ABOUT OKA
Founded over 25 years ago by three entrepreneurial women with a passion for beautiful, practical and comfortable homes, OKA is more than a furniture and homeware retailer: it is a love affair with living well.
We inspire people to confidently create a home that reflects their personality, a space where nothing should be too precious or perfect to be enjoyed with family and friends. British-born, today we have 13 stores across the UK – and are excited to have recently opened our second store in the US – an established Interior Design and Trade business, a mail-order service, thriving website and an app.
We are currently looking to recruit a Senior Merchandiser, 12 month FTC, to support our Merchandising Team, based at our office in Didcot, Oxfordshire.
We operate a hybrid working model: three or more days from the office, the remainder of the week from home.
Reporting directly to the Merchandising Director
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Commercial Merchandising & Forecasting
· Take ownership of the Weekly Sales, Stock and Intake (WSSI) process, ensuring accurate preparation, forecasting and reporting ahead of key trading and merchandising meetings.
· Work closely with the Merchandising Director to support stock planning, inventory management and the delivery of sales and margin targets.
Wholesale & Key Account Management
· Act as the key merchandising contact for John Lewis, building and maintaining a strong working relationship to support the ongoing success of the partnership.
· Coordinate product selection and range confirmation with John Lewis, ensuring alignment with commercial objectives and stock availability.
· Manage stock packages for new John Lewis store openings, ensuring appropriate product availability and timely delivery.
· Oversee merchandising processes relating to John Lewis in collaboration with the Trade team, ensuring effective communication and coordination.
· Support the management and development of other wholesale partnerships, including GLT, ensuring stock planning and operational requirements are delivered effectively.
· Identify opportunities to improve processes and maximise commercial performance across wholesale channels.
Promotional Planning & Execution
· Take ownership of promotional activity from a merchandising perspective, ensuring promotions are commercially effective and delivered accurately.
· Identify and select appropriate product lines for promotional activity, considering stock levels, sales performance, margin and commercial priorities.
· Manage promotional price uploads, ensuring accuracy and timely implementation across relevant systems and channels.
· Monitor and evaluate promotional performance, providing analysis and recommendations to improve future campaigns.
· Collaborate with Marketing, Ecommerce, Retail and Trade teams to ensure promotional plans are aligned and executed successfully.
Cross-Functional Projects & Commercial Analysis
· Take ownership of ad-hoc cross-departmental projects, ensuring effective planning, communication and delivery against agreed objectives.
· Support new store openings through stock planning, product allocation and coordination with Retail, Trade and Operations teams.
· Manage merchandising requirements for new and existing wholesale partnerships, ensuring smooth implementation and ongoing support.
· Assist the Merchandising Director with cross-departmental commercial analysis, providing meaningful insights to support strategic and operational decisions.
· Prepare reports, presentations and analysis for key stakeholders, highlighting trends, opportunities and areas for improvement.
· Identify and implement opportunities to improve merchandising processes, reporting accuracy and operational efficiency.
· Build strong working relationships across Product Development, Finance, Retail, Ecommerce, Trade and Supply Chain to ensure commercial plans are delivered effectively.
ABOUT YOU
· A strong merchandiser with experience in Luxury retail and or homewares
· A creative, problem-solving spirit
· Passion for the OKA brand
OUR BENEFITS PACKAGE
· 33 days holiday (including bank holiday entitlement), plus Length of Service increases
· Day off for your birthday
· Generous staff discount
· Enhanced Maternity Pay
· Employee Assistance Programme
· Eligibility for a discretionary company Bonus Scheme
· Plus, a suite of additional employee benefits including Company pension scheme, life assurance cover, free eye tests, cycle to work scheme, interest free travel loans, social events and more.
If successful you will become part of the OKA family, a fast-paced and dynamic business. If you would like to apply for this position, please send your CV and details of your current salary, salary expectations, notice period and right to work information via the link provided.
