What are the duties and responsibilities of a merchandiser?

Answer 1

A merchandiser is a person who stock products for a particular company. It differs from being a stock clerk for a store because the merchandiser only deals with the merchandise from a "vendor" company.

In a grocery store, certain things are done by the store stock clerks and other things are done by merchandisers. For instance, Nabisco cookie and cracker products are typically stocked by the merchandiser. The products are delivered to the store and the merchandiser comes into the store, collects the packages of cookies and puts them out on the shelf. They also clean the shelves, make sure the product is nice and neat and then goes to the next store.

Many things in grocery stores, pharmacies, and convenience stores are put there by companies who hire their own people. Cosmetics, Greeting cards, wine and beer, bread, chips, frozen Pizza, certain ice creams... a great many items are brought in and stocked to the shelves by these workers hired by the vendors rather than a store employee.

This arrangement allows for specialty items to be arranged by the merchandiser who have special knowledge of their products. Once the product is on the shelf, the store only has to make sure that the stray products return to the shelf rather than doing the whole thing.

Payment of the merchandiser is the responsibility of the vendor company, not the host store.