GRACE CHRISTENSON
Minneapolis,MN
Summary
Data-driven retail analyst with expertise in forecasting trends and guiding product assortments across Beauty, Personal Care, Baby, and OTC categories. Skilled in leveraging Amazon and cross-retailer data to identify whitespace opportunities, emerging brands, and optimal pricing strategies for major retailers, such as Target, Walmart, and Costco. Adept at delivering actionable insights to buyers, vendors, and sales teams, supporting large cross-functional groups with timely traffic and sales reporting, and monitoring social trends to inform brand launches and growth strategies.
Overview
3
3
years of professional experience
Work History
Insights Associate
THE BLUEBIRD GROUP
01.2024 - 09.2025
- Analyzed Amazon shopper data to forecast future trends, identify white spaces, and make assortment recommendations to buyers in categories across the Beauty, Personal Care, Baby, and OTC spaces for retailers like Target, Walmart, and Costco.
- Utilized cross-retailer data to evaluate product-level trends and themes to help vendors build the right assortment, with the right features, at the right price.
- Supported 204 coworkers, their buyers, and vendor partners by cross-sharing weekly insights regarding foot and digital traffic for key retailers, including Target, Walmart, and Best Buy.
- Identified emerging brands in the fastest-growing categories across retail, and collaborated with the sales team to provide key insights to support brand launches at retail.
- Implemented the use of various social tools to monitor and track the longevity of existing and emerging brands and trends.
- Assisted the sales team by providing weekly and monthly views of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods sales data across the Beauty, Personal Care, Baby, and OTC spaces.
Assistant Merchant Intern
KOHL'S
06.2023 - 08.2023
- Analyzed and interpreted weekly performance of all 14 brands in Women's Active to understand marketplace position by generating reports using in-house systems.
- Ensured timely and relevant communication across multiple departments by sending out weekly emails regarding the state of the Activewear business to all 22 members of the Merchandising and Production teams.
- Executed Kohl's promotional pricing strategy to meet vendor pricing policies and maximize value to the consumer.
- Collaborated with Merchant and Production teams to plan Tek Gear's Spring 2024 merchandise assortment based on customer preferences and market trends.
- Conducted daily website scrubs to ensure product offerings and prices reflected Kohl's marketing and promotional strategies.
- Partnered with 5 other interns across several departments to plan a new product line for Kohl's to enhance its current portfolio and reach a younger target audience.
Category Management Intern
JL BUCHANAN
06.2022 - 08.2022
- Utilized Target's systems to identify and report key performance indicators to assist buyers in making merchandise decisions.
- Conducted industry research to better understand the dried fruit, plush/novelty toy, and sexual health categories at Target.
- Monitored market to capitalize on category trends and determine white space opportunities for Target within the sexual health category.
- Reviewed Target's sales data to make merchandising recommendations, and build planograms.
- Completed an intern project focused on redesigning the OTC space at Target.
- Performed retail audits of Target's competitors to compare prices and merchandise.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Marketing
University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management
Minneapolis12-2023
Skills
- Data analysis
- Retail merchandising
- Trend forecasting
- Competitive analysis
- Vendor collaboration
- Cross-functional teamwork
- Data visualization
- Insight generation
References
References available upon request.
Timeline
Insights Associate
THE BLUEBIRD GROUP
01.2024 - 09.2025
Assistant Merchant Intern
KOHL'S
06.2023 - 08.2023
Category Management Intern
JL BUCHANAN
06.2022 - 08.2022
Bachelor of Science - Marketing
University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management
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