Assistant Buyer - Toys, Travel & Luggage

Purpose: The Assistant Buyer provides operational support to the Buyer of an assigned category of business by contributing to merchandise selection in line with market trends, margin objectives, and broader strategic direction of the company.  

Essential Functions: 

• Interacts with vendors to gather information for item setup, problem resolution and purchasing of merchandise 

• Analyzes merchandise performance and identifying growth opportunities and liabilities 

• Oversees purchase orders including order writing, changes, cancellations, ensuring key shipments are delivered and processed 

• Develops working knowledge of the buying functions including merchandise selection, negotiation, pricing, and store merchandising 

• Works as intermediary between buyers and vendors to resolve issues including out of stocks, cost adjustments and new product selection 

• Reviews and analyzes daily/weekly reports, subsequently highlighting noteworthy achievements or possible concerns to the relevant buyer 

• Assists in plan-o-gram development 

• Assists in planning/coordination of availability of merchandise for new store openings 

Reporting Relationship: The Assistant Buyer reports into the Senior Director, Category Management 

Major Interdependencies: Marketing and Communications, Planning, Supply Chain, Operations 

Minimum Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills, and Work Environment:  

• Education and Experience: The combination of education and professional experience must exceed 3 years: 

• In a technical role: Requires 3 years of retail experience engaged in delivering buying programs 

• A bachelor’s degree in a business, marketing, or management program related to the functional area can count for 1 of the 3-year requirement 

• An MBA or a master’s level degree in a program related to the functional area can count for an additional 1 year of 3-year requirement  

• In the industry: 3 years of retail experience  

• Specialized Training:  

• Training that leads to a strong understanding of the buying function                 

• Training that leads to competency using financial tools; knowledge of concept profitability and how to use market trend information  

• Specialized Skillset/Competencies/Traits 

• Proficient in Microsoft Office, especially Excel 

• Experience with SAP preferred 

• Business acumen and also has the mindset required to understand the long-term implications of buying decisions and to advance the organization’s goals 

• Demonstrated history of understanding the needs of the business, stakeholders, the employee population, and individual circumstances 

• Location/Travel: 

• This position is based at the North America Support Center in East Rutherford, NJ 

• Requires ability to travel up to 15% of the time for meetings and to visit branch locations