Sr. Demand Planner - Retail

Work Location: Scottsdale, AZ Work Arrangement: This is an on-site position requiring five days per week in our Scottsdale, AZ office. Candidates should be comfortable with this work arrangement before applying. Compensation is negotiable and will be based on qualifications and experience. About the Role:

Are you passionate about turning data into smart decisions that drive business growth? As a Sr. Demand Planner, you’ll play a key role in shaping our product strategy by forecasting demand, analyzing trends, and planning inventory across our retail network. You’ll help ensure our product assortment meets customer needs, aligns with market trends, and supports our sales goals. This role is highly collaborative; you’ll work closely with teams across Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, and Merchandising to build proactive inventory strategies and identify opportunities for category growth.

What You’ll Do:

• Demand Forecasting & Planning
  • Build and refine short-term and long-term demand forecasts at the SKU, customer, and channel levels.
  • Use statistical tools and historical data to predict future demand and adjust for promotions or seasonal shifts.
  • Monitor forecast accuracy, explain variances, and continuously improve forecasting processes.
  • Lead S&OP (Sales & Operations Planning) conversations with local and regional partners.
• Sales Collaboration
  • Partner with Sales Leaders, Buyers, and Merchandisers to incorporate customer insights, promotional calendars, and product launches into demand plans.
  • Share demand insights during monthly S&OP meetings.
  • Support vendor and account meetings with clear inventory turnover and depletion strategies.
• Reporting & Analysis
  • Analyze historical sales, category trends, and customer POS data to uncover growth opportunities and risks.
  • Present findings and recommendations to senior leadership.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives focused on forecasting accuracy and data integrity.
• Cross-Functional Alignment
  • Collaborate with Marketing, Supply Chain, Buying, and Merchandising to ensure forecasts align with brand strategies and inventory goals.
  • Work with Operations to align production plans with demand while minimizing excess inventory.
  • Support new product introductions by forecasting initial demand and tracking post-launch performance.

What You’ll Bring:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain Management, Economics, Statistics, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
• 5+ years of hands-on experience in retail demand planning, forecasting, or sales planning, with responsibility for developing, maintaining, and analyzing demand forecasts in the food, beverage, or consumer packaged goods industries.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including VLOOKUP, XLOOKUP, PivotTables, and working with large or raw data sets to independently analyze trends and develop forecasts.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze demand and inventory performance, with working knowledge of retail metrics such as margin, inventory turnover, days of supply, and out-of-stock reporting.
• Experience forecasting at the SKU, category, customer, or channel level.
• Understanding of key retail demand drivers, including pricing, promotions, seasonality, assortment changes, historical sales trends, and inventory availability.
• Ability to work through data and solve problems independently, including situations where reporting, processes, or forecasting tools are not fully automated.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to identify trends, investigate variances, and translate data into actionable recommendations.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the confidence to ask questions, challenge assumptions when appropriate, and clearly communicate insights and recommendations to cross-functional partners.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate across functions such as Sales, Supply Chain, Merchandising, Buying, Marketing, or other retail business teams.
• Strong organizational and prioritization skills, with the ability to manage multiple forecasts, projects, deadlines, and competing business priorities simultaneously.
• Self-directed and proactive, with the ability to take ownership of work, operate effectively with limited oversight, and apply prior learning to new or ambiguous business challenges.
• Experience with business intelligence or reporting tools such as Power BI, Tableau, Omni, or similar platforms.

Even Better If You Have:

• Experience participating in or supporting an S&OP (Sales & Operations Planning) process.

Physical Requirements and Work Environment:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

While performing the duties of this Job, the employee is regularly required to stand, walk, sit, talk or hear, use hands to finger or feel. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms, climb and balance; stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl, lift up to 10 pounds.

This position has no special vision requirements.

This position requires high stress tolerance, adaptability, and flexibility. Ability to work in an ever-changing environment.