Divisional Merchandising Manager - Loves Travel Stops & Country Store

Req ID: 433481 

BASIC PURPOSE: The primary purpose of the Area Merchandising Manager is to work with the store management teams and ensure a successful merchandising program. This position will analyze individual store performance, train store staff on the expected merchandising execution standards, inspect and, follow up on consistency and quality of execution, and maintain sales trends and margin growth to meet and/or exceed budgeted goals for locations within the assigned division.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop store teams’ knowledge of sales and margin growth through consistent execution of merchandising strategies
• Work with each store management team to analyze and develop successful merchandising programs centered on team development, training, and follow-up
• Perform in-store quarterly merchandising inspections to help in the development of the teams to create a consistent level of merchandising throughout assigned stores
• Communicate with various operations teams on all aspects of merchandising issues and follow-up items on a daily basis to ensure consistency
• Work with outside vendors to ensure merchandising programs are run according to Love’s standards
• Foster a collaborative working relationship with vendor partners and store teams to ensure positive and profitable merchandising performance
• Analyze assigned store's profit and loss statements and sales trends
• Ensure assigned stores maintain sales and margin growth by meeting and/or exceeding budgeted goals
• Responsible for follow-up on the execution of all active promotions within the assigned store
• Responsible for developing talent in assigned stores to become "merchandising champions" within your assigned division
• Additional tasks and all other duties as assigned

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Education:
  • High School Diploma or equivalent required
  • Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management or related field or equivalent years of work experience required
• Experience:
  • 2+ years of management or supervisory experience preferred
  • 2+ years of merchandising experience preferred
  • Accounting or financial budgeting experience preferred
  • 5 to 8 years of experience as a retail general manager or assistant general manager required; Multi-Unit experience preferred 

SKILLS AND PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

• Skills:
  • Hard skills: knowledge of Microsoft Office, and personal productivity software, including word processing, spreadsheet, and Outlook applications. Knowledge in all phases of hotel management, including but not limited to: sales and marketing, daily management of all areas of operations involving human resources, food and beverage, budget management, rooms, housekeeping, maintenance, and landscaping.
  • Soft Skills: Strong selling and negotiating skills, strong communication and presentation skills, strong leadership skills to motivate and train staff, solid long-range planning and development skills, excellent organizational and prioritization skills, excellent decision-making, ability to work independently, and superior customer service skills.
• Typical Physical Demands:
  • Regularly required to talk and hear.
  • Requires standing and walking, with some bending, kneeling, stooping, crouching, crawling, and climbing.
  • Occasional light lifting not over 50lbs.
  • Manual dexterity sufficient to operate a computer keyboard and calculator.
  • Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be exposed to outdoor elements in all seasons. Occasionally, the employee will also be exposed to fumes and particles, moving mechanical parts, and vibration. The noise level in the work environment, and can be loud at times. While performing the duties, the employee is frequently exposed to dirt, dust, grime, grease, oil, gas, high-concentrated cleaning solutions, and human waste.

DRUG/BACKGROUND CHECKS: All offers of employment may be conditioned on receipt of a background check report, drug screening, and/or motor vehicle report that is acceptable to Love’s.

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS: Must be able and willing to travel 4-5 days per week to meet the inspection schedule.

Job Function(s): Operations 

Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores is the industry-leading travel stop network in the United States. For more than 55 years, we’ve provided customers with highway hospitality and “Clean Places, Friendly Faces.” We’re passionate about serving drivers with clean, modern facilities stocked with fuel, food and supplies. We offer meals from popular restaurant chains, trucking supplies, showers and everything needed to get back on the road quickly. The Love’s Family of Companies includes:

• Gemini Motor Transport, one of the industry’s safest trucking fleets
• Speedco, the light mechanical and trucking service specialists
• Musket, a rapidly growing, Houston-based commodities supplier and trader
• Trillium, a Houston-based alternative fuels expert