playbooks so repeatable work becomes repeatable, not reinvented

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain Management, Merchandising, Finance, or a related field required
• 7+ years in buying, sourcing, or category management, including 3+ years managing a team
• Demonstrated ownership of a category budget or P&L — annual planning, forecasting, and variance management
• Track record of building KPIs and scorecards and using them to drive accountability and measurable improvement
• Success negotiating supplier agreements and delivering measurable cost savings or margin improvement
• Strong analytical skills — advanced Excel, comfort with large data sets — and experience with ERP or purchasing systems (NetSuite, SAP, Oracle, Dynamics)
• Proven project management capability, leading multi-stakeholder initiatives from scope through delivery
• Active, knowledgeable golfer who understands the major OEM brands and what separates one club from another; we'll teach the industry mechanics to the right buyer

Preferred Qualifications

• Golf industry experience — buying, merchandising, or fitting at a retailer, OEM, green-grass shop, or distributor
• Pre-owned, trade-in, or recommerce sourcing and grading
• Retail, e-commerce, or omnichannel background — or another enthusiast hard-goods category where product expertise drives the sale
• Experience using BI and planning tools

Physical Requirements

• This is a full-time, in-office role — on-site at our corporate office; remote and hybrid arrangements are not available
• Regular use of a computer and phone in an office setting
• Ability to thrive in a very fast-paced, constantly changing environment where priorities shift and decisions are made with incomplete information
• Occasional time in warehouse, distribution center, or retail store environments
• Domestic travel up to 25%, including some overnight and weekend travel for trade shows and vendor visits

Benefits

• Paid Time Off and Holidays
• 401k with eligible company match
• Health Insurance
• HSA/FSA options
• Discounted Merchandise
• Continued Training and Development

Pay

Annual Salary of $110,000 - $160,000 depending on qualifications