Career as a Retail Buyer

One of the most interesting job profiles in the retail industry, especially in the fashion sector, is that of a Retail Buyer. Retail buyers focus on developing product lines based on analytical information on market trends, and managing sales and margins. A buyer takes the responsibility for contract negotiations, inventory management, sales planning, forecasting and close coordination with the merchandising and operations teams.

It is a buyer's job to procure new merchandise and assess existing line of products and ensure that these products remain competitive in the market. He/she must have a clear understanding of the requirements of the consumers and must be able to increase the profit by making the merchandise commercially viable at attractive prices. A retail buyer/fashion buyer works closely with designers, their designated sales representatives and is engaged in activities like attending trade fairs, visiting wholesale showrooms and fashion shows to observe trends so that he/she can keep track of the market trend, which is also one of the major roles of a buyer.

In short, a buyer must consider the following factors when making purchase decisions:

• Consumer demand (e.g. price, quality and availability)
• Market trends
• Store policy
• Financial budgets

Educational qualification:

Candidate must have a minimum qualification of a Bachelor's degree in retail,fashion, marketing or other related field preferably.

Skills required:

Here are some of the essential skills one must have to become a professional retail buyer:

• Retail buyers must have a good sense of retail and product trends
• He/she should have strong analytical skills and eye for detail
• Must have computer skills and working knowledge of resource
• planning and forecasting
• Must have outstanding leadership, negotiation and planning skills

Job Avenues

Most retail buyers find excellent job opportunities in the fashion industry. However, a retail buyer can also find jobs in other sectors like electronics, furniture, art, jewelry, hardware, etc. They may work for large department stores, chain stores or smaller boutiques while others work for the corporate offices of major store chains.

In major fashion stores, here are some of the job profiles based on the level of seniority:

1. Trainee buyers
2. Assistant buyers
3. Senior buyers
4. Buying managers
5. Buying directors

Remuneration

The salary of a retail buyer varies with scale of operation and the number of departments buying is responsible for. However, the annual salary package ranges from Rs 2.4 lakh to Rs 7.5 lakh.

Where to study?

Here are some of the institutes in India offering retail programmes:

• Indian Retail School
• Institute of Public Enterprise
• Future Innoversity
• Symbiosis Centre for Distance Learning (SCDL)
• Academy Of Applied Arts