Retail Buyer Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

This post provides detailed information on the retail buyer job description, including the key duties, tasks, and responsibilities they commonly perform.

It also highlights the major requirements you may be expected to meet to be hired for the retail buyer role by most recruiters/employers.

What Does a Retail Buyer Do?

A retail buyer is responsible for ensuring the best deals and prices for the retailer by their company.

The retail buyer job description entails managing a designated retail spend budget effectively within the authorized guidelines.

It also involves ensuring that the store has all products needed daily or weekly on their shelves and in good quality.

Retail buyers negotiate with vendors, suppliers, manufacturers, and other third parties on behalf of their organization as needed to secure the desired goods at a reasonable price.

The senior management use effective tactics for maximum results within budgetary parameters.

They develop long-term relationships with key suppliers to ensure regular delivery of specifications of goods at a cost that meets the budget set by management.

Ensuring quality standards are maintained during the production process and the after-sales service at a reasonable price so that additional profits can be made by the retailer.

They help to prevent theft and fraud by making sure that prices are reasonable and that various discounts are offered on different products, in order to increase sales volume while also reaching new suppliers as needed.

Retail buyers work with a team of buyers, including stockists and salespeople to ensure efficient use of available resources and high result from each transaction.

Additionally, the buyer is responsible for assuring all products are handled properly, accurately and within the guidelines of correct legal and regulatory compliance.

This professional has a duty to the retailer and the retail community, by ensuring the correct legal requirements are set and followed.

The retail buyer work description involves negotiating with suppliers and other third parties on behalf of the retailer to secure all goods at a reasonable price in accordance with the company’s carefully-established purchasing policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and guidelines set by senior management.

Retail Buyer Job Description Example/Sample/Template

The retail buyer job description consists of the following duties, tasks, and responsibilities:

• Manages store-level merchandise purchases, while ensuring they are profitable
• Reviews sales results with different store locations and finds ways to improve in-store sales
• Provides input to merchandising teams during preparation of buying plans and also evaluates their implementation of the plans
• Oversees the performance of other buyers according to company policies and procedures, manages inventory records, and conducts inventory counts as needed
• Researches, selects, and implements new merchandise based on business objectives and store trends, while ensuring that merchandise is profitable
• Develops buying strategies for items such as seasonal promotions, gift-with-purchase promotions, counter sales of promotional items, and set-aside merchandise
• Evaluates store traffic to ascertain the effects of in-store sales promotion activities on overall sales and profitability of the retail outlet
• Analyzes customer preferences with regard to product quality and variety; conducts research on buying trends in various markets and geographic locations to determine merchandise that best meets these preferences
• Ensures that efficient and effective operations take place in the store
• Oversees allocation of company monies for all merchandise purchases, including various forms of discounts, credits, and allowances
• Understands basic merchandising principles, including square footage utilization, product positioning, display types, and cost per unit sold.

Retail Buyer Job Description for Resume

If you have worked before as a retail buyer or are presently working in that role and are making a new resume or CV, then you can create a compelling Professional Experience section for you resume by applying the sample retail buyer job description provided above.

You can highlight the duties and responsibilities you have carried out or presently performing as a retail buyer in your resume’s Professional Experience by utilizing the ones in the above retail buyer job description example.

This will show that you have been successful performing the retail buyer duties and responsibilities, which can significantly enhance your chances of being hired for the new job, especially if it requires someone with some retail buyer work experience.

Retail Buyer Job Requirements: Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities for Career Success

Here are important retail buyer requirements candidates for the position may be expected to fulfill to be hired:

• Strong communication skills are needed to keep customers and vendors informed of store performance
• Good analytical skills are required to evaluate sales trends and the effectiveness of advertising, customer loyalty programs and other promotional activities, adjust inventories, etc.
• The ability to lead a team is necessary in order to motivate staff within the retail outlet or department in order to ensure effective business processes take place on a regular basis
• The ability to establish and maintain cooperative relationships with vendors and suppliers
• Ability to work well with others in a multidisciplinary environment as well as the ability to resolve any issues (such as customer complaints) that may arise during each workday
• Exceptional communication skills in order to liaise with colleagues from other departments, such as merchandising, purchasing, marketing, etc.
• Strong mathematical skills are needed in order to identify the average prices for stock-keeping units (SKUs) sold within each department or store location on a regular basis
• Ability to work well under pressure, deliver projects on time, and to multitask in order to produce excellent results
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to be able to make informed decisions regarding the purchase of new products or service offerings for the retail outlet or department on a regular basis
• Retail buyer job requirements also include the ability of retail buyers who are responsible for different stores and departments within a company together with an authority to make decisions and carry out final orders that have been previously agreed upon by senior management.

Retail Buyer Salary

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a retail buyer in the United States is $64,792.

Conclusion

To conclude, a retail buyer is responsible for managing in-store sales and profits, which include the purchase of merchandise from various suppliers.

The buyer also forecasts purchase orders, sets targets, and negotiates with vendors to ensure that all merchandise is profitable.

In addition to ordering merchandise for the store or department, the retail buyer develops buying strategies in order to increase profitable sales volume.

This post is helpful to individuals interested in the retail buyer career. They will be able to learn all they need to know about the duties and responsibilities retail buyers usually perform to decide if it’s the right job for them.

It is also beneficial to recruiters/employers in making a detailed job description for the retail buyer role, which they can apply in hiring for the position.