Senior Director of Planning & Allocation

Started in 1989, Duluth Trading Company exists to enable hard-working individuals to take on life with their own two hands. Folks that revel in doing it the hard way and celebrate finding a better way. We seek talented individuals who share these beliefs and are excited to further the Duluth Trading legacy with a digital-first mindset, always moving forward and always innovating.

From ingenious Duluth workwear, to comfortably capable Buck Naked Underwear, to outside-embracing AKHG, to meticulously built and sourced Best Made, it’s all about the innovative gear and gadgets that equip customers for a more hands-on way of life.

Top-notch quality, immersive storytelling, outstanding customer service, and the shared belief that the go-all-in-and-dig-deep spirit exists with everyone are what sets Duluth Trading Co. apart. We seek talented folks looking to be part of a can-do team that’s hellbent on helping the world to gear up, get its hands dirty, and do.

Work Environment:

At Duluth Trading Company, we fundamentally believe in strong in-person interactions, as our culture thrives when we learn, create, and collaborate with each other. We also believe that the future of work at Duluth Trading Company includes flexibility. The position will be based in our corporate headquarters, near Madison, WI, but it will offer a hybrid work arrangement allowing the flexibility to work a couple of days a week from home.

What You’ll Do:

Planning

Manage Duluth Trading’s multi-brand and omnichannel sales planning process to drive results in sell-throughs, gross margin, inventory turns and GMROI

Create and drive execution of long-range financial targets that deliver on company goals and maximize sales and profitability

Oversee the creation of pre-season, Category and Gender sales, inventory and GM plans that align with Duluth’s financial goals and open-to-buy constraints

Work closely with the FP&A team on annual budgeting and seasonal re-forecasting processes to provide visibility on sales, margin, turn and growth drivers

Collaborate with the FP&A, Merchandising and Marketing teams to determine downstream implications of published sales forecasts

Promote a vision for the function that drives SKU and category-level sales forecasting accuracy

Report key assumptions, building blocks and forecast methodology to the leadership team, along with insights and recommendations

Foster and maintain deep cross-functional partnerships and provide meaningful analysis and insights regarding assortment performance and opportunities

Develop root cause analysis and countermeasures for forecasting accuracy issues by SKU, category, channel and sub-brand

Leverage forecasting methodologies to drive improvements in planning efficiency and effectiveness

Collaborate with cross-functional partners to evaluate historical performance and set short, mid, and long-term strategic plans for existing and new product categories

Leverage historical data to identify key learnings around product, pricing and inventory and apply learnings to future seasons

Oversee and disseminate in-season sales and profitability performance reporting to management and cross-functional partners

Recommend promotional pricing that maximizes sales and margin and balances inventory

Inventory, Allocation & Replenishment

Design inventory strategies that balance the composition of new and core merchandise and support in-stock and inventory level targets by store regions and warehouse locations

Ensure vendor partnership agreements are executed, active and maintained for all vendors

Manage the placement and acceptance of purchase orders, ensuring the timely ordering of products to support Duluth’s key selling seasons by channel

Partner with the FC operations team in determining the proper allocation of inventory across Duluth’s retail and warehouse network

Leverage historical data to identify key learnings around product, pricing and inventory and apply learnings to future seasons

Perform in-season item-level forecasting and ad-hoc analysis to identify inventory-related risks and opportunities

Work closely with warehouse operations and retail store teams to monitor incoming shipments and the flow of products throughout the network

Leadership

Illustrate a deep understanding of the financial indicators of an apparel brand, translating the insights into competitive differentiating results. Show data-driven, highly analytical thinking

Be a strong coach and mentor to the team and help prioritize workflows to meet core objectives

Be a champion of change management and process improvement through leadership that identifies opportunities and allocates resources to drive efficiencies and improve accuracy and best practices.

Work to align cross-functional teams on inputs, outputs, KPIs and accountabilities needed to effectively manage the business and run weekly/monthly sales review process

Proactively design and pursue technology needs to support effective and efficient forecasts, buys and product flow for all channels of the business

Ensure the department/staff is adhering to company policies and procedures

What We’re Looking For:

Bachelor’s Degree in marketing, merchandising, business management or related field – or comparable years of experience

5+ years of leadership experience with multiple direct reports

7+ years of analytical experience and leading large-scale projects/initiatives

7+ years of experience in inventory management and/or inventory planning and forecasting

Experience in retail and e-commerce preferred

Experience with direct vendor negotiation preferred

Experience leading and collaborating with a team and/or cross-functional team to support a corporate initiative

Proficient in key merchandising and planning systems and processes (Excel, EP/OTB, Incorta, Product Life Cycle Management)

Ability to work effectively across internal and external organizations

Team leadership and development

Leading Agile project management, strong project and change management abilities and experience

Results and solution oriented

Strong understanding of merchandising and planning roles to help lead change, process improvement, and create efficiencies

Excellent communications skills, with strong critical thinking and attention to detail.

Ability to effectively prioritize workload, meet deadlines, and succeed in a constantly adapting environment.

Competency in process documentation and clearly defining standard operating procedures

Duluth Headquarters Benefits and Perks

As we continue to grow Duluth Trading Company and its house of brands, the perks have perked up, too. We’ve boosted an already impressive benefits package to include:

12-week full-pay parental leave, paid holiday time for the important observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth, and more! Why’d we go all out? Because our pursuit of a better way means that when it comes to great talent, better perks are a given.

Compensation Range:

$170,000 - $195,000/year

Compensation is based on several factors including but not limited to education, work experience, certifications, etc.

The responsibilities outlined in this position description are a guideline for the general duties of the position and are not exhaustive of all duties inherent in the job. Duluth Trading Company is an equal opportunity employer.