Director of Inventory Planning

Director of Inventory Planning

Ernesta Custom Rugs New York, NY (Hybrid)

About Ernesta

Ernesta is building a new kind of rug company-focused on beautiful custom rugs delivered with speed, transparency, and exceptional customer experience. As a fast-growing startup in the home category, we're building modern systems and processes that allow us to scale thoughtfully while maintaining a high bar for product quality and service.

We're looking for an experienced Inventory Planning Lead to build and own our inventory planning function. This person will establish the frameworks, processes, and tools that guide how we plan purchases, manage inventory investment, and scale our operations as the business grows.

This is a high-impact, foundational role reporting directly to the CFO. You will play a key role in shaping how Ernesta manages inventory and working capital while partnering closely with leadership, merchandising, and our external manufacturing partners.

What You'll Do

• Build Ernesta's inventory planning function
• Design and implement the company's inventory planning framework, including inventory targets, replenishment strategy, stocking model and purchasing cadence (managing monthly open to buy process)
• Establish scalable processes, reporting, and tools that bring structure and visibility to inventory management as the business grows
• Develop planning models that inform purchasing decisions and help optimize inventory investment and working capital
• Translate demand signals into purchasing strategy
• Partner closely with Ernesta's demand team to translate demand forecasts into inventory plans and purchasing recommendations
• Define inventory targets and purchasing quantities across our product portfolio
• Work with the CFO to align inventory investment with company financial goals and growth plans
• Establish guidelines for reorder timing, buy depth, and inventory coverage to ensure the right inventory is available at the right time
• Work directly with manufacturing partners
• Collaborate with vendors to align production planning with expected demand and inventory targets
• Manage purchasing cadence and production timelines while accounting for product-specific lead times and manufacturing constraints
• Proactively identify supply risks or constraints and recommend solutions to maintain product availability
• Drive data-driven decision making
• Establish and track key inventory metrics such as inventory turns, weeks of supply, stockouts, and forecast accuracy
• Analyze trends and performance to improve planning accuracy and inventory efficiency
• Provide clear insights to leadership that support better operational and financial decision-making
• Own, execute and scale the function
• Serve as Ernesta's internal expert on inventory planning and purchasing strategy
• Build structure and clarity around how inventory decisions are made across the company
• Execute on purchasing strategy through PO placement, vendor outreach and in-stock management
• Over time, help scale the planning function as the business grows

What We're Looking For

• 6-8+ years of experience in inventory planning, merchandise planning, or demand planning within a retail or consumer brand
• Deep understanding of forecasting inputs, inventory planning frameworks, and purchasing strategy
• Experience planning inventory around supplier lead times and production schedules
• Highly analytical with the ability to translate data into clear decisions and action
• Comfortable building new processes and systems in a fast-moving startup environment
• Strong collaborator able to work cross-functionally with leadership, demand planning, and external vendors
• Nice to Have:
• Experience in home goods, furniture, rugs, textiles, or similar categories
• Experience building or formalizing inventory planning processes at a growing company
• Familiarity with ERP or inventory planning systems (NetSuite or similar)

Why This Role Matters

As Ernesta continues to grow, strong inventory planning will be critical to delivering great customer experience while managing inventory investment responsibly. This role will shape how we translate demand into purchasing decisions, partner with manufacturing vendors, and build the operational foundation needed to scale the business.

Ernesta is Committed to Inclusion

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.

Compensation

The anticipated starting base pay for this role is between $170,000 to $190,000. This range represents the low and high end of the anticipated base salary range for this role. The actual base pay is dependent upon many factors, such as experience, education, and role-based skills. This role is also eligible for early-stage company equity (ask us about this and why this is important), health benefits, flexible paid time off, and more.