Buyer (fashion)

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Fashion buyer
Nordstrom Fashion Week.jpg
Model at a Nordstrom fashion show
Occupation
NamesBuyer, fashion merchandiser
Occupation type
Profession
Activity sectors
Fashion
Description
Competencies Analytical skills, creativity, enthusiasm, judgment, flexibility
Fields of
employment
Boutiques, retailers
Related jobs
Buyer

In the retail industry, a buyer is an individual who selects what items are stocked and their key responsibility is dealing with all the products that come into the store. Buyers usually work closely with designers and their designated sales representatives and attend trade fairs, wholesale showrooms and fashion shows to observe trends. They are employed by large department stores, chain stores or smaller boutiques. For smaller independent stores, a buyer may participate in sales as well as promotion, whereas in a major fashion store there may be different levels of seniority such as trainee buyers, assistant buyers, senior buyers and buying managers, and buying directors. [1] Decisions about what to stock can greatly affect fashion businesses.

Contents

For buyers at department stores like Harrods or Saks, responsibilities may include ensuring that the store is properly stocked with a wide variety of designer clothing. However, if they support a fashion brand such as Tommy Hilfiger, they may be responsible for directing the entire product development process and then managing the delivery of the products. Their role is also heavily influenced by the structure of their organization; for example, a Christian Dior buyer in the Paris office may supervise the entire development process of the collection. However, in the New York office, a buyer may only source completed product that is suitable for the American market. [2]

Background

The role of a buyer is influenced by the type of retail and business. A buyer is required to possess visual creativity, analytical skills, negotiation skills, business acumen, and a keen awareness of fashion. Retail businesses are generally classified as manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. These organizations vary in the scope of their activities and their range of responsibilities within their particular segment of the market. [2]

According to The Role of the Fashion Buyer,[ clarification needed ] buyers typically specialize in one type of merchandise such as women's dresses. However, in a smaller retailer a buyer may buy for a larger, less specialized range such as women's casualwear which may include shirts, skirts, pants, and jackets. The larger the retailer, the more specific the product area is for a buyer. Large companies that have a broad range of products often have separate buying departments for menswear, womenswear, and childrenswear. A buyer at a smaller retailer may buy name brand products while a large company buyer may have the opportunity to be involved in the design and development of the products. A buyer with experience will travel to learn new fashion trends and to visit clothing suppliers. [1]

Assistant buyers play a smaller role in the selection of merchandise since they are still gaining experience. They may help senior buyers with basic aspects of retailing. Assistant buyers may also be in charge of orders and shipments, supervise sales personnel, keep records, and maintain relationships with vendors.

Buying team

Buying and merchandising team structure differ by the type, history, and size of the organization. The traditional structure of a team assigns a buying team and merchandising team to a specific product area, and there are controllers tasked with directing teams across various areas. Buying teams are further divided based on the product area (e.g., athletic wear, leather goods, etc.), organization division (e.g., men's wear). [2]

Buyers work alongside their buyer colleagues because they receive helpful advice from one another. A buyer can have frequent meetings with the buying manager to discuss the development of the range of garments. Buyers also interact often with the merchandising, design, quality control, and fabric technology departments. A buyer meets with the finance, marketing, and retail sales personnel on a less frequent basis. [1]

Some buyers meet regularly to update each other about price ranges as well as to receive or give advice. Buyers often travel together so that they can advise one another on ranges and to coordinate ranges. For instance, a buyer for women's jackets may coordinate with the buyer for women's blouses since the two garments are frequently worn and purchased together.

Negotiation

The Role of the Fashion Buyer states that one part of a buyer's job is to negotiate prices and details of delivery with the supplier. Some retailers provide their buyers with negotiation training courses. When the buyer meets with the supplier, the sales executive of the garment manufacturer submits a "cost price" for a garment. Then the buyer calculates the price that the garment will need to be sold for in order to reach the retailer's mark-up price. The markup price is the difference between the selling price and the manufacturer's cost price. The retail selling price is typically 2.5 or 3 times the price of the manufacturer's cost price. While it may seem like a retailer is making a large profit from this markup, the proceeds are used to cover many costs such as the buyer's salary, store rent, utility bills, and office costs. [1] The markup must be high enough to cover the retailer's expense of "housing" a garment on a rack or a shelf for anywhere from a few days to an entire season, plus the risk that some garments will inevitably have to be marked down to cost, to get them out of the store.

Based on how much consumers are willing to pay, buyers can determine the optimum cost price which they should expect to pay. Suppliers take a different approach to the optimum cost price. The suppliers determine the price based on how much it will cost to produce the garment. The manufacturer's salespeople are typically able to accurately anticipate the price that buyers will expect to pay.

Buyers and suppliers both want to make the largest profits for their companies. The buyers want to buy the garments at the lowest possible price and suppliers want to sell the garments at a high price. Suppliers and buyers must agree on a price and/ financing terms and in some cases they may not agree. If the two cannot agree and the buyer cannot reach a price within the retailer's target margin, the buyer may ask the buying manager for permission to buy the garment at a higher price or else the style may be dropped. [1]

One of the main roles of a buyer is to negotiate with the clothing suppliers. Buyers may negotiate with suppliers on a regular, sometimes daily, basis. It is important for a buyer to establish a strong relationship with the suppliers since it will be beneficial to both parties. Suppliers and buyers have the same goal which is to sell as many garments as possible to customers so they must work together to achieve this goal. Buyers rely heavily on suppliers to "enable ranges to be bought successfully". [1]

The buyer must remember that the retailer and manufacturer share similar goals and that the two need to form an honest relationship based on respect and integrity. Buyers not only select clothing, but are also involved in the ordering and delivering of garments. In some cases, the buyers may also be involved in the product development and display processes.

Forecasting

According to Peter Vogt, buyers predict months and in some cases years in advance what accessories and apparel will sell, and at what prices. The buyers need to stay current with the fashion industry. [3] Depending on the item and season, buyers purchase merchandise six months before it sold in stores. [4] Therefore, they must be able to anticipate fashion trends and consumer needs. In order for buyers to anticipate future trends, they familiarize themselves with current merchandise in catalogs and line sheets [5] and travel to seasonal fashion weeks [6] and shows to view new styles. Companies such as Zara have drastically shortened the buying and production time lines. [7] It is also necessary for a buyer to know his/her customers. They can achieve this by viewing sales records and by spending time on the selling floors.

Interaction with internal departments

Fashion buyers interact frequently with other departments within the company to get advice. It is important to have a large fashion range and to achieve that requires team effort. Buyers coordinate and discuss ideas with the merchandising, marketing, and quality control departments. The internal departments are dependent of one another and they need to work together if the company is to be successful. [1]

Education

A bachelor's degree in retail, buy, marketing, fashion, business, or related field is preferred for a buyer position. One's major does not necessarily matter if the person is familiar with the fashion industry. It is beneficial if one has retail experience such as the executive training program or a previous sales associate position since it is helpful to have an understanding of the selling floor. The executive training program is sometimes offered by larger retailers and it prepares participants for jobs as assistant buyers and eventually buyers for the company. [8]

Salary

A buyer's salary can range from $30,000 to $100,000, depending on location, position, experience, and company. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2004 the average income for a buyer was $42,230.[ where? ] [9]

Advancement in a company depends mainly on performance. Therefore, an assistant buyer can easily work their way up to senior buyer within three to five years. Higher levels of management in a company usually require a graduate degree in business.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supermarket</span> Large format of grocery store

A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limited in the range of merchandise than a hypermarket or big-box market. In everyday United States usage, however, "grocery store" is often used to mean "supermarket".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wholesaling</span> Sale of goods or merchandise to retailers rather than end consumers

Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services. In general, it is the sale of goods in bulk to anyone, either a person or an organization, other than the end consumer of that merchandise. Wholesaling is buying goods in bulk quantity, usually directly from the manufacturer or source, at a discounted rate. The retailer then sells the goods to the end consumer at a higher price making a profit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shopping</span> Buying goods

Shopping is an activity in which a customer browses the available goods or services presented by one or more retailers with the potential intent to purchase a suitable selection of them. A typology of shopper types has been developed by scholars which identifies one group of shoppers as recreational shoppers, that is, those who enjoy shopping and view it as a leisure activity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Retail</span> Sale of goods and services

Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells in smaller quantities to consumers for a profit. Retailers are the final link in the supply chain from producers to consumers.

Cost-plus pricing is a pricing strategy by which the selling price of a product is determined by adding a specific fixed percentage to the product's unit cost. Essentially, the markup percentage is a method of generating a particular desired rate of return. An alternative pricing method is value-based pricing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merchandising</span> Promotion of product sales

Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more items or products.

George William Davies is an English fashion designer and retailer.

Scan-based trading (SBT) is the process by which suppliers maintain ownership of inventory within retailers' warehouses or stores until items are scanned at the point of sale. Suppliers, such as manufacturers or farmers, own the product until it is purchased by the customer, with the store or venue then buying the product from the supplier and reselling it to the customer. Analysts in the grocery sector estimate scan-based trading accounted for $21 billion dollars in consumer goods purchased in the grocery industry alone in 2020, or nearly 3% of overall sales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Closeout (sale)</span> Discount sale of inventory

A closeout or clearance sale is a discount sale of inventory either by retail or wholesale. It may be that a product is not selling well, or that the retailer is closing because of relocation, a fire, over-ordering, or especially because of bankruptcy. In the latter case, it is usually known as a going-out-of-business sale or liquidation sale, and is part of the process of liquidation. A hail sale is a closeout at a car dealership after hail damage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Retail marketing</span> Economic concept

Once the strategic plan is in place, retail managers turn to the more managerial aspects of planning. A retail mix is devised for the purpose of coordinating day-to-day tactical decisions. The retail marketing mix typically consists of six broad decision layers including product decisions, place decisions, promotion, price, personnel and presentation. The retail mix is loosely based on the marketing mix, but has been expanded and modified in line with the unique needs of the retail context. A number of scholars have argued for an expanded marketing, mix with the inclusion of two new Ps, namely, Personnel and Presentation since these contribute to the customer's unique retail experience and are the principal basis for retail differentiation. Yet other scholars argue that the Retail Format should be included. The modified retail marketing mix that is most commonly cited in textbooks is often called the 6 Ps of retailing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sample sale</span> Discount of excess stock at a retail business

Sample sales are used by retail businesses in order to discard excess merchandise. Sometimes these samples have been used by agencies to sell products that they will distribute to local vendors. Sample sales are often associated with the fashion industry. These sales are an opportunity to get near perfect merchandise at a fraction of the price. It is often difficult to have information on the date and time of sample sales, although there are websites which list information about sample sales. They are also used to draw in new clients, hoping that the new people will return to the company's store and buy more merchandise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fast fashion</span> Quick retail copying of catwalk trends

Fast fashion is the business model of replicating recent catwalk trends and high-fashion designs, mass-producing them at a low cost, and bringing them to retail quickly while demand is at its highest. The term fast fashion is also used generically to describe the products of this business model, particularly clothing and footwear. Retailers who employ the fast fashion strategy include Primark, H&M, Shein, and Zara, all of which have become large multinationals by driving high turnover of inexpensive seasonal and trendy clothing that appeals to fashion-conscious consumers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visual merchandising</span> Marketing technique emphasizing 3D model displays

Visual merchandising is the practice in the retail industry of optimizing the presentation of products and services to better highlight their features and benefits. The purpose of such visual merchandising is to attract, engage, and motivate the customer towards making a purchase.

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Fashion merchandising can be defined as the planning and promotion of sales by presenting a product to the right market at the proper time, by carrying out organized, skillful advertising, using attractive displays, etc. Merchandising, within fashion retail, refers specifically to the stock planning, management, and control process. Fashion Merchandising is a job that is done world- wide. This position requires well-developed quantitative skills, and natural ability to discover trends, meaning relationships and interrelationships among standard sales and stock figures. In the fashion industry, there are two different merchandising teams: the visual merchandising team, and the fashion merchandising team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Off-price</span> Retail format based on discount pricing

Off-price is a trading format based on discount pricing. Off-price retailers are independent of manufacturers and buy large volumes of branded goods directly from them. The off-price retail model relies on the purchase of over-produced, or excess, branded goods at a lower price, thus being able to sell to consumers at a discount compared to other stores which purchased an initial run. Among the largest retailers of this type are TJX Companies and Ross Stores. The model is more common in countries that import fashion-oriented or household goods, as the discount role in producer countries is usually filled by factory outlets or small-scale open-air marketplaces.

The invoice price is the actual price that the end-customer retailer pays to the manufacturer or distributor for a product.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the fashion industry</span>

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the fashion industry was primarily caused by the sudden and global store closures worldwide which strongly impacted the fashion industry. The complete absence of revenue from physical stores caused a deep drop of revenue for fashion retailers, a complete reconfiguration of the stocks for fashion brands, and consequently a drop of orders for garment manufacturers. Many fashion retailers filed for bankruptcy in the aftermath of the pandemic.

The retail format influences the consumer's store choice and addresses the consumer's expectations. At its most basic level, a retail format is a simple marketplace, that is; a location where goods and services are exchanged. In some parts of the world, the retail sector is still dominated by small family-run stores, but large retail chains are increasingly dominating the sector, because they can exert considerable buying power and pass on the savings in the form of lower prices. Many of these large retail chains also produce their own private labels which compete alongside manufacturer brands. Considerable consolidation of retail stores has changed the retail landscape, transferring power away from wholesalers and into the hands of the large retail chains.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "The Role of the Fashion Buyer." blackwellpublishing.com Archived 2019-02-15 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on 2010-11-10.
  2. 1 2 3 Hebrero, Miguel (2015-10-15). Fashion Buying and Merchandising: From mass-market to luxury retail. London, United Kingdom: CreateSpace Publishing. ISBN   9781517632946. ASIN   1517632943. Archived from the original on 2019-12-15. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  3. Vogt, Peter. "Work as a Fashion Buyer." Monster.com Archived 2011-07-26 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on 2010-11-10.
  4. Maeok. "Fashion Buying & Selling Delivery Dates." Archived 2012-07-16 at archive.today .
  5. Maeok. "The Elements of a Successful Line Sheet." Archived 2012-07-10 at archive.today
  6. Fashions. "Fashion Weeks Around the Globe." Archived 2012-03-28 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Harvard Business Review. "Zara's Secret for Fast Fashion." Archived 2017-10-13 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Carros, Ashley. "Fashion Buyer." sas.ucdavis.edu Archived 2010-06-10 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on 2010-11-10.
  9. "Retail Buyer Job Description, Career as a Retail Buyer, Salary, Employment — Definition and Nature of the Work, Education and Training Requirements, Getting the Job." stateuniversity.com Archived 2010-11-20 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on 2010-12-1.