Owndays - Buying and Planning Lead
On-siteDelhi, Delhi, India
Job Summary
Own global demand forecasting and open-to-buy planning across frames, lenses, and accessories, driving forecast accuracy through disciplined S&OP cycles and machine learning adoption. Lead vendor capacity planning and procurement intelligence to align production with demand, while reducing lead times and improving inbound predictability. Manage the full inventory lifecycle from purchase order strategy to stock monitoring, ensuring 98%+ inventory accuracy and scalable guardrails for new geographies. Partner with cross-functional teams to translate financial plans into actionable buy quantities and present strategic recommendations to senior leadership. Requires needs-based travel across Asia, the Middle East, and beyond to work directly with vendors and regional teams.
Required Qualifications
- Proven experience in inventory management, merchandise planning, buying planning, or supply chain roles
- At least 5 years in a strategic leadership capacity
- Demonstrated experience in high-SKU, omni-channel, or retail-at-scale environments
- Experience in demand forecasting
- Experience in OTB management
- Experience in vendor capacity planning
- Experience in lead-time reduction
- Strong understanding of inventory turns, fill rates, markdowns, and working capital
- Hands-on fluency with ERP/WMS platforms
- Experience with advanced analytics tools
- Practical experience applying forecasting methodologies — time-series, statistical, ML-assisted — to real inventory decisions
- Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Engineering, Operations Research, Business, or a related quantitative field
- Willingness to travel on a needs basis across global markets
Desired Qualifications
- MBA or advanced degree
- Background in retail, eyewear, fashion, consumer goods, or another fast-moving category with high SKU complexity
- Exposure to automated warehouses
- Exposure to phygital retail models
- Exposure to in-house manufacturing ecosystems
- Consulting backgrounds with deep operational exposure
- AI-Native Thinking
- Precision at Scale
- Ownership Mentality
- Builder's Drive
- Versatile Communication
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