Lifestyle

Outdoor

Skate

Snow

Surf

Surfing and travel

Chief Merchant

Entrepreneurial, results-oriented fashion professional with 19 years industry experience and a proven track record of increasing sales and profitability. Extensive experience in merchandising, design, product development, production, financial management, and retail store management. Ability to balance and juggle creative and financial tasks;   Excellent taste level, keen eye for spotting trends and identifying growth opportunities

•	Managed all aspects of the business during a very stressful,  eminent Chapter 11 situation
•	In addition to all of my below DMM responsibilities,  took over management of the entire office, with a staff of 8, including 2 director levels
•	Created and executed all in store and web promotions in order to maximize sales during a very competitive retail environment 


•	Managed all 9 of Naartjies’ depts, including Girls & Boys 0-10 yrs,  Girl Tween, Shoes, Socks, and Baby bedding and décor; Product categories included knits, wovens, denim , and sweaters.
•	Grew the business from $12 million in sales and 10 stores to $42 million is sales with 55 brick and mortar stores, a US website, and a Canadian website
•	Determined tops down and bottoms up plans by dept and company. Determined and executed pricing and markdown strategies for all departments in order to maximize sell through and GM$’s
•	Balanced historical analysis with market trends to build compelling assortments that would drive bottom line sales and profitability
•	Drove the trend and product development process from concept to consumer in all departments
•	Directed design team in South Africa to create trend and market appropriate designs for the USA market; Extensive trend shopping experience in US and overseas
•	In addition to overseeing all design for the company, I physically designed and launched completely new businesses such as sleepwear and infant bedding/décor  on a shoe string budget with no help from the SA design team
•	Used my expertise in baby safety to bring the company into compliance with all of the US CPSC regulations
•	Trained assistant merchants and production team
•	Was instrumental in creating and overseeing a production office in the US.
•	Worked collaboratively with production team on all production approvals, trouble shooting production issues, costing, and

Divisional Merchandise Manager

•	Designed , sourced , and developed one of the first lines of functional surf apparel made specifically for women over the age of 25
•	Responsible for all functions of running  an apparel design/manufacturing business
•	Oversaw a team of  freelance graphic designers and fit models
•	Responsible for all vendor sourcing and solely managed the entire production process
•	Handled all financial matters pertaining to the business
•	Responsible for all creative direction pertaining to the company’s brand image
•	Developed a 6 page color catalog for a direct mailing to 1000 stores

President/ Founder

Merchandise Manager – Old Navy Baby Boys (Jan 2002 – Oct 2003)
•	Volume 2002  = $205 M
•	Increased retail sales in 2002 by 12%, and gm$ by 17%
•	Served as the cross-functional leader of the entire baby boys division; cross-functional team includes merchandising, production, planning, distribution, design, visual, and tech services
•	Merchandised and developed the product line in order to meet financial objectives and provide the customer with a  fashion-right and exciting assortment
•	Reviewed sales, receipt flow, inventory and margin projections in order to maximize sales and minimize risk.
•	Effectively trained, managed and supported the career development of 3 direct reports in order to ensure job satisfaction and retention
•	Used my men’s logo experience to turn around a down-trending graphics business; achieved a +32% increase in rtl sales, and increased gm$ by +57 %

Merchandise Manager

Merchandise Manager – Old Navy Women’s Knits (June 2001 – Jan 2002)
•	Volume 2002 = $400 M
•	Increased 2002 retail sales by 19%, and gm$ by 35%
•	Turned around a down-trending knit business by offering fashion-right, democratic silhouettes in a more saleable color palette
•	Used chase strategies to react to trends  and turned liabilities into volume drivers; generated an additional $1 M in gm$ by turning a $10.50 key item knit into a $16.50 fashion polo

Merchandise Manager – Old Navy Women’s Denim, Outerwear, and Dresses (Jan 2001-June 2001)
•	Volume 2001= $410 M  
•	Increased 2001 retail sales by 3%  
•	Re-strategized the denim business, completely changing the face of old navy denim; launched the ultra-lowrise fit 
•	Worked closely with domestic and Far East factories to source high quality products, and achieve on-time deliveries.
•	Negotiated factory placements overseas, resulting in a cost savings of $ 5 million, and an imu  improvement of 4 %

Merchandise Manager / Senior Merchandiser – Old Navy Men’s Logo (Dec 1999- Jan 2001)
•	Volume 2000= $230 M – grew logo to be the # 1 retail contributor in the men’s division
•	Repositioned the logo business in order to maximize sales opportunity, and become the fastest turning dept in Old Navy; improved turn by 1 week, and improved net gm% by 2.2 %
•	Reduced our chase turn-around time from 8 to 4 weeks by implementing a blank storage strategy with my key T-shirt vendor.
•	Planned the largest T-shirt buy in the history of Old Navy, buying 8.2 million units, and creating a chase strategy for an additional 1.0 million units. 
•	Expanded sourcing strategy to India, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Korea, resulting in an improved level of quality at a lower cost; improved imu by 3%
•	Worked closely with screen printers on new graphic techniques and washes to ensure that my assortment was fashion-right and exciting

Senior Merchant/ Assistant Merchant

Find out detailed information about Sandi Woleslagle Graham, Chief Merchant in Pacifica, CA

Sandi Woleslagle Graham: Chief Merchant in Pacifica, CA

Sandi Woleslagle Graham

Naartjie Kids

Naartjie Kids Clothing

Aqua Chica Surf Apparel

Aqua Chica Surf Apparel

Gap Inc.

Gap Inc.

Gap Inc.