American Eagle Outfitters® (NYSE: AEO) is a leading global specialty retailer offering high-quality, on-trend clothing, accessories and personal care products at affordable prices under its American Eagle® and Aerie® brands. We are an inclusive, optimistic and empowering company that celebrates the individuality of our customers and associates. Our purpose is to show the world that there’s REAL power in the optimism of youth.

 

 

SUMMARY

Curates a commercially viable Europe assortment for AEO and/or aerie partnering with Global Merchandising and Geo Planning to meet the competitive and commercial needs of the European consumer.

Manage and spearhead in-season and future assortment strategy and opportunity with the cross functional teams’ partnership.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES

- Partners with Geo lead, Planning and Inventory Planning to ensure product strategies pre- and in-season align with overall business strategy and drive toward our financial goals

- Manages EU B&M and digital buying only for AEO JV business

- Understands weekly/monthly business trends and utilizes this in conjunction with geo expertise to influence future season’s line plan and product briefs

- Identifies key item opportunities to grow the business through product testing and hindsight

- Understands regional business trends (trend cycle, pricing, promotion, competition) to ensure key business drivers are available to support the business, as well as actions to drive future growth

- Responsible for all components of GTM deliverables incl. but not limited to: hindsight, seasonal strategy, product line plan, market weeks, and off-cadence bookings

- Partner with Global Merchandising to brief programs for peak international business opportunities by territory

- Drives seasonal buy conversations during International Market through business and geography expertise

- Partners with visual merchandising & creative services to align on product presentation standards & key looks in order to finalize the buy

- Drive territory segmentation strategies to ensure the right product is in the right place, at the right time across stores & digital.

 

 

QUALIFICATIONS

- Bachelor’s Degree in Fashion Merchandising, Business, or equivalent required

- 5-7 years prior buying experience from a specialty retailer

- 2+ years of experience in a leadership role

- Experience with European markets is required

- Excellent analytical and creative skills

- Strong business acumen and strategic agility; demonstrated ability to immediately identify areas of the business that need attention as well as areas that do not; proven ability to support growth in a very fast-growing and evolving business environment.

- Self-motivated with critical attention to detail, deadlines and reporting

- International travel is a must

-  Ability to work outside of standard U.S. business hours is required