Apparel Merchandiser (Activewear)

As an Apparel Merchandiser with a strong background in sports apparel, your role will involve coordinating with vendors, developing products, formulating sourcing strategies, negotiating costs, and overseeing the cut-to-pack process to ensure commercially viable and quality-compliant products. Key Responsibilities: - Sourcing & Vendor Development - Identify and evaluate suitable vendors for outsourced sportswear production in performance and lifestyle categories. - Build and maintain relationships with mills, trim suppliers, and garment manufacturers. - Ensure alignment of product specifications with vendor capabilities. - Costing & Negotiation - Analyze and benchmark costing structures across vendors and regions. - Lead cost negotiations to achieve target margins while maintaining quality and delivery timelines. - Monitor raw material prices and update costing models accordingly. - Cut-to-Pack Execution - Plan and coordinate the cut-to-pack process, ensuring alignment with tech packs, BOMs, and packaging guidelines. - Oversee vendor compliance with product specs, trims, and packaging requirements. - Ensure final products meet quality, fit, and compliance standards before handover. - Cross-functional Coordination - Collaborate closely with design, technical, QA, and planning teams for seamless execution of development cycles. - Serve as the primary point of contact between internal teams and external vendors for all development and sourcing-related matters. Qualifications & Skills: - Bachelor's degree in Fashion, Textiles, Merchandising, or related field. - 4-6 years of experience in merchandising in sportswear or performance apparel. - Proven expertise in sourcing, costing, and cut-to-pack processes. - Strong understanding of fabric types, trims, technical constructions, and compliance requirements for performance apparel. - Excellent negotiation, communication, and analytical skills. - Ability to manage multiple development calendars and vendor timelines. Note: The company details were not provided in the job description.,