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The differences between senior merchandising managers and visual merchandising managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a senior merchandising manager, becoming a visual merchandising manager takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior merchandising manager has an average salary of $111,266, which is higher than the $97,250 average annual salary of a visual merchandising manager.
The top three skills for a senior merchandising manager include direct reports, digital marketing and SR. The most important skills for a visual merchandising manager are customer service, POS, and store operations.
| Senior Merchandising Manager | Visual Merchandising Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $111,266 | $97,250 |
| Hourly rate | $53.49 | $46.75 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 66,332 | 23,486 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 6 |
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.
A visual merchandising manager is responsible for facilitating the arrangement of visual displays to attract customers to purchase the products. Visual merchandising managers monitor the sales performance of the store and develop effective merchandise strategies to boost revenues and increase profitability. They also assist in creating promotional events and discount offers, as well as designing the store's layout during special occasions. A visual merchandising manager must have excellent leadership and communication skills, especially on guiding the staff's performance and implementing techniques to maximize productivity.
Senior merchandising managers and visual merchandising managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Merchandising Manager | Visual Merchandising Manager | |
| Average salary | $111,266 | $97,250 |
| Salary range | Between $79,000 And $155,000 | Between $67,000 And $139,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Bruno, CA | Bridgeport, CT |
| Highest paying state | California | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Chewy | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Retail |
There are a few differences between a senior merchandising manager and a visual merchandising manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Merchandising Manager | Visual Merchandising Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Specialized Sales And Merchandising |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior merchandising managers' and visual merchandising managers' demographics:
| Senior Merchandising Manager | Visual Merchandising Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8% | Male, 31.7% Female, 68.3% |
| 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, 8.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.0% Asian, 7.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 9% |