Buying Assistant

Chessington Garden Centre; Leatherhead; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 32,000; Full time

Job summary

Chessington Garden Centre is seeking an experienced Buying Assistant to support the development of Giftware and Seasonal departments. You will work closely with the Buyer to source exciting new products, develop ranges and ensure offerings are right on price and timing.

The role involves supplier relationship management, PO processing, pricing support, and assisting with trade shows to expand product ranges and market opportunities.

Qualifications

• Experience in buying, purchasing or buying support
• Retail/wholesale background preferred
• Giftware, homeware, lifestyle or consumer-focused environment preferred
• Able to manage multiple priorities
• Confident in communicating and negotiating with suppliers
• Able to analyse sales and pricing data
• Willing to travel to trade shows and supplier appointments
• Passionate about products, trends and retail
• Experience with giftware/seasonal buying and attending trade shows would be an advantage

Responsibilities

• Support product selection, range building and seasonal planning
• Research new products, suppliers, trends and market opportunities
• Build strong relationships with suppliers
• Manage purchase orders and monitor deliveries
• Support pricing, product margins and commercial decisions
• Review sales and product performance
• Assist with seasonal launches, promotions and range changes
• Keep up to date with the latest retail and giftware trends
• Represent the business at UK and overseas trade shows and supplier visits

Skills

Commercial mindset

Customer focus

Organised

Supplier negotiation

Pricing analysis

Trend awareness

Travel for trade shows

Job description

We’re looking for an experienced and commercially minded Buying Assistant to join our team and support the buying and development of our Giftware and Seasonal departments.

Working closely with the Buyer, you’ll play an important role in sourcing exciting new products, developing ranges, working with suppliers and helping ensure we have the right products, at the right price, at the right time.

What you’ll be doing:

• Supporting product selection, range building and seasonal planning
• Researching new products, suppliers, trends and market opportunities
• Building strong relationships with suppliers
• Managing purchase orders and monitoring deliveries
• Supporting pricing, product margins and commercial decisions
• Reviewing sales and product performance
• Assisting with seasonal launches, promotions and range changes
• Keeping up to date with the latest retail and giftware trends
• Representing the business at UK and, where required, overseas trade shows and supplier visits

What we’re looking for:

You’ll ideally have previous experience in buying, purchasing or buying support, preferably within retail, wholesale, giftware, homeware, lifestyle or a similar consumer-focused environment.

• Commercially minded and customer focused
• Organised, accurate and able to manage multiple priorities
• Confident communicating and negotiating with suppliers
• Comfortable analysing sales, pricing and product information
• Proactive and confident enough to bring ideas to the table
• Passionate about products, trends and retail
• Happy to travel to trade shows and supplier appointments

Experience with giftware, seasonal buying, garden centre retail or attending trade shows would be an advantage.

This is a fantastic opportunity for someone looking to develop their buying career within a busy, varied and fast-moving retail environment, with the opportunity to get involved in product sourcing, range development and trade events.