When people say they are a Buyer, or they want a career in buying, most of us have a picture of what that might mean. They are the people who buy the products that we in turn, as customers, buy from retail shops and websites. Simple, right? But is it..?
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The reality is that beyond that general description there are lots of different buying roles and they can differ quite dramatically between different types of retailers. Let&#;s start by considering some of the key differences.
Understanding Buying Teams
The first distinction can sometimes lie in the primary objective a business has of its buying team.
Customer Facing Buying Teams
In many cases, the role requires the Buyer to be primarily customer facing. Here, the Buyer needs to have a deep understanding of their customers, their needs & expectations, their lifestyle and their connection to the marketplace in which they operate.
Usually this goes hand in hand with a high creative flair, a thorough comprehension of the competition and a natural instinct for keeping on top of trends to ensure the product range that is offered meets and exceeds the customers&#; needs and desires.
Product sectors with a high fashion element, frequent range change and lots of own label product development are good examples of this type of buying.
Vendor Facing Buying Teams
On the other hand, some buying roles are more about selecting or sourcing product ranges, selecting and managing the right suppliers, negotiating the best deals and ensuring technical and quality standards are met. This might be because the product range is more of a known quantity that either has less frequent change or is led by brands rather than retailers.
It certainly does not mean they don&#;t need to know their customer, but either the needs of the customer are more stable and established, or the key brands within the market sector have effectively done the job of product development for them.
A Blend of Both
Of course, what is more common is that Buyers need to combine both of these skills &#; some are fortunate to have dedicated functions within their business to help. For example, working with Designers and Product Technologists on product and range development, working with Supply Chain teams who manage logistics, working with Sourcing teams who source and manage vendors.
However, even if this is the case the Buyer needs to understand how each of these functions work, have great relationships with them and lead and guide the buying agenda for their product area in order to deliver their strategy and business goals.
The Retail Buying Cycle
So, it is therefore more useful to consider all the typical tasks and decisions undertaken by most Buyers by looking at the Retail Buying Cycle.
Buying cycles follow product lifecycles in that some are very short and change frequently &#; consider a high fashion retailer that changes product ranges every few weeks, and others are longer and change less frequently &#; consider certain products in the grocery or DIY sectors which are rarely updated or might even be everyday staples.
Most product life cycles will however change and evolve over time, and many are influenced by the actions of Buyers and Product Development teams, however from the perspective of the Buyer, it&#;s the timing that changes; the key process steps remain the same and they have a role to play throughout.
What are your goals?
During the Strategy stage the Buyer will be exploring the trends for their product area, analysing the market and competition, reviewing performance from previous seasons and essentially understanding as much about their customer as possible.
Working with the Merchandisers they will build a strategy for their product area which will describe how they plan to achieve their goals for both the product and financial performance.
How do you plan a product range?
Moving into the Plan stage, this is where the bulk of the activity to plan the range is done. It&#;s also where retail jargon can become confusing as some retailers call this range planning, some range building, some assortment planning &#; and that&#;s just the most common terms!
Essentially though, there will be a plan of how many options are going to form the range, with a framework of how the range will be balanced across the key elements of the strategy.
For example, it might show the split for brands and own label if that is relevant, it will certainly reflect the price architecture from entry prices to premium and should also indicate products that are planned to carry over from previous seasons vs those which are new. There will also be a first view of which stores or selling channels are to receive which items and an indication of the buy quantity in units
The Buyer then begins to populate that range framework with actual products, ensuring the balance is maintained.
One industry standard approach is to define what will represent a &#;good&#; product, a &#;better&#; and a &#;best&#; &#; remembering this is not really about price but is about product design or quality or features.
It&#;s very much an iterative process, often beginning with placeholders that are filled in as more is known about each product.
Most buyers will analyse the mix of products they are choosing according to a set of attributes &#; it might be colour, or fabric type, or garment feature in clothing; or it could be components and materials or end use in other sectors.
These are determined by another key tool &#; the customer decision tree. Knowing how your customer shops helps to create the range.. For example, consider these two possible decision trees about how a customer might choose a bottle of wine and how that might make a difference to how you build your range or how you lay it out in store or on a website. Do they choose by colour, grape type, country of origin or price? What is the first thing they decide on - the most important thing?
Offering real choice, not just variety&#;
Regardless of the sector every Buyer must make sure that every product has a role to play in the range.
Why would a customer choose this particular item over another? Would enough of your customers choose it to make it a commercial option or are you offering variety rather than real choice?
A great way to check this out is to rank the range according to the sales you believe they will achieve and apply the 80/20 rule to evaluate whether you have too many options.
Turning the plan into reality and maximising the results
Once all the planning is done, the Buyer moves into the Buy stage which is where the suppliers are briefed with the product requirements and negotiation begins.
It&#;s a mistake to think this is just about price &#; the best Buyers also negotiate on volumes, shipping, packaging, warehousing, and sometimes marketing contributions and other commercial rebates.
However, the key here is on getting the best cost price delivering the best margin for the product in question &#; but being aware of how that margin can be eroded by other cost pressures as the product journeys through the business.
Once the products go into production there is a huge task of tracking their progress through the critical path, securing samples and test results, and making commercial decisions for any and every eventuality.
Arguably once the range actually arrives into the business during the Move stage, there is less for the Buyer to do &#; although in many businesses they develop launch packages for the sales advisors to get to know the product range and how to present and sell it.
However, Trading is as much a role for the Buyer as it is the Merchandiser.
They will be focusing on the best sellers: Can they repeat and keep the product in the range for longer, or can they edit next year&#;s range based on what they have learnt?
The same goes for poor sellers: Why didn&#;t they work and what does that mean for future products that might be in development? What can be done about the poor performance? Can suppliers help or is markdown the only answer?
And then the whole cycle begins again. In fact, most retailers are juggling multiple seasons at the same time &#; planning one for the future, finalising another due in soon, and trading the current season now.
What are the skills and capabilities that make a great Buyer?
As well as training on the technical aspects of the job, a successful Buyer will demonstrate these skills and capabilities:
Some of these traits will be inherent within the individual from the start, but others can be taught and refined as their career develops, so it&#;s best to look for training programmes which cover both commercial, technical and behavioural skills.
Where can I find the best training for Retail Buyers?
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Training for Buyers is one of the core parts of our business and as a result of this experience we can develop bespoke training for you, or you can sign up to one of our off-shelf training courses in our Academy for Buyers, Merchandisers and Planners.
It&#;s essential to ensure the foundations of retail are well-established as well so any programme should begin with the Retail Basics.
Every business is different, and each individual will progress at their own speed, but a typical set of learning paths for a Retail Buyer might look like this :
Onboarding at entry level:
Becoming an Assistant Buyer:
Becoming a Buyer:
In our view, the best Buyers are those who work hand-in-hand with their Merchandising & Planning colleagues, so if you&#;re wondering what the difference is between the two roles, head on over to our partner piece covering the basics of retail merchandising and planning and the skills you&#;ll need to develop if you think that&#;s more up your street.
Need more help with the buying processes or tools, mentioned in this guide? Check out our training academy for buyers, merchandisers & merchandise planners, or get in touch
April 11, - 12 minutes read
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The world now moves to the beat of a digital drum. As a modern retail or eCommerce business, offering your consumers the best possible level of customer experience (CX) is essential
To meet and exceed your customers&#; expectations across channels, you need to be super efficient&#;both in-store and virtually. That&#;s where retail management software comes in. With the right retail management platform for your business, you can manage every key aspect of your business with razor-sharp efficiency, accelerating your commercial growth.
But while there are seemingly infinite options out there, not all retail management systems are made equal.
Fortunately, we&#;re here to tell you exactly what to look for in the best retail management solution for your business.
Ready? Let&#;s dive in.
Before we consider the top ten features to look for in an effective retail management system, we&#;re going to consider the main benefits.
Did you know? 91% of shoppers are more likely to buy products in stores (or online) that provide a more personalized experience.
Any retail management software worth its salt is salt will give you the power to:
Now that you&#;re up to speed with the business-boosting benefits of retail management software, let&#;s explore the ten essential features to look for in the right tool for the job&#;starting with the ability to &#;go mobile.&#;
When you&#;re looking at a potential retail management solution, you should consider its capabilities in terms of mobility.
When you&#;re exploring your options, choosing a solution that offers you 24/7 mobile access to the insights and tools you need is vital.
If your retail management platform also allows you to access certain features and data while offline, you will be able to remain efficient in every situation, regardless of where you are in the world. If your software allows you to log in, grind down, and tackle emerging issues while on the move, not only will your productivity soar, but you will become more responsive to any situation.
If you want to improve your retail or eCommerce business across the board, choosing retail management software that is accessible is vital.
If everyone in the business can master the basics of your software&#;s interface swiftly while squeezing every drop of value from the tools and insights on offer, the business will thrive. Time is money, and the last thing you want to do is spend weeks or even months trying to get your head around an interface that should be offering benefits.
Retail software with easy to use interfaces will have:
Another essential feature of any effective retail management solution is its ability to integrate with other tools and systems.
As a busy retailer in today&#;s hyper-connected digital age, there&#;s little doubt that you have existing tools or platforms that you use for various activities.
If your retail management system allows you to integrate your existing systems with ease, ensuring that everything you need to succeed is at your disposal. For instance, you could quickly integrate QuickBooks ®, Magento, MS Office ®, BigCommerce, Shopify, eBay, Amazon, and ShipStation to create an informational nervecenter for your business
Check the integrations that your potential software choice offers and if it allows you to plug your existing tools into the system.
As you&#;re required to manage several channels and touchpoints at any one time, having the ability to lookup products will keep your momentum going, even under pressure.
Handy shortcuts like quick product lookups will help you deal with online as well as in-person inquiries both swiftly and with razor-sharp precision. A quick product lookup will also help you check sales data, stock levels, and product page content with ease.
Another piece of functionality you should look for in retail management software are simple yet effective data filtering options.
By being able to look at a specific area of the business (sales, marketing, consumer buying behavior, stock, shipping, etc.) and apply a filter with ease, you will be able to access the insights you need most exactly when you need them.
Say that you&#;re writing a last-minute marketing for a quick seasonal promotion and want to see which products are selling the most units for a specific segment of your audience, you will be able to apply a quick filter to find the best recommendations for your content, enjoying a healthy return on investment (ROI) for your efforts.
Another important feature to look for in the right retail management system is the option to customize the interface to your specific needs.
Customization options will empower you to change the look as well as the feel of your software and make it as navigable as possible. Being able to customize your interface will also allow you to create layouts that make accessing the right information at the right time quick and convenient.
You will be able to display the data and visuals that offer the most value to your business while developing a design that works best for everyone in the business&#;doing so will ensure you enjoy a consistently healthy ROI from your retail management system.
Any worthy retail management system will give you the option to set various user permissions based on the access that any one person in the business needs to perform to the best of their abilities.
Some people might only need access to customer-based data, while others may need to look at sales information or stock levels. More senior people within the company will need access to a wider range of tools. Some external suppliers may also need access to certain parts of the system to access fulfillment insights.
Being able to manage your permissions without difficulty will not only protect your business from any important information being accidentally breached or tampered with but also create a sense of cohesion and communication across the business.
As a retailer, the way you manage your inventory will have a tremendous impact on your business. So, when you&#;re considering your retail software options, choosing something with superior inventory management features is a must.
If you can manage your stock and inventory with confidence, you will improve your overall operational efficiency while consistently meeting your suppliers&#; as well as customers needs. This, in turn, will boost your brand reputation while making you more profitable.
Read: Inventory Management Best Practices: How to Manage Inventory the Right Way for more practical tips and advice on the subject.
Last but certainly not least in our top ten retail management features rundown, we come to customer support.
As a go-getting retailer, you will know just how important customer service is to the ongoing success of your business. With this in mind, you should turn the spotlight on potential providers when weighing up your retail software options.
It&#;s essential that the retail management software provider you choose is known for exceptional levels of customer service and support. If you experience a software issue or you get stuck with a particular platform feature, it&#;s vital that you know you can get the support you need swiftly.
The lesson: always make sure that your retail management software provider has plenty of positive customer reviews and testimonials, particularly when it comes to customer service and support.
&#;
People like consistency. Whether it&#;s a store or a restaurant, they want to come in and see what you are famous for.&#;
&#; Mickey Drexler
Use this essential features list as a working checklist when considering retail management software options and you will find the perfect platform for your business. Check out our popular retail management solutions, and if you have any questions, please get in touch&#;we&#;ll be happy to help.
For more retail store product managementinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.