Senior merchandising manager vs merchandising manager

The differences between senior merchandising managers and merchandising managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 8-10 years to become both a senior merchandising manager and a merchandising manager. Additionally, a senior merchandising manager has an average salary of $111,266, which is higher than the $86,346 average annual salary of a merchandising manager.

The top three skills for a senior merchandising manager include direct reports, digital marketing and SR. The most important skills for a merchandising manager are sales floor, POS, and apparel.

Senior merchandising manager vs merchandising manager overview

	Senior Merchandising Manager	Merchandising Manager
Yearly salary	$111,266	$86,346
Hourly rate	$53.49	$41.51
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	66,332	268,577
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	10	10

What does a senior merchandising manager do?

The primary job of a senior merchandising manager is to monitor market trends for product design, levels, and pricing identification. Senior merchandising managers source, manage and curate the products and/or services and promotional materials of a company. They oversee the purchasing process of corporations. It is part of their job to negotiate with the company's suppliers. Their duties also include predicting the trends and demands of corporate inventory.

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.

Senior merchandising manager vs merchandising manager salary

Senior merchandising managers and merchandising managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Merchandising Manager	Merchandising Manager
Average salary	$111,266	$86,346
Salary range	Between $79,000 And $155,000	Between $64,000 And $116,000
Highest paying City	San Bruno, CA	Woonsocket, RI
Highest paying state	California	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Chewy	Roku
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Retail

Differences between senior merchandising manager and merchandising manager education

There are a few differences between a senior merchandising manager and a merchandising manager in terms of educational background:

	Senior Merchandising Manager	Merchandising Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 65%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Georgia	University of Georgia

Senior merchandising manager vs merchandising manager demographics

Here are the differences between senior merchandising managers' and merchandising managers' demographics:

	Senior Merchandising Manager	Merchandising Manager
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8%	Male, 47.7% Female, 52.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between senior merchandising manager and merchandising manager duties and responsibilities

Senior merchandising manager example responsibilities.

Implement and manage new POS server system at the store and district level.
Maintain effective vendor partnerships to achieve high service levels, meet IMU and MMU goals.
Complete comprehensive training program and manage cosmetics, jewelry, women's accessories, women's fashions and men's apparel.
Manage indirect purchasing of commodities and services during mergers and acquisitions; measure supplier / category integration savings.
Manage relationships with primary suppliers including monitoring and purchasing commodities, forecasting, marketing initiatives and quality control.
Review sales projections, POS, & competition at retail to recommend assortment updates.

Merchandising manager example responsibilities.

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

Senior merchandising manager vs merchandising manager skills

Common senior merchandising manager skills

Direct Reports, 7%
Digital Marketing, 6%
SR, 6%
Sales Floor, 6%
Product Knowledge, 6%
Productivity Standards, 5%

Common merchandising manager skills

Sales Floor, 10%
POS, 9%
Apparel, 7%
Pallets, 6%
Merchandise Presentation, 5%
Drive Sales, 5%

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Senior Merchandising Manager
Senior Merchandising Manager vs Merchandising Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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