What does a merchandising manager do?

A merchandising manager is responsible for supervising stock inventories, retail pricing, and managing product displays by analyzing customer preferences through researching the current market trends that would improve the store's sales condition and achieve profitability goals. Merchandising managers negotiate with reliable third-party vendors, minimizing costs without compromising the quality of the products. They also assist with planning floor layouts for store visuals that would attract customers and marketing promotional offers and special discounts to increase more revenues.
Merchandising manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real merchandising manager resumes:
- Manage and plan ROI, CPC and bid management on external online shopping sites.
- Manage hardware, plumbing, kitchen and bath, kitchen design, and night operations.
- Create all marketing materials (paper/media), organize logistics of readings, manage financials.
- Manage merchandising for lumber, building materials, paint, hardware, plumbing, electrical, and the garden department.
- Lead website development committee, including RFP development, ROI analysis, marketing, brand-enhancement strategies, and back-end integration solutions.
- Manage creative development and production of indirect channel POS fixtures creating brand consistency
- Work with levers and KPI's to drive business performance.
- Research trends to provide customers with a current, constantly evolving e-commerce experience.
- Work with branding team on producing seasonal photo shoots for look books and e-commerce.
- Climb ladders, lift & carry props, knowledgeable of tools & measuring devices.
- Partner with the ASM to prepare for and implement seasonal/ monthly new flow and initiatives.
- Secure and audit jewelry merchandise, and complete special jewelry orders.
- Participate and perform various volunteer duties for team depot community programs.
- Synchronize communications with merchandise operations and vendors regarding POS and visual presentation.
- Ensure recovery and cleanliness of assign areas of responsibility at all times.
Merchandising manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Merchandising Managers are proficient in Sales Floor, POS, and Apparel. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Interpersonal skills, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Merchandising Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Sales Floor, 10%
Determined placement of merchandise on sales floor; monitored product movement and recognized opportunities for increased sales.
- POS, 9%
Managed creative development and production of indirect channel POS fixtures creating brand consistency
- Apparel, 7%
Researched overall apparel trends direction in domestic and international markets and interpreted customer feedback and concepts to manufacturer.
- Pallets, 6%
Utilized radio frequency equipment, pallet movers, and forklift to effectively execute daily operations of staging and storing freight.
- Merchandise Presentation, 5%
Communicate with Director of Retail, Retail Managers and Replenishment Supervisors regarding new product arrivals and desired merchandise presentation and location.
- Drive Sales, 5%
Drive sales and profitability though proper merchandising and overall presentation of all departments.
Common skills that a merchandising manager uses to do their job include "sales floor," "pos," and "apparel." You can find details on the most important merchandising manager responsibilities below.
Creativity. The most essential soft skill for a merchandising manager to carry out their responsibilities is creativity. This skill is important for the role because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to generate new and imaginative ideas." Additionally, a merchandising manager resume shows how their duties depend on creativity: "performed operational duties such as maintenance of inventory control and loss prevention. "
Interpersonal skills. Another essential skill to perform merchandising manager duties is interpersonal skills. Merchandising managers responsibilities require that "managers must deal with a range of people in different roles, both inside and outside the organization." Merchandising managers also use interpersonal skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "utilize interpersonal skills to mentor staff and resolve customer service issues. "
Organizational skills. merchandising managers are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to merchandising manager responsibilities, because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must manage their time and budget efficiently while directing and motivating staff members." A merchandising manager resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "applied creativity, and organizational skills to motivate greater productivity with my staff and store management. "
Analytical skills. A big part of what merchandising managers do relies on "analytical skills." You can see how essential it is to merchandising manager responsibilities because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to analyze industry trends to determine the most promising strategies for their organization." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical merchandising manager tasks: "create understanding of cx developments by showcasing new products' hypotheses, cx and a/b testing final analysis. "
Communication skills. A commonly-found skill in merchandising manager job descriptions, "communication skills" is essential to what merchandising managers do. Merchandising manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "managers must be able to communicate effectively with a broad-based team made up of other managers or staff members during the advertising, promotions, and marketing process." You can also see how merchandising manager duties rely on communication skills in this resume example: "served as primary merchandising contact for store operations, communications, and store planning. "
The three companies that hire the most merchandising managers are:
- Five Below338 merchandising managers jobs
- Accenture29 merchandising managers jobs
- Macy's28 merchandising managers jobs
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Merchandising manager vs. Assistant manager/merchandise
Assistant managers for merchandise are employees who oversee the supplies in the company's stores. They are usually employed in companies that run retail stores. Assistant managers for merchandise are responsible for their stores' supplies, stocks, and inventory. They ensure that their inventories are well-stocked. They are also responsible for approving purchase requisitions to ensure that the store never runs out of supplies. They plan for the daily needs of the store. They also prepare for high volume or peak days and anticipate the needs of the store. As such, they order enough supplies to cover for such days. They also manage store employees and ensure that they are properly trained.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a merchandising manager are more likely to require skills like "apparel," "pallets," "ladders," and "b testing." On the other hand, a job as an assistant manager/merchandise requires skills like "front end," "cleanliness," "cash handling," and "stock room." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
The education levels that assistant managers/merchandise earn slightly differ from merchandising managers. In particular, assistant managers/merchandise are 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a merchandising manager. Additionally, they're 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Merchandising manager vs. Co-manager
A co-manager's role is to supervise business operations and perform administrative tasks as support to a manager. One of the primary functions of a co-manager is to delegate tasks of team members and arrange schedules. They also evaluate progress, produce the necessary documentation, maintain a record of data, identify issues and opportunities, and assist in coordinating with other employees. A co-manager may also have the task of hiring and training new workforce members, enforcing policies and regulations at all times.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that merchandising manager responsibilities requires skills like "apparel," "pallets," "b testing," and "employee engagement." But a co-manager might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "food safety," "perform routine maintenance," "basic math," and "cleanliness."
On average, co-managers earn a lower salary than merchandising managers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, co-managers earn the most pay in the retail industry with an average salary of $64,497. Whereas merchandising managers have higher pay in the retail industry, with an average salary of $84,024.co-managers earn similar levels of education than merchandising managers in general. They're 0.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Merchandising manager vs. Co-manager/store manager
A co-manager/store manager oversees the daily operations of a store, ensuring smooth workflow and customer satisfaction. They are in charge of setting goals and sales targets, establishing guidelines and timelines, delegating responsibilities among staff, and developing strategies to optimize store operations. They are also responsible for monitoring all store activities, addressing issues and concerns, and resolving them promptly and efficiently. Moreover, as a co-manager/store manager, it is essential to manage and supervise staff, leading them to reach goals while implementing the store's policies and regulations.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from merchandising manager resumes include skills like "apparel," "pallets," "ladders," and "b testing," whereas a co-manager/store manager is more likely to list skills in "cleanliness," "financial performance," "human resources," and "food safety. "
When it comes to education, co-manager/store managers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to merchandising managers. In fact, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Merchandising manager vs. Manager
Managers are responsible for a specific department, function, or employee group. They oversee their assigned departments and all the employees under the department. Managers are responsible that the department they are handling is functioning well. They set the department goals and the steps they must take to achieve the goals. They are also in charge of assessing the performance of their departments and their employees. Additionally, managers are responsible for interviewing prospective candidates for department vacancies and assessing their fit to the needs of the department. Managers also set the general working environment in the department, and they are expected to ensure that their employees remain motivated.
Types of merchandising manager
Updated January 8, 2025











