Kristin (Willhite) Bowen
JCPenney
Buyer
Kristin graduated from Kansas State University in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Apparel and Textiles with a specialization in Apparel Marketing and a minor in Business. During her time at Kansas State she was a Human Ecology Ambassador.
After graduating, Kristin moved to Dallas and worked as a sales associate for Nordstrom for a year. She then started her career at JCPenney as an ecommerce assistant buyer in junior’s apparel and has since progressed to a buyer for the company.
Current responsibilities include the following:
- Manage product assortment, weekly promotional cadence, and inventory.
- Create comprehensive merchandise plans through sales, gross margin, and receipt flow analysis by category and style. Partner closely with asisstant buyers and planner to implement seasonal financial strategies, manage in-season markdowns, and execute contingency plans.
- Collaborate with internal product development, design, and sourcing. Develop detailed item plans that provide product direction and communicate financial goals to develop monthly deliveries that align with the brand aesthetic and company initiatives at the optimal cost.
- Partner with marketing, ecommerce, and visual teams to develop and execute promotional, merchandising, and visual strategies.