Assistant Buyer

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty; Swindon; Hybrid; GBP 23,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension up to 10%

Free entry to National Trust places

Season ticket loan

EV car lease

Perks at work discounts

Holiday allowance 32 days

Job summary

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty is recruiting an Assistant Buyer to support the Home, Garden and Plants range, delivering commercially successful products that connect with supporters and quantify impact for budgets.

The role requires strong organisation, prior retail buying experience, and the ability to manage supplier relationships across UK and Far East networks. Hybrid work with two days at the Swindon head office and 40–60% on-site relocation.

Qualifications

• Experience in retail buying and range development.
• Understanding of product design and manufacturing processes is desirable.
• Experience with buying planning systems and supplier management.
• Strong negotiation and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Support the Buyer to develop ranges linked to the Trust’s causes and audiences.
• Manage multiple workstreams and timelines to meet budgets.
• Collaborate with Merchandising and suppliers to achieve KPIs.
• Build strong internal and external relationships to deliver results.

Skills

Retail buying

Range building

Negotiation

Interpersonal skills

Buying planning systems

UK retail knowledge

Job description

We’re looking to recruit an Assistant Buyer to join our retail team at the National Trust on a 12 month fixed-term contract.You'll work with the Buyer to grow the Home, Garden and Plants business commercially and in new and innovative directions, identifying and developing new opportunities to meet budgets.

What it's like to work here

This is an exciting time to join as we prioritise our long-term commercial growth plans alongside ensuring our offer is competitive and matches current market trends.

Your contractual location will be our head office in Swindon and there will be an expectation for you to work from this office two days per week. However, there is flexibility on where you are based at other times. You will be required to work at a National Trust location for 40-60% of your working week. This will be discussed in more detail at interview.

What you'll be doing

You'll be responsible for helping to create ranges that link back to cause, engaging both the organisation and our supporters - and in turn extending the Trust’s reach and emotional connection to our audiences.

You’ll be highly organised with excellent time management skills, able to prioritise your workload effectively while managing multiple critical paths. With proven experience in retail buying, you’ll be confident working with both UK and Far East suppliers. You’ll also have a strong track record of managing the buying cycle, from development through to delivery.

You'll be a strong negotiator and will build solid relationships internally especially with the Merchandising team and externally with suppliers to achieve team KPIs. You’ll be a perceptive Assistant Buyer who is passionate about product, with great interpersonal skills.

You can view the full role profile for this role in the document attached. You don't need to have all of the knowledge, skills and experience listed in the role profile; this is just to provide a full picture of what’s possible in this role.

Who we're looking for

You’ll bring a broad range of the following knowledge,skillsand experience, shaped bydifferent roles, sectors or career paths, and the judgment to apply them effectively at scale;

• Knowledge of the UK retail market and supply base for the relevant product areas
• Understanding of product design and manufacturing processes
• Experience of range building, product management and understanding of the drivers for customer satisfaction, repeat business, spend, margins and profitability
• Knowledge of buying planning systems
• Strong interpersonal, influencing, negotiation and communication skills
• Experience in ensuring policies, frameworks and standards are fully implemented

The package

The National Trust has the motto ‘For everyone, for ever’ at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary
• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
• Season ticket loan
• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)
• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts
• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.

National Trust place

Heelis, Kemble Drive, Swindon, SN2 2NA

Documents

Assistant Buyer - Grade 7.pdf

Requirements

Compliance.Eligibility to Work in the UK

Additional information

Closing Date: 01 November 2026

Equal Opportunities Statement

The National Trust celebrates diversity and is committed to creating a fair and equal society, free from discrimination. You can read more about our commitment to inclusion and diversity here .

Safeguarding Statement

The National Trust is committed to a safe recruitment processes to help the organisation attract and appoint the right staff/volunteer for the role and responsibilities as set out in the vacancy advert. We will not accept applicants who are not suitable to work with children, young people or adults at risk. If you have any questions around your suitability for this vacancy, please contact the people service centre.