Ecommerce - Senior Manager of Ecommerce Merchandising

SUMMARY

At Magnolia, the Senior Manager of Ecommerce Merchandising is responsible for ensuring the right product is in the right place at the right time on the Magnolia ecommerce site, driving conversion and revenue through expert product curation, site merchandising execution, and promotional planning. This role owns what the customer sees and shops: homepage storytelling, category page sequencing, search and filter strategy, and how the assortment is surfaced to inspire discovery and drive purchase. The Senior Manager translates buy plans, inventory positions, and seasonal priorities into compelling site-level product experiences, serving as the connective tissue between the buying organization and the digital channel. This position works from Magnolia Headquarters in Waco, Texas. It reports to the Vice President of Ecommerce and has supervisory responsibilities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Own homepage merchandising strategy and execution, including seasonal storytelling, collection curation, hero product selection, and promotional placement, ensuring the homepage reflects current inventory positions and drives engagement toward high-priority categories and newness
• Lead category merchandising across the full Magnolia ecommerce assortment, translating buy plans and inventory positions into site-level product sequencing, sort order, and navigation strategies that drive conversion and revenue; this role determines what product the customer sees and in what order*
• Own search and filter strategy, ensuring the taxonomy, attributes, and product discovery tools surface the right assortment to the right customer; partner with the Director of Site Experience & Operations to ensure technical implementation supports merchandising intent
• Own promotional planning in partnership with finance and merchandise planning, including sale event architecture, markdown cadence, and promotional calendar development; provide the Director of Site Experience & Operations with clear promotional briefs so site production and content publishing can execute on time
• Define content and product storytelling strategy for the ecommerce channel, including which products to feature, what stories to tell, and how assortment aligns to seasonal narrative; hand off content briefs and direction to the Director of Site Experience & Operations for production and publishing execution*
• Serve as the ecommerce voice in assortment reviews, buy planning sessions, and seasonal strategy discussions, advocating for what the digital channel needs from a product perspective. including target SKU counts, depth vs. breadth decisions, and white space opportunities*
• Collaborate with Merchant Planning to understand where ecommerce category plans are landing, pressure-test assumptions against digital performance data, and advocate for adjustments that support online growth targets*
• Utilize site performance data and customer behavior analytics to drive merchandising improvements. Analyze what product is converting, what is being skipped, and where the assortment is under- or over-represented; partner with Ecommerce Analytics for data access and share recommendations with the VP of Ecommerce
• Lead assortment freshness strategy across key seasonal moments, including staggered newness drops and category-level launch sequencing to maintain engagement between promotional events
• Monitor competitor site merchandising, assortment strategies, and promotional execution to identify opportunities and bring forward actionable recommendations
• Identify merchandising capability gaps and advocate for tools, features, and platform enhancements that improve the team’s ability to execute category strategy and promotional planning at scale; surface these needs to the Director of Site Experience & Operations and VP of Ecommerce for roadmap prioritization*
• Collaborate cross-functionally with marketing, creative, and the Director of Site Experience & Operations to ensure alignment across channels and clear handoffs between merchandising strategy and site production execution
• Manage and develop the Ecom Merchant and Assistant Digital Merchant, building a high-performing merchandising function within ecommerce
• Perform other duties as assigned
• Metrics evaluated on Performance Review

COMPETENCIES

• Teamwork: Foster a team environment supporting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Build a team that exemplifies Magnolia cultural and operating values. Effectively evaluate team members' strengths and ensure members are operating in their strengths. Identify, communicate to, and train employees whose performance needs to improve.
• Critical Thinking: Evaluate and address problems quickly, efficiently, and effectively. Have an analytical and unbiased approach. Understand financial metrics, budgeting, and resource allocation to make decisions.
• Expertise: Maintain a thorough understanding of your area and each role in it to ensure all work is completed accurately and on time. Stay current on trends and advances in your field. Foster employees' abilities to become experts by connecting them with the resources and training needed.
• Communication: Actively engage in listening to teammates and guests and be open to feedback from guests, peers, and management. Interact with various stakeholders including executives and external stakeholders and utilize strong written and verbal communication skills to clearly, concisely, and accurately, convey ideas, expectations, and feedback.
• Guest Focus: Establish and uphold a culture of exceptional guest engagement and service, setting a standard through exemplary leadership.
• Strategy and Goal Setting: Approach change with positivity and curiosity, leading through ambiguity. Break down team goals into daily or weekly goals, establish metrics, and communicate what actions employees must take to contribute to achieving these goals.
• Hard Skills: Proficiency in Google Analytics or Adobe Analytics and Microsoft Excel required; hands-on experience with ecommerce merchandising tools, product sorting and sequencing platforms, and content management systems. Shopify experience strongly preferred. Familiarity with assortment planning frameworks and open-to-buy concepts a plus.

ELIGIBILITY QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree from a 4-year college or university preferred
• 5+ years of related work experience OR an equivalent combination of education and experience preferred
• 3+ years of managerial experience preferred
• Experience leading recruiting, talent management, and employee engagement initiatives preferred
• 6-8 years of related work experience in ecommerce merchandising, digital buying, or a closely related commercial function
• Experience working within or closely alongside a retail planning and buying organization strongly preferred; comfort engaging in assortment and open-to-buy discussions is a plus

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use hands and arms to reach, handle, feel; utilize fine motor dexterity of fingers; talk or hear and taste or smell. The employee is frequently required to stand and walk. The employee is frequently required to climb or balance and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to outside weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Magnolia is an Equal Opportunity Employer that does not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, sex or gender (including pregnancy, childbirth and pregnancy-related conditions), gender identity or expression (including transgender status), sexual orientation, marital status, military service and veteran status, physical or mental disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws and ordinances.

This job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by an employee in this classification. It is not to be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications of employees assigned to this job. Management has the right to add to, revise, or delete information in this description at any time.