Freelance Inventory Strategy & Clearance Planner

Job Title: Freelance Inventory Strategy & Clearance Planner
Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Type: Contract
Work Model: Hybrid – onsite and remote
Hours: 40.0 hours per week

Overview
This freelance role focuses on developing and executing strategic inventory management and clearance plans for a retail organization. The successful candidate will analyze inventory performance, identify opportunities for markdowns and off-price sales, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to optimize inventory flow and profitability. The role emphasizes data analysis and strategic planning to manage aging stock, monitor sell-through curves, and implement effective product clearance strategies across multiple channels, including store and e-commerce. The candidate will be responsible for identifying stock liabilities, formulating promotional or liquidation exit strategies, and ensuring optimal product placement throughout the supply chain.

Responsibilities

• Strategy & Inventory Management
  • Formulate tiered markdown strategies to clear seasonal and excess inventory while protecting baseline profitability.
  • Monitor aging stock levels, analyze sell-through curves, and forecast clearance sales to proactively manage inventory liabilities.
  • Identify off-price, secondary market, or donation opportunities for obsolete or deeply broken-size-scale inventory to alleviate unproductive inventory.
  • Analyze and communicate product risks and opportunities, recommending and executing plans to re-balance product flow as necessary.
• Data-Driven Analysis & Reporting
  • Conduct post-season and post-promotion analyses to identify slow-moving categories, evaluate clearance performance, and refine future buy guidelines.
  • Develop and maintain reporting tools and dashboards to track clearance metrics, providing actionable insights to leadership.
  • Create ad-hoc analyses to react dynamically to current and future business environments.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • Partner with Inventory Planners, Merchandise Planners, and Merchandising to identify action plans for merchandise allocation and inventory initiatives.
  • Build strong partnerships with Store Operations & Field Visual to respond proactively and reactively to store needs and product placement.
  • Collaborate with E-commerce, Supply Chain, and Logistics to improve inventory flow, executing seamless markdowns, pullbacks, and transfers.

Requirements

• 3–5 years of experience in retail inventory planning, allocation, pricing strategy, or replenishment (Value/Off-Price retail experience is a major plus).
• Advanced proficiency in Excel and data visualization/reporting tools (e.g., Tableau, Cognos); sell-through curves, and margin math.
• Proven ability to analyze aging stock data and formulate profitable exit or promotional strategies.
• Exceptional relationship-building skills with a track record of working effectively across buying, planning, store operations, and logistics teams.

System One, and its subsidiaries including Joulé and Mountain Ltd., are leaders in delivering outsourced services and workforce solutions across North America. We help clients get work done more efficiently and economically, without compromising quality. System One not only serves as a valued partner for our clients, but we offer eligible employees health and welfare benefits coverage options including medical, dental, vision, spending accounts, life insurance, voluntary plans, as well as participation in a 401(k) plan.

System One is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, family care or medical leave status, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

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Ref: #404-IT Pittsburgh