Associate Buyer

Job DescriptionAs an Associate Buyer, you’ll take ownership of a portion of the Buyer's overall business and manage the processes to achieve sales and margin objectives. You will partner the Buyer to develop and execute a strategy for assortment, vendor management, pricing and marketing for a specific category of business to maximize sales and profitability. Essential Functions  Identify emerging trends in the home furnishings market and recommend new products or business opportunities Develop business strategies outlining strengths, weaknesses, new opportunities and risks. Use your skills to build and maintain strong relationships with vendors Negotiate availability, product specs, distribution, delivery deadlines and price. ·  Manage vendor performance to maximize profitability and achieve financial objectives Partner with Planning team Interface with Product Development, Marketing Department, Stores and vendors to provide information and problem solve Occasional market travel: visiting vendors, attending trade shows, etc Travel to store locations to review product mix, obtain feedback, and share information to the buying team·  Be open to feedback from stores to improve product and add to collections. ·  Apply customer service skills to investigate and respond to field issues. Coordinate communication strategies with field organization Develop a smooth operational flow of all office functions with Planners and Vendors Apply your analytical skill to develop business analysis Analyze market (domestic) and provide observations of market to Buyer for market analysis Perform and manage administrative functions as needed  Qualifications  2 to 3 years experience as an Associate Buyer with a specialty or department store retailer Decision making and creative ability along with excellent communication skills are essential to this position Strong analytical and PC skills Bachelor's degree in retail, fashion or marketing preferred Some travel required