Director of Inventory Planning & Allocation - Commercial

Job Title:

Director of Inventory Planning & Allocation - Commercial Position Overview

We are seeking a Director of Inventory Planning & Allocation to lead inventory strategy for the commercial business, encompassing wholesale accounts and company-operated retail stores.

This leader will own demand forecasting, inventory planning, allocation, and replenishment across the wholesale and retail channels. The role will work closely with an e-commerce planning counterpart to ensure inventory is appropriately balanced across the full business.

The ideal candidate brings deep inventory-planning expertise within home goods, retail, or a related multi-category consumer business. This person will combine strong analytical skills with commercial judgment to maximize sales, improve inventory productivity, and support profitable growth.

• Own inventory planning and forecasting for the wholesale and retail channels.
• Develop annual and seasonal inventory plans aligned with sales, margin, and growth objectives.
• Translate commercial forecasts into inventory requirements by channel, account, store, region, category, and SKU.
• Manage open-to-buy plans and recommend inventory investments based on demand, lead times, product performance, and financial targets.
• Monitor sales, sell-through, weeks of supply, inventory turnover, stock-to-sales ratios, back orders, and other key performance indicators.
• Identify inventory risks and opportunities and recommend actions to maximize revenue while reducing excess and obsolete inventory.
• Lead in-season reforecasting and scenario planning in response to changing demand.

• Direct allocation and replenishment strategies across retail stores and wholesale accounts.
• Ensure products are available in the appropriate locations and quantities based on demand, account requirements, store profiles, and regional trends.
• Establish allocation parameters, safety-stock levels, reorder points, and replenishment standards.
• Manage initial allocations, ongoing replenishment, inventory transfers, and end-of-season inventory consolidation.
• Develop strategies for products with varying life cycles, including core, seasonal, limited-edition, and discontinued merchandise.
• Account for the longer lead times, storage requirements, pack sizes, and logistical complexities associated with home goods.
• Partner with Sales and Retail teams to address stock imbalances, fulfillment risks, and evolving customer needs.

• Serve as the primary inventory-planning partner to the wholesale and retail leadership teams.
• Collaborate closely with the e-commerce planning counterpart to align forecasts and inventory strategies across channels.
• Establish clear processes for shared inventory, channel prioritization, and inventory rebalancing.
• Ensure cross-channel decisions support company-wide sales, margin, service-level, and inventory objectives.

• Partner with Merchandising, Wholesale Sales, Retail, Finance, Supply Chain, Sourcing, Operations, and Logistics on seasonal and long-range plans.
• Incorporate production timelines, vendor capacity, freight considerations, warehouse constraints, and product lead times into inventory decisions.
• Support assortment planning, new-product launches, new-store openings, and wholesale account expansion.
• Deliver clear reporting, insights, and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Improve forecasting methodologies, planning tools, reporting, and inventory-management processes.
• Build and develop a high-performing inventory planning and allocation function.

• Extensive experience in inventory planning, allocation, merchandise planning, demand planning, or a related function.
• Experience with in home goods, furniture, lifestyle, retail, or another multi-category consumer business strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience managing inventory for wholesale and retail channels.
• Strong knowledge of demand forecasting, open-to-buy planning, allocation, replenishment, and in-season inventory management.
• Experience planning products with long or variable lead times and complex supply-chain requirements.
• Strong financial and analytical capabilities, with the ability to turn data into actionable commercial decisions.
• Advanced Excel skills and experience with ERP, merchandise-planning, allocation, and business‑intelligence systems.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and cross‑functional leadership skills.
• Proven ability to balance strategic planning with detailed execution in a fast‑paced, evolving environment.

Salary: $170,000–$190,000