Job description
Retail buyers plan, select, manage and acquire goods and merchandise to stock inventories inside stores and web outlets. They also review current supplies to ensure they’re in good quality, as well as source new products to remain competitive in a tough sector.
Duties
- Confer with store owner or management to determine budgets, goals and prices
- Determine the value of products that your store may be interested in
- Outline business strategies and how your company can sell these products
- Purchase merchandise for resale to retail or wholesale customers
- Maintain and organise inventories of merchandise, supplies and commodities
- Approve or disapprove auction transactions or return of stocks
- Meet with suppliers and negotiate prices, discounts, terms and transportation
- Inspect the goods to ensure they are of high quality and meet your corporate standards
- Communicate with clerks on product information, like price, style number, season code and markups/markdowns
- Analyse market conditions, industry trends and competitors’ buying habits and preferences
- Work with the marketing team to establish strategies to boost product awareness and appeal to shoppers
- Hold internal meetings to generate ideas on ways to sell new merchandise
Skills and qualities
Job outlook
Projected growth
-7%
New jobs
-32k
Automation risk
29%
Career progression
With experience, you can work your way into category development, contracts specialist, importing and exporting, and procurement management.
Working conditions
Average hours
40h/ week
Typical schedule
Full Time
Standard business hours
Retail buyers typically work more reasonable and reliable hours than somebody else employed in a brick-and-mortar store. That said, they can expect to work a standard a 9-to-5 schedule.
As a retail buyer, you will primarily work inside a store or other corporate locations, but you can expect plenty of local and international travel to meet suppliers, test out new products and attend industry conferences.
Salary
Bottom 10%
$37k
Median
$63k
Top 10%
$100k
Annual salary estimates are based on percentile wage data collected through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey of US workers.
Qualifications and training
Education level
Undergraduate
Bachelor’s degree in business or related subject
Study time
4 years
To become a retail buyer, you will generally need to possess a bachelor’s degree in business, finance, marketing or supply management. That said, it’s also possible to enter this profession with previous hands-on experience in the retail sector.
Although not required, gaining certification – such as the Certified Purchasing Professional (CPP) offered by the American Purchasing Society (APS) – can increase your job prospects.
Sources
American Purchasing Society (APS) Bureau of Labor Statistics O*NET OnLine Oxford Martin SchoolLast Updated: Wednesday, November 2, 2022
