Planning Manager | Retail | UAE

About Al-Futtaim

Role Overview

Strategic and Merchandise Planning

• Direct the development, execution, and communication of strategic merchandise financial plans.
• Partner with Buying and Operations teams on forecasting, assortment, and inventory strategies.
• Manage six-month seasonal merchandise plans and guide Planners in their development and presentation.
• Review and approve buy and reorder quantities to optimize assortment, sales, and margin.

Inventory and Business Reporting

• Oversee receipts and inventory against targeted weeks-of-supply objectives.
• Collaborate with Merchandising to optimize receipt flow and gross margin.
• Manage markdown and promotional strategies to mitigate aged inventory.
• Manage Monthly Business Reviews and present top-line results and forecasts.
• Create Conceptual Assortment Plans and prepare department overviews and monthly hindsight recaps.

Cross-Channel and Team Leadership

• Direct Planners to maintain optimal inventory across channels and serve customer needs.
• Guide Weekly Unit Plans and Key Item programs and apply lessons from trend responsiveness.
• Travel to stores to observe merchandise performance and build team relationships.
• Oversee sales performance and take corrective actions as needed.

Required Skills

• Strong analytical and financial skills for translating data into actionable insights.
• Team leadership and people management capabilities.
• Commercial acumen related to sales, margin, and inventory.
• Proficiency in merchandise planning systems and Excel-based analysis.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration or a related field.
• At least 5 years of experience in a retail planning role.
• Demonstrated team leadership experience of 2 to 4 years is preferred.

About Al-Futtaim Retail