Walgreens

Senior Regional Merchandising Manager

Walgreens$100K — $120K *
Retail & Consumer Goods
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree with 4+ years in buying/merchandising roles or High School Diploma/GED with 7+ years experience.
  • Experience in roles such as Category Manager, Buyer, District Manager, or Community Leader.
  • Strong knowledge of retail pricing and vendor negotiations.
  • Familiarity with local market trends and customer demographics.
  • Minimum 2 years of experience in financial decision-making.
  • At least 2 years of cross-functional team leadership experience.
  • Willingness to travel 50% of the time.

Responsibilities

  • Develop strategy for regional assortment planning based on customer needs and financial performance.
  • Analyze sales data to identify gaps and create regional plans for growth.
  • Ensure consistent merchandising execution across all formats in the region.
  • Manage vendor relationships including negotiations for promotions and funding.
  • Optimize local product procurement for cost-effectiveness and growth.
  • Establish and achieve sales and profit goals for each region.
  • Serve as the point of contact for assigned categories, managing strategies and P&L.

Benefits

  • On-site work four days a week in Deerfield, IL.
  • Opportunities for cross-functional collaboration across teams.
  • Involvement in strategic decision-making and regional planning.
  • Professional development opportunities in mentoring talent.
  • Exposure to various aspects of merchandising and operations.
Full Job Description
Job Description

Job Summary

The Senior Regional Merchandising Manager (Senior RMM) serves as a regional merchandising liaison and strategic connector between Operations leadership and Support Center teams. The role is responsible for synthesizing regional customer needs, store-level execution realities, competitive activity, and performance opportunities into structured recommendations, strategy frameworks, and decision-support materials for central review and prioritization. The Senior RMM leads cross-functional alignment across field leadership, merchants, category teams, space planning, finance, segmentation, supply chain, and supplier partners to support execution of centrally approved category, assortment, pricing, promotional, segmentation, display, and vendor strategies.

This role is based in our Deerfield, IL office and is on-site four days a week.

Job Responsibilities
  • Develops strategy to drive regional assortment planning by understanding customer needs and current financial performance. Shares customer segment's data, insights and opportunities to develop collaborative solutions with key stakeholders in Merchandising, Marketing, Supply Chain and Store Operations.
  • Responsible for analyzing reports to identify regional category sales gaps (vs corporate performance) and building regional plans to drive volume in these opportunistic categories. Serve as the liaison between corporate and regional operations. Responsible for all local pricing and marketing as established by corporate guidance. Collaborates with Localization team to drive synergies and create efficiencies.
  • Accountability for regional subject matter expertise associated with each format. Ensures consistent and seamless merchandising execution within each format.
  • Focuses significant time and effort developing programs and managing all aspects of regional vendors including negotiation of all promotions and funding. Develops regional vendor budget targets and service level expectations based on corporate growth targets.
  • Obtains lowest cost of goods on all local products bought and sold into the region. May create advertising opportunities in the region through negotiations with vendors. Engages with top eight national vendors on a monthly basis to drive DSD category sales year over year and to align with corporate growth plans.
  • Works closely with Merchandising management and regional leadership in establishing goals and objectives for each region. Responsible for achieving the budgeted market sales and profit goals for front end for the region. Provides business cases, reporting and score-carding to ensure decisions are fact-based for all regional activities. Executes national programs on a regional level.
  • Serves as Operations/Local Merchandising's first point of contact for assigned categories. Category responsibility may range from developing category strategy and managing category/region P&L to executing corporately developed plans.
  • Score-carding regional program performance to determine viability for discontinuance or expansion for key local items. Determines if regional items have net profitability and ROI. For items with national expansion or planogrammed opportunities, the Sr. RMM uses the scorecard process to present recommendations to the Subject Matter Expert and Corporate category teams to be considered in accordance with reset/revision guidelines and timing.
  • Responsible for negotiating with internal and external service providers (distributors) to secure resources and acceptable service level agreements. Manages opportunities where vendors are engaged for grand openings and closings.
  • Assists Retail Pricing Coordinator to ensure effective management of regional vendors through catalog/pricing maintenance and the capture of all regional promotions and deals.
  • Works closely with the business unit DMM's to communicate local mix and programs associated with driving sales in all markets. Manages regional pricing as applicable based on corporate category parameters and guardrails.
  • Partners with various teams to ensure successful outcomes. Partners with Regional leadership to develop and create regional Charitable Giving strategy. Partners with Supply Chain to plan, identify and correct inventory needs and opportunities. Responsible for maintaining an accurate recap of significant regional events which impact inventory needs. Partners and collaborates with regional cross-functional team which includes Finance, Asset Protection, Human Resources, and Facilities Management to drive region sales and profitability.
  • Drives regional assortment planning/buying and regional sales. Expands programs and refines the mix to match the needs of the consumer.
  • Coaches, mentors and develops pool of talent from the field to be knowledgeable in product mix, assortment profitability, advertising and selling to their regional customers.
  • Performs competitive store visits to understanding assortment, pricing, promotional and vendor opportunities.
  • Serves as Brand Ambassadors for the WAG brand, communicating brand standards to internal and external partners. Ensures merchandising beliefs are consistently applied, brand guidelines are being upheld and corporate marketing programs are executed with excellence.


External Basic Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree and at least 4 years of experience in buying and/or merchandising functions such as assortment planning, space management, pricing, promotions, purchasing, or vendor negotiations OR experience in District leadership in the field or a High School Diploma/GED and at least 7 years of experience in buying and/or merchandising functions such as assortment planning, space management, pricing, promotions, purchasing, or vendor negotiations OR experience in District leadership in the field.
  • Experience as Category Manager, Buyer, District Manager, or Community Leader
  • Knowledge of retail pricing, promotional planning/execution along with vendor negotiations.
  • Knowledge of the local market and customer demographics.
  • At least 2 years of experience contributing to financial decisions in the workplace.
  • At least 2 years of direct leadership, indirect leadership and/or cross-functional team leadership.
  • Willing to travel up to/at least 50% of the time for business purposes (within state and out of state).


Preferred Qualifications

  • MBA or Master's degree.
  • Experience in a combination of buying, operations, merchandising, category management, customer/market planning, segmentation, or store strategy.
  • CPG, DSD, local supplier, or category management experience.
  • Intermediate Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and reporting/scorecarding skills.
  • Advanced executive communication skills, including concise recommendation writing, decision framing, facilitation, and fact-based storytelling.

About Walgreens

Walgreens is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2010 sales of $67 billion. The company operates 7,689 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services, and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility, and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers, and the public sector. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.

Walgreens Careers

Joining Walgreens means becoming part of a team dedicated to inspiring health and well-being across America. As a cornerstone of the community, Walgreens offers unparalleled job opportunities in the retail and healthcare sectors, making it an ideal place for professional growth and innovation. Work You’ll Do At Walgreens, every position contributes to our mission of delivering premier health solutions while ensuring a diverse and inclusive workplace that fosters growth. Our team members are at the forefront of transforming customer experiences through dedication and expertise. Lead with Innovation and Leadership Embrace the opportunity to lead at Walgreens, where we combine industry expertise with a culture of innovation. Our leadership is committed to nurturing a professional environment where ideas thrive and leadership skills are honed through comprehensive diversity training and leadership development programs. Engage in Meaningful Work Join a team that values hard work and creativity, where your skills will be enhanced through challenging projects and collaborative team efforts. Walgreens is not just about filling prescriptions—it's about offering solutions that promote healthier communities. Explore Career Opportunities Whether you're looking for an entry-level position or a more advanced professional role, Walgreens offers a range of career paths in dynamic business areas. From in-store roles to corporate support, our job opportunities are designed to fit a variety of skills and interests. Internship and Employment Benefits Start your career with a Walgreens internship and gain hands-on experience that paves the way for future employment. Our interns work on real projects that matter, gaining skills that are crucial for future success. Full-time team members enjoy a wealth of benefits, including comprehensive health coverage, retirement plans, and exclusive employee discounts. Invest in Your Career Growth Walgreens is committed to the career development of our employees. We provide resources and training that encourage continuous learning and career advancement. With support for certifications and networking opportunities, team members can expand their professional horizons and achieve their career goals. Stay Connected Join Our Team Discover the diverse range of hiring opportunities at Walgreens by exploring open positions that match your skills and interests. We are looking for passionate, curious, and solution-driven team players ready to make a significant impact. Keep Up to Date Stay informed with career tips, insider perspectives, and industry-leading insights you can put to use today—all from the people who work at Walgreens. Job Alert Emails Customize your subscription to receive job alerts, the latest news, and insider tips tailored to your preferences. Explore the exciting and rewarding opportunities that await at Walgreens. At Walgreens, we are excited to see where your ambition takes you. Join us and be part of a team that is dedicated to shaping the future of health and wellness for everyone.
Learn more about Walgreens
Size
202,000 employees
Market Cap
$32.8 billion
Industry
Net Income
-$696 million
Founded
1901
5 Year Trend
+2.3%
Revenue
$141.5 billion
NASDAQ

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