1. MOLLY BROWN
7359 Grandview Court, Carpentersville, IL 60110
P: (847) 971-4108 C: (224) 803-6671 E: mbrow56@gmail.com
RETAIL MERCHANDISING/MARKETING
Dynamic and highly experienced retail and merchandising specialist with expertise in managing
multiple product categories generating over $200M in annual sales.
Ability to develop and build excellent relationships with vendors and key stakeholders; and
create innovative merchandise assortments, which will increase sales and drive profits.
Highly organized with the ability to quickly identify opportunities and implement effective
solutions.
Strong negotiation, communication, interpersonal and presentation skills; able to make
organizational decisions that increase efficiency and streamline operations.
Skills include, but are not limited to:
Retail Inventory Management Managing Vendor Relationships
Customer/Franchisee Management Business Development
New Product Development Promotional Planning and Forecasting
Sales & Trend Forecasting Assorting and Merchandising
Financial Planning Margin Management
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
SEARS HOMETOWN AND OUTLET STORES, 2012 – Present
Hoffman Estates, IL
SENIOR NATIONAL MERCHANT, HOMETOWN AND APPLIANCE & HARDWARE STORES
Hoffman Estates, IL (2012-Present)
• Manage assortment, marketing and pricing for 38 separate product categories
accounting, over 12,000 items, generating sales of over $200M in 2015
• Single point of contact for format inventory reduction initiative. Created database used
to identify 5000+ slow moving items. Streamlined in-store signing and updated over
100 planograms.
• Restructured and restored relationships with both the vendor community and Sears
Holdings Corporation associates after Sears Hometown and Outlet Store spinoff in
October 2012
• Primary decision maker for holiday outpost program in over 900 Hometown and
Appliance & Hardware stores. Determined assortment, design and implementation of
“holiday gift bar.” Resulted in over $26M in sales between Black Friday and December
26, 2014.
• Helped to design and implement a new pricing strategy for all businesses in Sears
Hometown and Outlet organization. Subject matter expert on pricing and pricing
systems for Sears Hometown and Outlet Merchandising organization

2. SEARS HOLDINGS CORPORATION/SEARS ROEBUCK & COMPANY, 1995-2012
Hoffman Estates, IL
NATIONAL MERCHANT, HOMETOWN AND APPLIANCE & HARDWARE STORES
Hoffman Estates, IL (2010-2012)
• Developed merchandising and marketing programs for each product category for both
retail outlets.
• Managed merchandising for 46 product categories in over 1000 stores generating sales
of $240M annually.
• Collaborated with vendors to develop new and innovative merchandising opportunities.
• Re-assorted all product categories; identified item additions and deletions, constructed
financial plan for markdowns and built 150+ plan-o-grams.
• Performed a category review for the ‘Do-It-Yourself’ product line; reviewed space
allocation, implemented changes to the plan-o-grams and introduced new vendors.
MERCHANDISER, SEARS APPLIANCE & HARDWARE STORES,
Hoffman Estates, IL (2007-2010)
• Tracked trends; developed and implemented merchandising plans; and maintained
regular communication with 106 stores.
• Created new merchandising strategy for 43 separate product categories, which
generated $175M annually. Negotiated subsidies with vendors and collaborated to create
unique store displays.
• Managed space allocation, secured fixtures and redesigned floor plans.
BUSINESS MARKETING PLANNER, SEARS APPLIANCE & HARDWARE STORES,
Hoffman Estates, IL (2004-2007)
• Created and implemented a production and marketing plan for Appliance & Hardware
Stores
• Developed and maintained excellent relationships with buying team members.
• Developed production plans based on promotions and sales trends to ensure business
goals were achieved.
• Created the layouts and authenticated offers; worked closely with advertising agencies
and stakeholders to verify data and generated an event recap report.
REQUIREMENTS ANALYST, SEARS APPLIANCE & HARDWARE STORES,
Hoffman Estates, IL (May 1999-2004)
• Delivered strategic sourcing decisions, discontinued 150+ items and selected new
vendors for 300+ products.
• Made company inventory decisions, which supported over $600M in sales annually.
• Selected by senior executives to choose a new replenishment and allocation tool for the
Sears Corporation.
EDUCATION
BACHELOR OF ARTS JOURNALISM, MINOR: COMMUNICATION,
INDIANA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, Indiana, PA