MightyRecruiterYou can simplify the writing process for your wholesale buyer job description if you break down the necessary job components. Wholesale buyers work with suppliers to order materials or products for the consumer market. They evaluate product quality and negotiate prices to make sure their company gets a good deal on a large order.
It’s common for companies to require an undergraduate degree to be hired in this position. It’s best to look for someone with a degree in a business or related field. Wholesale buyers can also prove their qualifications by becoming a certified professional, which is another item to include in a job posting.
Successful wholesale buyers are excellent negotiators, and they also have strong math skills when calculating pricing. They also need to be equipped with top analytical skills and strong decision-making abilities. For more advice, consult the wholesale buyer job description template below.
Wholesale Buyer Job Summary
We are looking for a dynamic and skilled individual to join our consumer purchasing department as a wholesale buyer. The ideal candidate has a lifelong love of fashion and is always ahead of the latest trends. If you get excited about what new looks will be unveiled on the runway each season, or you can predict which fashion statements will be popular with the general public next year, this may be the right place for you. In this role, you will travel to vendor locations around the world and make choices about our retail product offerings. You will also make deals with our suppliers in regard to pricing and work to keep the cost to our consumers reasonable.
Job Responsibilities
- Procure wholesale products and supplies through vendors in various locations for the company’s consumer product retail line
- Discuss pricing with the vendor and reach an agreement that includes discounts for volume orders, shipping incentives and other reasonable costs within the company’s budget
- Choose products to offer that meet the needs of the company’s customers by carefully reviewing potential items through vendor showrooms or catalogues
- Collaborate with management to determine consumer pricing strategies and promotions with markdowns and clearance items
- Partner with the marketing department to get more information about customer attitudes and wants for future product lines
- Assess the condition of merchandise orders upon shipment arrival to see if the quality standard is acceptable and if it meets the guidelines decided upon for the product
- Meet with vendors and discuss potential product needs or custom merchandise ideas to help differentiate the brand among consumers
- Present new merchandise lines to other staff members during sales meetings and demonstrate the features and benefits of each product
Job Skills & Qualifications
Reqiured:
- Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, marketing or a related field
- Two or more years of experience in purchasing
- Ability to negotiate pricing and shipping details with vendors
- Strong communication skills
Preferred:
- Background in the women’s fashion industry
- Certified retail buyer through the purchasing professional association
Wholesale Buyer Job Responsibilities
The job responsibilities section of your wholesale buyer job description will be what initially draws in jobseekers. It is their first impression of the day-to-day functions of the position, so you should write it as clearly and concisely as possible to avoid any misunderstanding. Offer details but not necessarily an exhaustive list. Focus on the core daily duties rather than any secondary ones that won’t play as large of a role in their job.
A wall of text can be intimidating to jobseekers and will often result in a reduced number of applications. Instead, a bulleted format is ideal for this section. Bullets streamline the large dose of information you’ll be providing, making your wholesale buyer job description easier to skim and quick to absorb. Be sure to start each bullet with a verb, and keep the number of bullets between four and eight.
Feel free to peruse these well-written wholesale buyer job responsibilities as a reference:
- Negotiate discount terms, prices, quantities or transportation arrangements with suppliers
- Authorize return of merchandise or payment invoices
- Analyze trends, sales records and economic conditions to anticipate
- Inspect products or merchandise to determine yield or quality
- Select, examine and order merchandise consistent with quality standards
Wholesale Buyer Job Specifications
The job qualifications and skills section of your wholesale buyer job description may seem easy to write at first glance. After all, it’s the shortest section of the document and simply includes the minimum requirements to perform the job’s tasks, such as education and relevant work experience.
Don’t make the costly mistake of underestimating this section, though, as it serves a crucial function for the description. If poorly written, this section can lead to an email inbox filled to the brim with unfit candidates’ resumes.
A great way to avoid this issue is to sit down with your upper management and have a detailed and lengthy discussion regarding their expectations for wholesale buyers. This will give you a firm grasp of what to include in this section, making it much simpler to write. You should separate the skills that leadership considers deal-breakers from those that they simply prefer on the wholesale buyer job description to help jobseekers clearly understand whether they are eligible to apply.
You may use these wholesale buyer job specifications as a reference:
- Bachelor’s degree or higher
- Upwards of 5 years’ experience in wholesale or retail purchasing
- Exceptional mathematics and statistical skills
- Superb critical thinking and problem-solving abilities
- Exceptional written communications skills
