# JOB TITLE: Retail Assistant Buyer

REPORTING TO:Retail Buyer & Product Developer

ROLE PURPOSE:To support theBuyer & Product Developer in the development of range of merchandise to be sold through the website and external physical locations.Responsible for delivering ranges within the Poppy Shop portfolio of products. To provide administrative support for the Buying & Merchandising Team. Provide support to ensure responsible sourcing of products, management of suppliers, and product and image databases. Assist with product development, product range building and selection and competitor analysis.

Key Responsibilities:

Buying a commercial product range

  • Assist the Retail Buyer & Product Developer in delivering the budgeted sales and margin targets for the Poppy Shop.
  • As the Retail Assistant Buyer you will be responsible for the sourcing and product development of ranges within the Poppy Shop portfolio of products ensuring all profit margins are maximised and sales budgets are met.
  • Assisting in product research and competitor analysis.
  • Assisting with the organisation of the product range selection, pricing and promotion for all relevant product assortments.

Managing budgets, payments and reporting

  • Supporting the production and review of trading results providing insights into Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and proceeding actions.
  • Raising purchase orders in an accurate and timely fashion as directed.
  • Maintaining the commitment tracker report with up to date order information. Ensure invoices are matched correctly with orders and paid within the agreed payment terms of each supplier.
  • Liaising with Poppy Shop internal tem and third party fulfilment centre to ensure product/collection meets demand.

Negotiation and Relationship Building

  • Understand Cost of Goods and net profitability of the category and seek to identify proactive ways of enhancing net contribution.
  • Supporting the Buying and Merchandising team by providing excellent administrative and operational support.

Administrative duties

  • Supporting the Buying and Merchandising team by providing excellent administrative and operational support.
  • Maintaining supplier, product and pricing information.
  • Setup new products on the Poppy Shop website, ensuring appropriate sign-off is obtained and all information kept up-to-date on the website.
  • Liaising with suppliers regarding deliveries, arrange delivery slots with the warehouse if necessary. Flagging any issues surrounding production / deliveries. Accepting deliveries on the relevant stock systems.
  • Any other duties as are within the scope, spirit and purpose of the job, the title of the post and its grading as requested by the line manager, Retail Buying & Merchandising Manager or Head of Department (HoD)

This job description reflects the current requirements of the role. As duties and responsibilities change and develop, this will be reviewed and will be subject to amendment in consultation with the post-holder.

General:

  • To implement the Equal Opportunities policy into your daily activities wherever possible.
  • To be responsible for your own health and safety and that of your colleagues, in accordance with the Health and Safety at Work act (1974) and relevant EC directives, including reporting any health and safety hazard immediately you become aware of it.
  • To work in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998) and to ensure all new systems are reported to the Data Protection Officer.
  • The job will involve occasional evening and weekend work for which time in lieu may be taken. Some flexibility with hours and travel is required.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

CRITERIA / ESSENTIAL / DESIRABLE / HOW TO BE MEASURED
QUALIFICATIONS
Good Standard of General Education / E / Application
KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE
Experience in a similar role, or buying support role within a Retail environment / E / Application/Interview
Demonstrable evidence of knowledge of buying and product development principles and best practice / E / Application/Interview
Strong organisational and administrative skills are required. / E / Application/Interview
Demonstrate evidence of researching retail market place and market trends and making recommendations to the Buyer / D / Application/Interview
Evidence of maintaining supplier and product database, specification sheets and ensuring supplier and product compliance to legal requirements / D / Application/Interview
COMPETENCIES
Planning and Organising (Level 1) / E / Interview
Teamwork (Level 1) / E / Interview
Commercial Awareness (Level 1) / E / Interview
Analytical Problem Solving (Level 1) / E / Interview
Results Focus (Level 2) / E / Interview
SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES
Strong IT skills – competent user of Microsoft Office / E / Interview
Good analytical skills and strong attention to detail / E / Interview
Good verbal & written communication skills and ability to build relationships / E / Application/Interview
Self motivated and good team player with ability to work effectively with diverse groups / E / Interview
Strong planning and organisational skills - able to prioritise workload effectively / E / Interview
Empathy with mission, objectives and values of TRBL / D / Interview