Merchant, FTW (Timberland)

JOB AD

BUSINESS TITLE (JOB POSTING TITLE): Merchant, Merchandising - Footwear (Timberland APAC)

JOB PROFILE/GJF LEVEL: Global Level 5

BRAND/ FUNCTION: Merchandising

LOCATION:  Shanghai

REPORTING TO: Senior Merchandising Manager

ABOUT YOUR ROLE

As a Merchant, Footwear – APAC Regional Merchandising Team, you are the voice of the APAC consumer, connecting marketplace insights, fashion trends, and commercial opportunities to influence the future of Timberland footwear.

You have a strong understanding of the evolving footwear landscape across Asia and are constantly immersed in consumer behavior, cultural movements, competitive brands, and emerging trends. You are naturally curious about what consumers are wearing, how they shop, and what drives demand across different markets, channels, and communities.

Partnering closely with Global Merchandising, Design, Product Development, Planning, and regional market teams, you will help shape a footwear line that balances global brand vision with regional relevance. You will translate consumer, marketplace, and trend insights into actionable product recommendations, influencing assortments, pricing, and product briefs that drive both brand heat and commercial performance.

This role requires a highly collaborative, analytical, and consumer-centric individual who can identify opportunities, advocate for APAC market needs, and help deliver compelling product assortments that strengthen Timberland's position across the region.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE

Consumer, Trend & Marketplace Insights

• Act as the voice of the APAC consumer by continuously monitoring consumer behavior, fashion trends, cultural movements, and marketplace dynamics across key markets including China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, and Pacific.
• Conduct regular market research, competitive shopping, trend analysis, and retail exploration to identify emerging opportunities, white spaces, and category growth drivers.
• Monitor competitive brands, pricing strategies, product innovations, and consumer shifts to ensure Timberland remains relevant and competitive within the footwear marketplace.
• Translate consumer and marketplace insights into actionable merchandising recommendations that influence product creation and line architecture.

Product Strategy & Line Build

• Support the Senior Merchandising Manager in executing the APAC Footwear Product Strategy, ensuring alignment with company objectives, regional opportunities, and financial targets.
• Develop comprehensive seasonal product briefs for Global teams, informed by consumer insights, trend forecasts, market intelligence, competitive analysis, and business opportunities.
• Recommend regional product opportunities, including key franchises, price architecture, style references, color direction, SKU productivity, and revenue targets.
• Partner with Global Merchandising and Product Creation teams to influence product assortments that meet APAC consumer needs while remaining aligned with Timberland's global vision and Rugged American Craft DNA.
• Support seasonal line building by applying category, trend, and marketplace insights to create consumer-relevant assortments.
• Help identify opportunities for regional product capsules, local market exclusives, and key consumer-driven initiatives.

Global Partnership & Communication

• Work closely with Global Merchandising, Design, and Product Development teams to advocate for APAC marketplace needs and consumer insights.
• Build strong cross-functional relationships and effectively communicate regional opportunities, market trends, and product recommendations.
• Participate in global assortment reviews, product meetings, and seasonal line discussions to ensure APAC priorities are represented.
• Travel to global meetings and key markets as required to strengthen alignment between regional and global teams.

Regional Market Collaboration

• Partner closely with regional Sales, Merchandising, Retail, and Wholesale teams to understand market-specific opportunities and business challenges.
• Lead market visits across APAC and develop actionable insights reports covering consumer trends, competitive landscapes, retail observations, and emerging opportunities.
• Collaborate with country teams to refine assortments and maximize product relevance by market and channel.

Go-to-Market (GTM)

• Support seasonal GTM execution by managing sample assortments and preparing product presentation materials.
• Present seasonal assortments, key trends, consumer insights, and product strategies during GTM meetings, sales conferences, and key account presentations.
• Deliver product training and storytelling that connects product features to consumer needs, trends, and marketplace opportunities.
• Partner with Retail and Wholesale teams to evaluate sell-in and sell-through performance, identify opportunities, and optimize future assortments.

Performance & Reporting

• Support the Senior Merchandising Manager in maintaining seasonal product lines and analyzing business performance.
• Regularly evaluate sales performance, category productivity, consumer demand signals, and marketplace trends to identify growth opportunities.
• Develop quarterly competitive intelligence reports covering pricing, assortments, product innovation, and market positioning.
• Conduct regional pricing analysis to ensure Timberland remains competitively positioned while achieving margin objectives.
• Assess category and franchise performance across Good-Better-Best architectures and recommend actions to strengthen productivity and profitability.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with Planning, Buying, Marketing, Visual Merchandising, and Retail teams to ensure consistent product and brand strategies.
• Contribute to creating an integrated consumer journey by aligning product assortments with marketing, storytelling, and channel strategies.
• Support additional merchandising and business initiatives as assigned by the Senior Merchandising Manager.

WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING FOR IN YOU

• Strong merchandising experience, preferably within footwear, fashion, lifestyle, or outdoor brands.
• Deep passion for consumer insights, fashion trends, sneaker culture, and marketplace analysis.
• Strong understanding of APAC consumer behavior and regional market differences.
• Ability to translate trends, consumer insights, and market intelligence into compelling product recommendations.
• Excellent product storytelling, presentation, and communication skills.
• Strong analytical capability with the ability to interpret sales data and marketplace trends.
• Experience working with cross-functional and global teams in a matrix organization.
• Regional APAC merchandising, buying, product development, or category management experience is highly preferred.
• Ability to balance consumer relevance, brand vision, and commercial performance in decision-making.
• Curiosity, agility, and a passion for building product assortments that consumers love.

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