Executive Vice President of Merchandising

Role overview

CardsHQ is looking for an Executive Vice President of Merchandising to own the company’s merchandising direction across every product line, channel, and customer experience. This senior leader will shape growth, improve margin, strengthen inventory performance, refine product assortment, manage vendor relationships, and guide pricing and category expansion as the business scales into a national, multi-channel collectibles brand.

As a member of the executive leadership team, this person will steer the organization across buying, inventory planning and allocation, product development, repack products, merchandise operations, and any future merchandising functions. The role calls for a blend of commercial judgment, analytical thinking, leadership strength, and the ability to build scalable teams in a fast-moving entrepreneurial setting.

Location: Atlanta, GA. The working model is hybrid, with in-office work from Monday through Thursday and remote work on Fridays. Department: Merchandising. Reporting to: Chief Executive Officer. Employment type: Full-time.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the merchandising function at an executive level, including buying, inventory planning, allocation, product development, merchandise operations, and vendor management.
• Create and implement a company-wide merchandising plan that supports revenue expansion, profitability, customer growth, and long-term strategic goals.
• Own the annual merchandising business plan, covering category direction, inventory investment, financial targets, and growth priorities.
• Work closely with senior leadership to spot new opportunities, assess market shifts, and build strategies that strengthen competitive positioning.
• Direct buying strategy for sports cards and trading card games, including singles and sealed products.
• Set inventory productivity targets and ensure forecasting, planning, allocation, and replenishment processes are effective.
• Improve assortment performance across retail, ecommerce, live selling and breaking, marketplace, and wholesale channels.
• Build and maintain strategic relationships with manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, dealers, collectors, and other industry partners.
• Promote merchandising innovation through exclusive products, proprietary assortments, category growth, and stronger customer experiences.
• Collaborate across Media, Technology, Retail, Ecommerce, Finance, Operations, and Product to drive overall business growth.
• Partner with Media and Marketing to use audience insights, content, community engagement, and live programming in merchandising decisions, product launches, and demand creation.
• Develop reporting that clearly tracks sales performance, inventory health, margin, product life cycle results, and category trends.
• Design scalable merchandising processes, systems, and organizational structures to support future growth.
• Mentor and develop merchandising leaders and high-potential team members across the organization.
• Contribute to executive planning and other strategic company initiatives.
• Oversee current and future merchandising leadership roles, including VP of Buying, VP of Inventory Planning & Allocation, Director of Buying for sealed product, Repack Product Manager, future category managers, and dotted-line in-store buying teams.

Candidate profile

The ideal candidate brings deep merchandising experience, strong commercial insight, an analytical approach to decision-making, and the ability to lead and influence across functions. This role is best suited to someone who can build durable systems, guide teams, and help expand a high-growth business in the collectibles space.

Qualifications

• At least 15 years of progressive experience in merchandising, buying, planning, inventory, or commercial leadership.
• Background leading merchandising teams with direct accountability for revenue, margin, and inventory outcomes.
• Proven record of designing and executing merchandising strategies that deliver profitable growth.
• Strong command of assortment planning, inventory control, forecasting, pricing, allocation, and vendor management.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing teams.
• Strong financial understanding and the ability to interpret performance and make data-backed decisions.
• Ability to influence executive stakeholders and align cross-functional partners.
• Experience building scalable processes and organizations in fast-growing environments.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and executive presentation skills.

Why this role stands out

CardsHQ is building one of the fastest-growing businesses in the collectibles industry. This opportunity lets you shape the future of the buying and merchandising organization while leading one of the company’s most strategic functions. You will help expand sourcing capabilities, create innovative buying approaches, apply technology to improve inventory acquisition, and contribute to building a premier destination for collectors across retail, ecommerce, live commerce, and future channels.