Result oriented professional with over 13+ years of experience working in the Travel Retail and Luxury goods industry with a strong knowledge base of Perfumes, Cosmetics, Skincare, Gems and Jewellery
Key expertise includes Buying and Merchandising, Category Management, Product Management and Promotions, Commercial Negotiations, Category Analysis.
Additionally an extensive skill set which includes Luxury Brand Management, Strategy Planning, International Vendor Management, Managing strategic relations with business partners, In-depth Product Knowledge, Retail Interface, Logistics Interface, Business Development, Product Portfolio Management and expansion, Product Promotions and new launches, Strong communication
and leadership abilities, and ability to manage expectations.
EXPERIENCE
Title : Category Manager – Perfumes & Cosmetics
Travel retailer : On request
Location : India
Period : October’21 – December’23
â–ª Managing the entire Perfumes and Cosmetics category for (on request) comprising of 25 suppliers worldwide, spanning across 70+ international luxury brands. Additionally managing 5 other airports in India
â–ª Leading the merchandising team in formulating an assortment strategy that is consistent with the overall business strategy
â–ª Consistently analyzing sales, margin, new product performance and initiate strategies to respond to developing trends, improve profitability and develop promotions and assortment plans for the Beauty category
â–ª Support on merchandise strategies for the India division, sales management, customer service, conversion of aged inventory, store renovations, productive management of space/inventory and brand relations
â–ª Price benchmarking against other Duty Free and domestic markets to ensure most competitive price offering for consumers
â–ª Maintaining regular interaction with suppliers to create working synergies, planning new product initiatives, promotions, sales performance analysis, order planning, range / brand rationalization â–ª Identifying slow and best sellers in inventory - develop action plans to maximize sales and minimize risks â–ª Proactive co-ordination with all key departments including Finance as well as Logistics and Supply Chain to ensure timely flow of products
Title : Asst. Category Manager – Perfumes & Cosmetics
Travel retailer : On request
Location : India
Period : June ’16 – October ’21
â–ª Independently managing the Beauty category for (on request) comprising of 30 suppliers worldwide, spanning across 80+ international luxury brands which involves extensive co-ordination with the Global Planning & Merchandising teams
â–ª Managing all key aspects relating to the ordering and allocation function
â–ª Assisting with development of unit and dollar buying plans, maximizing both sales and OTB levels â–ª Managing competitive strategy, including assortments, promotions, pricing, and seasonal conversion and communicate strategy within division and Corporate Office
â–ª Proactively manage and develop brand relationships to ensure mutual needs and business objectives are met
â–ª Ensure all inventory targets are met, including turnover and style/SKU counts â–ª Setting key annual objectives for area of responsibility: Gross margin and profitability, Brand and assortment hurdle rates and assortment rationalization, presentation standards, and retail price differential to local markets
â–ª Surveying customer purchase trends, market trends & fashion trends and placing orders accordingly
â–ª Supervise brand training sessions for sales associates
Title : Entrepeneur
Employer : On request
Location : India
Period : July ’14 – March ’16
â–ª Pricing and sourcing of products
â–ª Conducting events for sales and promotions
Title : Manager – Buying & Merchandising
Employer : On request
Location : India
Period : June ’11 – June ’13
â–ª New product development in-line with new user trends in various cities
â–ª Handling inventory management in-line with current fashion trends
â–ª Vendor management, price negotiating and sourcing product designs â–ª Monitoring stock movement, consider markdowns, promotions
â–ª Review brand/supplier performance and profitability
â–ª Pricing decision in line with demand and supply situations
â–ª Training and mentoring of staff â–ª Setting targets for store managers along with the retail head
â–ª Executing corporate orders and ensuring their delivery as per the set time lines
Title : Asst. Store Manager
Employer : On request
Location : India
Period : December ’08 – May ’11
â–ª Managing daily operations including operations management, Client management and workforce management
â–ª Managing store cashflow along with weekly and monthly MIS report generation
â–ª Co-ordinating between the branches to understand latest trends and for merchandising
â–ª Designing jewellery as per client requirement and current trends
â–ª Planning key Customer relationship management tools including promotional offers, launching events etc.
CERTIFICATIONS
Certificate in Aided Designing (CAD-RHINO) from the Indian Institute of Gems & Jewellery (IIGJ), Mumbai
Professional Jewellery Design Program from the Indian Institute of Jewellery (IIJ)
Certificate course level 1 from Alliance De Française
EDUCATION
Post Graduate Diploma (Retail Management) | Symbiosis Institute, India | 2015
Master of Arts (English Literature) | Mumbai University | 2009
Bachelor of Arts (English Literature) | R.D. National College | 2007
LANGUAGES
English, Hindi, Sindhi and French