**The Job** The Assortment Planner is responsible for analyzing Retailer’s POS data to provide insight on the most productive departments and assortments needed for the Retailer’s customer base as well as recommending department locations and category adjacencies for new ground-up stores, remodels, relocations, expansions, and consolidations. **What you’ll do** + **Create Floor Plans-** Create fixture floor plan layouts, recommend department and merchandise adjacencies, and complete assortment plans for new ground-up stores, remodels, relocations, expansions, and consolidations. + Interface directly with retailers to advise and get approval on store layout and assortment selection. + **Consultative & Collaborative Communication-** Work collaboratively with internal project team to understand the local market and competition for each customer project. Proactively communicate assortment plans and development status with all project team members and stakeholders. + **Product Knowledge & Placement Expertise-** Serve as a product knowledge and placement expert with deep understanding of category relevance for Pro and Hardware customers. Build and expand product and brand knowledge through partnership with the Merchandising and Sales teams and other cross-functional partners and utilization of reporting tools and resources. + **Assortment Analysis** - Perform assortment analysis on customer POS data and make recommendations on custom assortment needs by leveraging all current tools and reports (Power BI and excel). Effectively communicate these assortments to the field and space planning team for documentation and seamless execution. + **Assortment Maintenance** -Review, approve, and communicate all closeout and cancelled SKUs and their replacements and communicate this to the execution team. Assist with identifying replacement SKUs and additional SKU matches as needed. + **Training & Best Practices** - Educate and train the Retail Execution field team and other relevant partners on floor layout best practices. Help develop core floor and merchandise plan templates. Assist with creating any other relevant assortment planning SOPs (standard operating procedures). + **Industry Trend & Research-** Stay current with marketplace trends and shopper behavior, understanding how these trends impact EJD as well as our Retailers business, particularly store design/layout and category space allocation/placement. **What you need to succeed** + Bachelor’s Degree with 5 years of assortment planning experience or 5-10 years of experience working with hardlines in the Pro and Hardware Industry + Hardware or Pro Lumberyard industry experience strongly preferred + Excel proficiency and experience with CAD required + Excellent organizational skills with strong attention to detail + Ability to prioritize and execute tasks in a fast-paced environment + Strong time management skills and ability to manage multiple projects and corresponding deadlines + Advanced analytical skills + Excellent interpersonal and written/verbal communications skills + Collaborative approach with Retailers and cross-functional teams + Embodies company’s values and is customer focused + Highly creative, flexible, and adaptable with good follow-through + Passionate about the Hardware, Pro, and Paint industry and knowledgeable about channel and industry trends + Comfortable coming into the Oak Brook, IL office on Mondays and Wednesdays to collaborate with team members \#LI- **Compensation Details:** $72900 - $91300 **Why should you join our team?** We live our values - W.E.L.I.G.H.T (Winning, Excellence, Love, Integrity, Gratitude, Humility, and Teamwork). Gratitude. Humility. Love. You don’t often see values like these in most corporate statements, but Ace is different. These things are important to us. They represent our commitment to the company, our employees, to Ace retailers and to the Ace brand. In addition to providing our employees a great culture, Ace / Emery Jensen Distribution also offers competitive benefits* that address life’s necessities and perks, many of which expand and improve year after year, including: + Incentive opportunities, based on role/grade level (rapid company growth over the past 3 years resulted in incentives being paid out above 106.6% of your target opportunity!) + Generous 401(k) retirement savings plan with a fully vested matching contribution the first year, in addition to an annual discretionary contribution (once eligibility requirements have been met). Over the past five years, company contributions (matching & discretionary) for fully eligible employees have averaged 7.5% of total compensation. + Comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision and disability – up to 26 weeks short-term disability and long-term disability) & life insurance benefits for you and your dependents + 21 days of vacation immediately available (prorated in the first year) and up to 6 paid holidays depending on the month of hire + Company Car, phone and fuel card are provided for field-based positions + Flexible working arrangements (Non-Field positions can work from home up to 2 days per week) + Your career at Ace is more than just a job. It’s a chance to be part of something meaningful. We help locally-owned businesses thrive and make an impact in their communities – and we support our employees in doing the same by offering an annual Ace Cares Week, 20 hours off work per year to volunteer at an organization of your choice, opportunities to help Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the Ace Helpful Fund through the Ace Foundation + Ace invests in every employee we hire, with a key focus on development and coaching. We offer on-site classes, facilitator-led courses, and a generous tuition assistance program, plus a performance management approach that goes beyond the typical annual review + We know the work environment matters. That’s why Ace holds frequent campus events like Employee Appreciation Week, vendor demos, cookouts, and merchandise sales + We bring them to you! Services such as mobile spas, auto maintenance, car wash and detailing, dry cleaning, dentists, eye doctors, flu shots, recycling and more! + Employee discounts on Ace merchandise (including top brands like Weber, Traeger, Yeti, Craftsman, DeWalt and more), travel, fitness, computers and thousands more + Birth/Adoption bonding paid time off + Adoption cost reimbursement + Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – access to free visits to therapists and lawyers, guidance on financial matters, elder and childcare, and assistance with tickets to entertainment events + Identity theft protection _* Benefits are provided in compliance with applicable plans and policies._ **Want to be notified when new jobs are posted? Follow the link below to create an account and set up custom job alerts:** **Create Job Alert (https://acehardware.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EJDExternal/jobAlerts)** **We want to hear from you!** Emery Jensen Distribution delivers wholesale products and best-in-class service to independent retailers in the Pro Lumber Yards, Home Centers, Paint, Hardware Stores, Decorating Stores, and E-retailer space. Our goal is to support sustainable and profitable growth for our customers by offering the broadest assortments, best pricing, and most knowledgeable team. We have national scale, a regional focus and the commitment to serve our customers and support each other. Come find out why a career with Emery Jensen Distribution is right for you. **Equal Opportunity Employer** Emery Jensen Distribution is committed to a policy of promoting equal employment opportunities. The company recognizes the importance of diversity and leveraging the skills and talents of all people to the mutual advantage of each individual and the organization. The company is committed to the prevention of employment discrimination related to race, religion, color, sex (including sexual harassment), gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, disability and military or veteran status, sexual orientation or any other action covered by federal or applicable state/local laws. **Disclaimer** _The pay range for this position starts as listed in the job posting, but could be higher based on education and experience. Please note, compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each opening. We take into consideration the minimum requirements outlined in the job description, such as an individual’s education, training and experience, the position’s work location, required travel (if any), and external market conditions when determining the final salary for potential new hires._ _Be aware that salary estimates published via alternate online job boards may not be a true representation of the actual pay range offered for this position. Please refer to the Emery Jensen Distribution position description for the accurate starting pay range information and feel free to discuss this with a Talent Acquisition professional if you are chosen to move forward with an interview._ _This written “Position Description” is not intended to cover all aspects of the position listed. It is meant to cover the basic/general essential job functions of a particular position. Emery Jensen Distribution reserves the right to change job duties, including essential job functions, according to business necessity._ Ace Hardware is the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the world with over 5,800 locally owned and operated hardware stores in approximately 60 countries. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace and its subsidiaries operate an expansive network of distribution centers in the U.S. and have distribution capabilities in Ningbo, China; and Cuautitlán Izcalli, Mexico. Since 1924, Ace has become a part of local communities around the world and known as the place with the helpful hardware folks. For more information, visit acehardware.com or newsroom.acehardware.com.