David DeRosa
Boynton Beach
Summary
Merchandising and operations executive with over 15 years of experience in high-volume retail and e-commerce sectors. Expertise in driving revenue growth, optimizing margins, and managing inventory across omnichannel platforms. Recognized for establishing strong vendor relationships and developing effective teams to leverage data for strategic business decisions.
Overview
16
16
years of professional experience
2
2
Certifications
Work History
Director of Merchandising
Birdiebox
Irving
11.2023 - Current
- Lead end-to-end merchandising, buying, and forecasting across all categories, owning GM%, GM$, sales, inventory turns, sell-through, and markdown cadence.
- Partner closely with the CEO and CFO to establish KPI frameworks and drive company-wide financial discipline.
- Delivered 10% unit growth while expanding gross margin by 275 basis points through pricing optimization, assortment refinement, and cost management.
- Spearheaded cost-reduction initiatives that produced nearly a 12% decrease in Cost of Goods Sold for 2024.
- Build and maintain strategic vendor partnerships through disciplined negotiation, securing favorable pricing, terms, and exclusives.
- Co-develop long-range assortment strategies for four proprietary brands, and key domestic partners.
- Collaborate with marketing to execute high-impact promotional campaigns with partners, including NCAA, ACC, US Open, DR Horton, and United Airlines.
- Coach and mentor domestic and international buying teams, strengthening analytical rigor and execution.
- Serve as a core, cross-functional leader, partnering weekly with marketing, sales, operations, and customer service to elevate the customer experience.
Director of Operations
BBC International
Boca Raton
01.2022 - 01.2023
- Directed operational strategy and execution to enhance organizational growth and service excellence.
- Led development of 12-person customer service organization, ensuring order accuracy and on-time shipment.
- Established KPIs and implemented process improvements to drive continuous performance enhancements..
- Owned compliance with routing guides and packaging standards, reducing chargebacks and operational risks.
- Oversaw e-commerce operations and customer onboarding for seamless partner integration.
- Collaborated with executive leadership to execute long-term corporate objectives and quality initiatives.
- Participated actively in Chargeback, RA, and PLM Committees.
Sr. Category Manager
Spreetail
Omaha
01.2022 - 01.2023
- Managed vendor relationships representing more than $60M in annual business across multiple product categories, including Trampolines and Toys.
- Delivered 14% category growth from 2020–2022 through disciplined assortment planning, pricing strategy, and promotional execution.
- Drove sales and profitability across leading marketplaces, including Amazon, Walmart, Target, Wayfair, eBay, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Kohl’s.
- Owned all Open-to-Buy (OTB) and financial metrics, including sales, inventory turns, COGS, margin, and inventory health.
- Designed and implemented 3-, 6-, and 12-month forecasting tools to support demand planning and scalable growth.
- Led pricing and promotional strategies across platforms to maximize visibility, conversion, and margin.
- Worked directly with manufacturing partners in China on private label development, managing design reviews, approvals, and production execution.
- Negotiated exclusive and special-makeup assortments for multi-platform distribution, driving differentiation and incremental margin.
Senior Buyer
Academy Sports and Outdoors
Katy
12.2018 - 07.2020
- Owned buying and merchandising functions for Baseball and Football hardlines, including sales, margin, inventory, and marketing.
- Managed $210M in annual sales while achieving margin, turn, and inventory KPIs consistently.
- Delivered $3M sales increase in Football, exceeding category KPIs in 2019.
- Executed strategic category plans aligned with enterprise financial growth objectives.
- Partnered with finance to develop forecasts, budgets, and sales initiatives.
- Led development of Assistant Buyers, Replenishment Analysts, and Planners to enhance team performance.
- Directed chain-wide floor plan realignments to improve shopability and category effectiveness.
- Collaborated with import teams on private label innovations and cost optimization.
Senior Buyer
Sports Authority
Englewood
03.2010 - 05.2018
- Directed merchandising and buying for Team Sports, Football, Sports Medicine, Volleyball, Hockey, Wrestling, Lacrosse, and related categories.
- Managed over $200 million in business across 17 categories in 465 stores nationwide.
- Led assortment planning, pricing strategy, advertising initiatives, inventory turnover, and vendor negotiations.
- Collaborated with planning teams to achieve sustained sales growth of 8% (2011), 12% (2012), 2% (2014), and 3% (2015).
- Established strategic partnerships with Nike, Under Armour, Adidas, Riddell, Wilson, North Face, Columbia, and other leading vendors.
- Presented monthly business reviews to senior leadership to highlight performance metrics.
- Supervised and developed teams of 12+ associates across multifunctional groups to enhance productivity.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - History
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Teaneck, NJ05-2003
Skills
- Merchandising strategy
- Financial forecasting
- Vendor negotiation
- Pricing optimization
- Inventory management
- E-commerce operations
Certification
ISSA Certified Personal Trainer
Accomplishments
Buyer of the Year 2012
Timeline
Director of Merchandising
Birdiebox
11.2023 - Current
Director of Operations
BBC International
01.2022 - 01.2023
Sr. Category Manager
Spreetail
01.2022 - 01.2023
Senior Buyer
Academy Sports and Outdoors
12.2018 - 07.2020
Senior Buyer
Sports Authority
03.2010 - 05.2018
Bachelor of Arts - History
Fairleigh Dickinson University