Merchant - Footwear & Accessories - Men's

About the role

The Merchant, Footwear & Accessories (3rd Party Collaborations) is a key merchant role on the J.Crew men's team, responsible for owning the end-to-end product strategy for our footwear and accessories categories. This role blends creative vision with analytical rigor, partnering closely with Design, Planning, Marketing, Visual, and our third-party buying team to bring compelling assortments to life both in-house and through strategic brand collaborations that resonate with the J.Crew customer.

Responsibilities

• Understand trend analysis, competition, and translate trend to commercial big ideas, identifying the next big thing
• Present pre-season strategy to cross-functional team
• Partner with planning to strategize budget and departmental opportunities
• Analyze seasonal and hindsight information, trends, product assortment, and competition to develop the strategy
• Build Roadmap for design articulating newness needs by month with AUC targets, as well as clear direction on carry forward products (where updates or new colors are needed)
• Market research: analyzing branded menswear space, identifying trends and new upcoming brand opportunities
• Present pre-season brand matrix strategies in collaboration with planning teams & 3rd party buyers
• In Season: Approve product fit and details on key products/buys and ensure product execution meets the design aesthetic as well as commercially acceptable quality standards
• Drive partnership with planning and allocation on reviewing sales, receipts, markdown cadence and style color counts
• Analyze the competitive environment and use knowledge to positively impact results, making recommendations to leadership
• Utilize product strategies and analytical results to plan all merchandise buys, in accordance to budget, for each quarter and present the line at assortment and investment reviews
• Partner with third-party team on assortment to ensure a cohesive product buys and representation
• Manage PO placement & open-to-buys for branded partnerships
• Evaluate financial and business indicators, evaluate reports and translate the data into actionable information to drive results
• Communicate big brand collaboration initiatives to cross functional partners and be a conduit between buying and marketing teams

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in a merchant or buying role within Men's apparel, footwear, accessories, or fashion retail
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to translate data into clear, actionable strategies
• Strong business acumen with a demonstrated understanding of retail financial metrics and buying principles
• Self-motivated, highly organized, and comfortable managing multiple priorities simultaneously
• High taste level with a genuine passion for fashion and an eye for trend-right, commercially viable product
• Proven cross-functional collaboration skills with the ability to influence and partner across design, planning, and marketing teams

Preferred Experience

• Experience in Men's footwear, accessories, or third-party buying, with familiarity across brand partnerships and collaboration strategy
• Bachelor's degree in Fashion Merchandising, Business, or a related field is a plus, but not required

Benefits + Perks

• Health & Well-being: Eligible associates and family members receive medical, dental, prescription and vision insurance, family planning (fertility, adoption & surrogacy support), fitness discounts, medical travel and more.
• Associate Discount: We love our products just as much as you do! That’s why we offer a great associate discount across all of our brands (J.Crew, J.Crew Factory, and Madewell).
• Summer Fridays: In addition to our hybrid work model, we also close our office at 1:00 PM every Friday during the Summer months.
• Community Impact: We support the communities where we live and work through our philanthropic efforts and the J.Crew Cares Program.
• Winter Break: In addition to our PTO package, J.Crew Group offers a winter break at the end of December to eligible full-time associates at the Home Office to provide time to refresh and recharge.

Pay

$86,400.00 - $111,700.00

Schedule

Hybrid Work Model