Associate Merchant

**Department**: Merchandising

**Reports to**: Senior Merchant, Veilance

**Location**:North Vancouver, BC

**Your Opportunity at ARC’TERYX**:
As an Associate Merchant - Veilance, your support in the execution of profitable product line assortments for our Veilance product aligns with the strategy (as delivered by the Senior Merchant), supports our company goals, consumer needs, and focuses on brand opportunities to bring innovative solutions to market.

**Meet your future team**:
The Merchandising team is responsible for delivering the seasonal product line that supports the overall Design creative direction while driving company sales, gross margin, and inventory productivity goals in both our wholesale and vertical channels. This high performing team works closely with the Design and Product Creation Development teams to create future seasonal line plans, and partners with the Merchandise Planning and Allocations (MP&A) teams to maximize in-season sales performance.

**If you were the Associate Merchant now, here are some of the core activities you would be doing**:
- Maintaining data integrity of the product line management systems to ensure merchant strategy is accurately reflected in the appropriate information system
- Supporting the execution of the merchandising strategy for your assigned product category to deliver on our 5-year brand vision, sales, gross margin and inventory productivity goals in partnership with the Merchandising and Planning teams across all global business channels
- Contributing to the management of the product lifecycle for each model, from development to commercialization to eventual redesign, replacement or retirement
- Supporting our overall strategic direction on seasonal selling plans, supporting our overall strategies (grow, diminish, hold, exit, launch, sell-thru vs sell-in)
- Supporting communications with international buying teams to ensure that regional needs are incorporated into the global line plan
- Supporting the product framework and assortment structure that guides merchant execution within retail, wholesale key account and digital channels to maximize sales, profit and global brand positioning
- Supporting the merchants in researching the global marketplace and identifying key consumer and market insights
- Gathering global go-to-market product knowledge, providing global commercial teams and partners with sell-in tools and product information consistently across all channels
- Identifying hangtag and packaging requirements seasonally and work with the Product Creation Development, Design and Marketing teams to ensure the necessary pieces are created
- Working closely with the other Merchants to complete shared tasks, such as hangtag selection, product and material naming, photoshoot direction, sample coordination, etc., in alignment with PLM milestones
- Upholding Fair Labor Association’s Workplace Code of Conduct and Principles of Fair Labor and Responsible Sourcing, throughout the Arc’teryx supply chain

**Here are some things you could be working on in the future**:
- Active participation in cross functional meetings and sample management for key stage gates
- Partnering with the business to prepare for drop review and product presentations
- Partnering with merchants; ideating solutions and taking on the lead role in the merchandise planning process

**Are you our next Associate Merchant?**:
- You have 2-3 years’ of experience in Retail or Customer Service, Merchandising, Product Development, Wholesale and/or Retail Buying roles
- You have operating knowledge of retail math concepts; you are familiar with sell through, calculating cost of goods, and the open to buy process
- You have strong organizational skills and excellent attention to detail
- You effectively manage your time, and you possess strong analytical, presentation and communication skills
- You have strong leadership and teamwork skills, able to help facilitate work across many different internal departments and external key accounts and vendors
- You demonstrate the ability to work well across diverse teams and departments to establish consensus or drive solutions
- You have a strong understanding of the active apparel market within the outdoor industry, and the nuance of Veilance product
- You have an understanding of the design and development process
- You are proficient in the use of Adobe and Microsoft Office (especially PowerPoint and Excel)
- You are willing and able to travel as required (trade shows, key dealer presentations, key vendor meetings, core consumer events, etc.)
- You are proactive in identifying the root cause of issues and developing solutions
- You remain highly flexible and adaptable when faced with ambiguity
- You effectively balance autonomy and collaboration
- You inspire breakthrough thinking and continuous improvement
- You seek the best (sometimes not the easiest) solutions, with an unwavering commitment to do what is right
- Your passion for your