Category Buyer

As the Buyer (Fresh Food) you will be responsible for procuring, developing, and managing effective merchandise assortments to achieve the sales, margin, and turnover targets for his/her respective buying areas. In partnership with their DVP and respective Planner, the Buyer will create the appropriate merchandise mix and develop category and supplier strategies based on emerging market trends, seasonality, and customer demographics.

Job Responsibilities

• Lead and execute merchandise assortment and product strategies to achieve financial and margin objectives.
• Partner closely with Planning to manage OTB, forecasting, allocation, reorders, promotions, markdowns, transfers, and RTVs across the product lifecycle.
• Own vendor relationships, including sourcing, negotiations, pricing, terms, compliance resolution, and trend identification.
• Analyze performance across divisions, departments, classes, and stores to drive assortment, inventory, and pricing decisions.
• Support new store and new concept initiatives, including market research, assortment development, and planogram collaboration.
• Present business results and seasonal strategies in regular merchandising and performance meetings.
• Conduct store and competitive visits to evaluate assortments, pricing, presentation, and customer trends.
• Attend industry tradeshows to identify new vendors and emerging trends.
• Lead and develop the team through hiring, coaching, and performance management.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in logo, private label, or fashion buying experience with a multi-unit retail organization.
• 1+ years of supervisory experience in field or retail home office.
• Product development and assortment planning experience required.
• Bachelor's degree required.
• Strong command of merchandising and retail math, including Open-to-Buy (OTB) management.
• Ability to adapt, multi-task and problem solve in a fast-paced and changing environment.
• Advanced computer skills, including Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and experience with a merchandising software platform.