Manager of Merchandising and Design [The Noguchi Museum]

The Noguchi Museum seeks a full-time, retail and merchandising professional to lead a team of customer service, Museum shop retail and fulfillment staff. The Noguchi Museum opened in 1985 as the first and only museum in the country to be founded by an artist during his lifetime and dedicated to his work. The collection and exhibitions focus on Isamu Noguchi’s extensive production, articulating the cultural time in which he worked, the many major cultural figures with whom he engaged, and his influence on the art and design of today. The Noguchi Museum offers a variety of education and public programs that seek to introduce the work and vision of Isamu Noguchi to diverse audiences. These programs encourage the investigation of Noguchi’s work from different vantage points and support participants as they experience the artist’s work from their own perspectives.

Working closely with and reporting to the Museum Director, the Manager of Merchandising and Design is charged primarily with the management of the Akari Light Sculpture business which is a major revenue stream for the Museum bringing in $1 million annually. We seek to further develop this enterprise. In addition to this line of business, the Museum’s holds licenses with manufacturers, such as Herman Miller, for Noguchi-designed furniture and objects. The Manager of Merchandising and Design must be able to manage these existing arrangements and help grow merchandising business by identifying and developing new product lines working with Senior Management, the Director and Committee of the Board of Trustees. Manager must also ensure high quality and design excellence when purchasing for the Museum Shop.

The successful candidate will be already engaged in the art and design community, with an interest in mid-century modernism and familiar with Noguchi’s production. At the same time, the candidate needs to have retail business experience, with a basic understanding of accounting and preferably experience with QuickBooks. A candidate with both an art and design background and business experience would be ideal.

Responsibilities include but not limited to:

• Conduct and create designs, projects and/or programs that clearly represent Noguchi
• Ensure design quality for Noguchi’s licensed designs and maintain contacts with all manufacturers
• Liase with trademark and intellectual property counsels
• Maintain contacts with high-valued wholesale customers such as Design Within Reach
• Assure high quality customer care across wholesale & retail lines of businesses
• Manage online store (design, inventory, item additions/subtractions, and promotions) Manage all bookkeeping, invoicing and monitoring of receivables for merchandising and museum shop
• Develop, prepare, analyze and review budgets and other financial reports
• Work with Museum’s Finance Manager and auditors on inventory controls and conduct bi-annual inventory of all products sold
• Monitor stock status and inventory and order all merchandising items accordingly
• Use QuickBooks to organize and locate inventory, and operate spreadsheet and word processing software
• Maintain relationship with vendors’ point person for vendor contact
• Set or recommend mark-up rates, mark-down rates, and selling prices for merchandise
• Negotiate prices, discount terms and transportation arrangements for merchandise
• Facilitate and attend relevant trade fairs

Position available June 1, 2015

Salary is commensurate with experience

Please send a cover letter and resume to jobs@noguchi.org and note “Manager of Merchandising and Design” in subject line.

No calls will be accepted. Only qualified applicants will be contacted.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in relevant fields of study, finance/accounting skills preferred
• 3-5 years relevant experience in retail or relevant design field
• Extensive knowledge of mid-century design
• Excellent customer service and client relations
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• Experience with shipping and warehouse environments
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and QuickBooks