New research shows merchandising leaders spending 70% of their time assembling data instead of making decisions.
Bain just confirmed what Chief Merchants already know.
Your teams aren't slow. They're drowning.
New research shows merchandising leaders spending 70% of their time assembling data instead of making decisions.
Category reviews that take three weeks to build. Supplier negotiations that require days of prep. Promotional plans locked in quarterly because the analysis cycle can't move faster.
Meanwhile, Walmart's merchants are getting answers in seconds. Target's category leaders are prepping vendor meetings in under an hour. Leading retailers are making promotional adjustments in real-time.
The gap isn't better spreadsheets. It's a fundamental shift from data assembly to decision velocity.
Bain documents retailers achieving 50-70% efficiency gains on core merchandising tasks:
Supplier negotiation prep: Days → 1 hour
Category strategy development: 3 weeks → 1 session
Promotional optimization: Quarterly cycles → Real-time adjustment
Here's what the consultancies won't tell you: technology without operational redesign just automates your current mediocrity faster.
And here's what matters more: If your best merchants are still building presentations instead of shaping strategy, you're not just losing efficiency. You're losing your best people.
They didn't sign up to be analysts. They signed up to be merchants.
While you're waiting for perfect conditions, your competitors are moving. That gap compounds every quarter.
Question for Chief Merchants: What percentage of your team's time is spent assembling data vs. making decisions that move the P&L?
Drop a number in the comments. Let's map what's really happening.
#NGGROWTH #NoraGomez #MerchandisingLeadership #AITransformation #ChiefMerchant #RetailStrategy