Merchandising Operations Manager, Consumer Products

JOB TITLE:   Merchandising Operations Manager    CLUB:  Seattle Sounders FC & Seattle Reign FC  DEPARTMENT:  Marketing (Consumer Products) TYPE:  Full-Time FLSA:  Exempt ROLE:    Individual Contributor OUR CLUBS Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC are united as one soccer family, driven by a shared commitment to excellence, growth, and impact on and off the pitch. Each club has independently forged a rich history of performance while connecting deeply with the community. Our clubs are continually pushing the boundaries of what's possible while fostering an inclusive culture- championing causes and building community connections to expand our reach and impact. Each match is an opportunity to bring together our community, celebrating our resilience, inclusivity, and a commitment to excellence. United in professional dedication- we are two clubs with one shared vision of progress and greatness.  POSITION SUMMARY The Merchandising Operations Manager will lead merchandising and consumer product operations for Seattle Reign FC, driving organization, execution, and cross-functional alignment across merchandise initiatives and retail experiences. This role serves as the operational owner for merchandise planning, launch timelines, vendor coordination, and retail execution, ensuring teams remain aligned on key deliverables and business priorities. This role will partner closely with the VP, Consumer Products to support go-to-market planning and execution across merchandise initiatives, including Shopify/e-commerce, matchday retail, and pop-up experiences. This individual will help translate strategic priorities into operational plans, ensuring launches, campaigns, and retail experiences are executed effectively and consistently across fan touchpoints. This role will also partner with the VP, Consumer Products to shape and execute visual merchandising direction across digital and physical retail environments, ensuring merchandise presentation and storytelling align with brand objectives and create compelling fan experiences. As a business owner, this individual will partner across teams to create scalable processes, improve operational efficiency, and drive business performance. This role will bring a forward-thinking mindset toward innovation and emerging technologies, identifying opportunities to leverage tools, automation, and AI-enabled solutions to improve workflows, support decision-making, enhance fan experiences, and scale consumer product operations. This role is ideal for an experienced merchandising professional who brings structure to fast-moving environments and can balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution, with opportunities to expand into broader product ownership over time. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Merchandise Planning & Operations   Own merchandising calendars, launch schedules, and key business milestones across consumer product initiatives   Establish and improve scalable merchandise processes and workflows that support repeatable execution   Drive operational organization across teams to ensure alignment on deliverables and launch readiness   Support budgeting, forecasting, and financial tracking for consumer product initiatives   Analyze business performance and provide insights and recommendations to improve revenue and operational effectiveness   Identify opportunities to streamline processes and improve efficiency across merchandising operations   Evaluate and implement new tools, technologies, and AI-enabled solutions that improve operational efficiency, workflow management, reporting, and decision-making across consumer products   Cross-Functional Program Management   Lead cross-functional initiatives and GTM activations involving Marketing, Design, Fan Engagement, Retail, and Impact teams   Drive alignment across stakeholders on priorities, timelines, and execution plans   Ensure key dates, launch milestones, and deliverables remain visible and on track across teams   Identify risks and proactively resolve roadblocks impacting merchandise initiatives   Merchandising & Product Launches   Partner with Consumer Products leadership on merchandise assortment planning, product launches, and seasonal activations   Conduct market and consumer analysis to inform product decisions and pricing strategies   Oversee product setup across e-commerce and retail systems, including pricing, barcoding, SKU management, and POS alignment   Partner with the VP of Consumer Products to establish and execute visual merchandising direction across e-commerce, matchday retail, and pop-up environments   Ensure merchandise presentation, product placement, and storytelling align with brand strategy and fan experience objectives   Evaluate product performance and provide recommendations for future assortment and merchandising opportunities   Go-to-Market & Retail Experience Execution   Partner with the VP of Consumer Products to execute go-to-market strategies across merchandise initiatives and launches   Support execution across Shopify/e-commerce, matchday retail, and pop-up experiences to ensure a consistent and elevated fan experience   Translate strategic priorities into actionable timelines, workflows, and cross-functional deliverables   Coordinate launch readiness across stakeholders to ensure successful execution of campaigns and retail activations   Partner with Marketing and Creative teams to support digital campaigns, product storytelling, and fan engagement initiatives   Support and optimize the end-to-end fan shopping experience across digital and physical retail channels   Monitor and evaluate key performance metrics and identify opportunities to improve operational efficiency and fan experience   Explore innovative approaches and emerging technologies that enhance merchandise storytelling, customer engagement, personalization, and digital shopping experiences   Establish