Director, Planning

About Us

 

Centric Brands is a leading lifestyle brand collective that designs, sources, markets and sells high quality products in multiple segments, including women’s, men’s and kid’s apparel, accessories, entertainment and beauty. Centric Brands is focused on our customers and our brands that will drive the company’s future growth. We are defined by innovation as we seize new opportunities and thrive in an environment informed by creativity and thinking that is both analytical and outside the box. Centric Brands reflects a team built on respect, for others and for the hard work it takes to achieve our goals and build our bright future together.

Specific Responsibilities Would Include

The Director of Planning (We are also open to considering Senior Director level candidates) will be responsible for oversight, development and implementation of retail, merchandise and financial planning processes across a multi-branded business unit.

 

This role will direct a team of planners to develop and deliver overall account and product plans by strategically driving metrics including sales, margin and turn for current and future seasons, and will include oversight of a substantial replenishment business. Resourcefulness and agility will be key as you work with multiple business leads, planners and sales associates to analyze and incorporate retail trends, develop and manage complex plans, and deliver financial targets. 

 

Key Responsibilities:

Planning Strategy & Financial Leadership

• Own the planning framework across wholesale, retail and inventory planning, ensuring alignment to financial targets and growth strategies.
• Provide executive oversight of OTB, sales, margin, and inventory forecasts, ensuring accuracy, transparency, and timely risk identification.
• Lead the monthly Latest Estimate (LE) process across accounts, reviewing variances versus budget, prior projections, and last year, and driving mitigation plans as needed.
• Maintain visibility to risks and opportunities, synthesizing insights across planners and clearly communicating implications to senior leadership.

Retail & Account Planning Oversight

• Guide planners in developing seasonal and in‑season sales, assortment, and door‑level plans for Department Store accounts.
• Ensure best‑in‑class use of store matrices, clustering, and door performance analytics to optimize distribution strategies.
• Partnering with sales in the development of post‑season hindsight analyses, ensuring insights are translated into actionable improvements for future planning cycles.
• Oversight of the digital marketplace forecasting and management of inventory, covering multiple accounts including Amazon.

Replenishment & Inventory Management

• Set standards and governance for replenishment planning, ensuring accurate demand forecasting and alignment across Demand Planning, Sales, and Retail Planning.
• Ensure inventory is purchased responsibly, with disciplined management of weeks of supply, case packs, lead times, and minimum order quantities.
• Oversee SKU rationalization and long‑tail analysis strategies, approving eliminations and transitions to maximize assortment productivity.
• Partner with Sales on the plans for ATS inventory management and sell‑off / disposition strategies at appropriate discount and dilution levels.

Merchandise & Line Planning

• Partner with Sales and Design leadership to guide seasonal line planning and SKU architecture across brands and channels.
• Ensure planners are driving SKU productivity through data‑backed recommendations and hindsight‑driven decision making.
• Align merchandise planning decisions with inventory, margin, and cash‑flow objectives.

Analytics, Reporting & Process Improvement

• Set expectations for planning analytics, reporting cadence, and executive‑level insights, ensuring the right information reaches the right audiences.
• Champion the use of Sigma dashboards and advanced analytics to improve planning visibility and decision quality.
• Identify opportunities to leverage automation and AI to improve efficiency, scalability, and accuracy across planning processes.

People Leadership & Cross‑Functional Partnership

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of planners, setting clear goals, accountability, and career development paths.
• Establish consistent planning standards, tools, and best practices across the team.
• Serve as a senior planning partner to Sales, Finance, Production, Supply Chain, and Merchandising leadership, influencing decisions through data and insight.

Our Best Fit Candidate Would Have

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in business, ret