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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Buyer Assistant

💰 $40,000 - $70,000

ProcurementPurchasingSupply ChainMerchandisingRetail

🎯 Role Definition

The Buyer Assistant (Assistant Buyer) supports the purchasing and merchandising lifecycle by executing purchase orders, managing vendor relationships, maintaining inventory accuracy, assisting with demand forecasting, and analyzing product performance. This role works closely with Buyers, Category Managers, Supply Chain, Planning, and Operations to ensure on-time product delivery, optimal stock levels, and healthy margins. Strong execution skills in procurement processes, ERP/PO systems, and vendor communication are essential.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Purchasing Clerk / Purchasing Assistant
  • Inventory Coordinator or Stock Analyst
  • Merchandising Assistant / Sales Associate

Advancement To:

  • Buyer / Assistant Buyer II
  • Senior Buyer / Category Buyer
  • Category Manager / Procurement Manager

Lateral Moves:

  • Merchandiser
  • Demand Planner / Inventory Planner
  • Vendor Manager / Supplier Relationship Specialist

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Execute and manage the full purchase order (PO) lifecycle: create, submit, track and close POs in ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, NetSuite or comparable), ensuring accuracy of SKUs, quantities, prices, lead times and delivery dates.
  • Coordinate day-to-day supplier communications to confirm order acknowledgements, production timelines, shipment schedules, lead time updates and delivery exceptions, maintaining clear audit trails.
  • Monitor inventory levels and replenishment needs using ERP and inventory planning tools; flag stockouts, overstocks and slow-moving SKUs to Buyers and Planners promptly.
  • Support demand forecasting and replenishment planning by consolidating POS, sales trends and seasonality data; prepare weekly/monthly replenishment recommendations for Buyers.
  • Assist with vendor selection and onboarding: collect supplier documentation, insurance certificates, contract terms, payment and shipping details, and ensure vendor files are compliant.
  • Prepare and maintain detailed cost and margin analyses for new buys and reorders, including landed cost, duties, duties classification, freight and duty calculations to support pricing and buying decisions.
  • Work closely with Logistics and Warehouse teams to coordinate inbound shipments, receiving schedules, ASN/EDI confirmations and to resolve discrepancies between POs and receipts.
  • Reconcile supplier invoices and resolve billing discrepancies in collaboration with Accounts Payable; match invoices to POs and receiving records to support timely payment.
  • Support sample management and QA processes: track sample requests, approvals, lab tests and quality exceptions; escalate quality or compliance issues to the Buyer and QC teams.
  • Assist with supplier negotiations by preparing price comparison matrices, historical buy data and market intelligence; provide negotiation support to achieve target margins and cost savings.
  • Maintain the product master and SKU data integrity: update item attributes, barcodes, product descriptions, pack sizes, cost structures and vendor relationships within the ERP product catalog.
  • Execute promotional and assortment support: place promotional buys, monitor promotional inventory flow, and coordinate with Marketing and Merchandising teams to ensure promotional availability.
  • Generate regular and ad-hoc purchasing reports and dashboards (weekly PO status, receipt vs. plan, vendor performance, aged POs) for Buyer and category leadership using Excel, Power BI or reporting tools.
  • Track vendor performance metrics (on-time in-full OTIF, lead time adherence, quality KPIs) and prepare supplier scorecards to support continuous improvement and vendor consolidation strategies.
  • Support contract and purchase agreement administration: track term dates, renewal options, price change notifications and ensure compliance with negotiated terms.
  • Participate in weekly S&OP and cross-functional planning meetings to communicate vendor constraints, inventory positions and potential supply risks.
  • Process returns, claims and chargebacks with suppliers and logistics partners; manage RMA documentation and ensure financial resolution and inventory adjustments.
  • Conduct competitive and market research to identify new suppliers, product trends, and pricing benchmarks that inform category strategy and assortment decisions.
  • Assist in markdown planning and clearance buys by providing sell-through analysis and recommending disposition actions to protect margin and inventory turns.
  • Maintain accurate forecasting and PO cadence for seasonal transitions and new product launches; coordinate timelines for production, transit and distribution to meet go-to-market dates.
  • Ensure purchasing activities adhere to corporate procurement policies, import/export compliance requirements, and sustainability or supplier code-of-conduct standards.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc analysis requests, data pulls and exploratory analyses to help Buyers and category teams make informed procurement decisions.
  • Maintain and improve PO templates, standard operating procedures (SOPs) and process documentation for the buying team.
  • Collaborate with Finance on budget tracking, accruals and month-end purchase commitments to ensure accounting alignment.
  • Assist with onboarding temporary or project-based supplier relationships during peak seasons and product launches.
  • Participate in continuous improvement initiatives to streamline purchase-to-pay workflows and reduce cycle times.
  • Work with packaging, compliance and product development teams on specification updates, labeling and regulatory documentation.
  • Help manage sustainability and CSR-related supplier documentation, including certifications, audits and improvement plans.
  • Support cross-border purchasing activities, including coordinating with customs brokers and understanding basic import/export documentation.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Purchase Order (PO) management and purchase-to-pay process expertise.
  • ERP experience: SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics or equivalent.
  • Advanced Microsoft Excel skills: VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, PivotTables, INDEX/MATCH, conditional formatting and basic macros.
  • Inventory management and replenishment planning fundamentals.
  • Basic demand forecasting and sales trend analysis.
  • Costing, landed cost calculations and margin analysis.
  • Vendor management and supplier relationship coordination.
  • EDI/ASN knowledge and experience with electronic order/confirmation flows.
  • Familiarity with merchandising principles, SKU rationalization and assortment planning.
  • Reporting and dashboarding: Power BI, Tableau or built-in ERP reporting tools.
  • Familiarity with import/export documentation, duties, INCOTERMS and logistics coordination.
  • Basic SQL or experience extracting data from databases (preferred).
  • Experience with invoice reconciliation and working with Accounts Payable.

Soft Skills

  • Strong verbal and written communication skills for vendor and cross-functional collaboration.
  • Excellent attention to detail and high level of data accuracy.
  • Effective negotiation support skills and commercial awareness.
  • Time management and ability to prioritize in a fast-paced retail or manufacturing environment.
  • Analytical mindset with a results-oriented approach to problem solving.
  • Collaborative team player who can work across merchandising, planning, logistics and finance.
  • Adaptability to evolving product assortments, seasonal priorities and supply chain disruptions.
  • Customer-focused attitude with a bias for meeting service and delivery expectations.
  • Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple concurrent purchase cycles.
  • Proactive attitude toward process improvement and continuous learning.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • High school diploma or equivalent (required).

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, Finance, Merchandising, or a related field (preferred).

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Supply Chain Management
  • Business Administration / Management
  • Finance / Accounting
  • Merchandising / Retail Management
  • Logistics / Operations

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 1–4 years of progressive experience in purchasing, procurement, merchandising, inventory coordination, or a related operational role.

Preferred:

  • 2–5 years supporting buying or category management functions in retail, wholesale or manufacturing.
  • Direct experience using ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, NetSuite), advanced Excel reporting, and working with vendor agreements, PO workflows and inventory replenishment.
  • Experience supporting seasonal product cycles, promotional planning, and cross-border supplier coordination is a plus.
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