Manager Buying Knitwear

Just Brands - Fashion & Retail; Hoofddorp; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

End-of-year bonus

Staff discount

Gym access

Healthy daily lunch

Team events

Job summary

Just Brands is seeking a Buying Manager Knitwear to lead knitting buying and sourcing for PME Legend, Cast Iron and Vanguard. You will coach the buying team, drive supplier performance and ensure seasonal plans translate into products with the right quality, cost and time.

You’ll combine fashion buying, knitwear expertise, sourcing, supplier management and people leadership to translate priorities into clear category plans, managing margin, intake and cost while keeping the critical path on

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s in Fashion Management, Supply Chain, Business or related field.
• Proven experience in knitwear buying and supplier management.
• Experience leading a buying team in fashion/retail.
• Strong commercial and financial understanding.

Responsibilities

• Lead knitwear buying and sourcing strategy aligned with demand and brands.
• Coach and develop buyers; drive supplier performance and cost control.
• Own end-to-end critical path from samples to production.
• Collaborate with Product Merchandising and Design to execute plans.

Skills

Knitwear buying

Supplier management

Team leadership

Negotiation

Merchandising planning

ERP/PDM proficiency

English fluency

Dutch or German

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Fashion Management or related

Tools

ERP systems

PDM tools

Buying analysis tools

Job description

Lead the buying decisions behind knitwear that performs.

Great knitwear doesn't happen by accident.

It starts with the right product choices, the right suppliers, sharp negotiations and a buying team that knows exactly where it is going.

At Just Brands, we build three menswear brands with character: PME Legend, Cast Iron and Vanguard. Each has its own identity, customer and position in the market. Behind those brands is a Product organization balancing creativity with commercial performance, quality, sourcing, margin and delivery.

As our Buying Manager Knitwear, you take the lead across knitwear buying and sourcing. You coach the buying team, drive supplier performance and make sure seasonal plans turn into products that land at the right quality, cost and time.

No sitting in the passenger seat.

This is where you take the controls.

YOUR ROLE

As Buying Manager Knitwear, you combine fashion buying, knitwear expertise, sourcing, supplier management and people leadership.

You translate business and seasonal priorities into clear category and sourcing plans. You own commercial performance across margin, intake and cost, while keeping the critical path moving from samples and fittings through buying decisions and production.

You're not here to simply manage orders.

You're here to make better buying decisions – and help your team, suppliers and knitwear categories perform better because of them.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Lead, coach and develop buyers, creating clear priorities, ownership and high standards across the team;
• Own and develop the knitwear buying and sourcing strategy, aligned with customer demand, brand direction and seasonal objectives;
• Manage international suppliers and drive negotiations around cost, margin, quality, lead time, capacity and delivery;
• Own category-level financial performance including margin, intake, budgeting, forecasting and cost performance;
• Manage the end-to-end critical path, identifying supply risks early and keeping product development and production on schedule;
• Review samples, fits and product decisions to ensure knitwear meets commercial, technical, quality and brand expectations before production commitment;
• Strengthen supplier performance through structured planning, clear expectations and decisive follow-up;
• Embed quality, compliance and ESG requirements into buying and supplier decisions;
• Work closely with Product Merchandising, Design and other Product teams to turn commercial and creative direction into executable buying plans.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

You'll know you're making an impact when:

• Knitwear categories hit margin and intake targets with fewer surprises;
• Supplier performance becomes stronger and more predictable;
• Samples and fit reviews are sharper, with fewer late-stage corrections;
• On-time delivery improves and fire-fighting decreases;
• Buyers take more ownership and make stronger decisions;
• Quality, compliance and ESG become part of everyday buying decisions rather than an afterthought.

In other words: better decisions upstream, fewer headaches downstream.

THIS ROLE WILL FIT YOU IF YOU...

Get energy from knitwear, product and fashion.

You're commercially sharp enough to negotiate hard but pragmatic enough to understand when a trade-off makes sense. You can balance speed, margin, quality and supply continuity without losing sight of the product.

You enjoy developing people, challenging decisions and raising standards.

And when something starts going off track, you'd rather spot it three weeks early than heroically fix it three days before deadline.

WHAT YOU BRING

• A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Fashion Management, Supply Chain, Business or a related field;
• Typically 8–10 years of experience in buying, sourcing or product leadership within fashion or retail, with strong experience in knitwear;
• Solid understanding of the end-to-end fashion buying and product process, including sampling, fittings, sourcing and production;
• Proven experience leading, coaching or developing buyers or a small buying team;
• Strong experience working with international suppliers and manufacturers;
• Strong commercial and financial understanding of margin, intake, cost price, budgeting and corrective action;
• Confidence in supplier negotiations and performance management;
• Experience with ERP/PDM systems and buying analysis tools;
• Fluent English. Dutch or German is a strong plus;
• Eligibility to work in the Netherlands.

WHY JUST BRANDS?

Because we're serious about product without taking ourselves too seriously.

We're team first. No ego. No unnecessary layers. No corporate theatre.

People speak up, take ownership and help each other move things forward. Ideas matter more than job titles and if something can be done better, we expect you to say so — and preferably help make it happen.

As Buying Manager Knitwear, you get real commercial responsibility and the opportunity to improve how buying operates as Just Brands continues to grow internationally.

Three brands. International suppliers. Plenty of moving parts.

Exactly how we like it.

WHAT YOU GET

• Salary depending on your experience and background;
• End-of-year bonus equal to one gross monthly salary;
• Healthy and varied lunch every day;
• Exclusive access to our own gym, including classes such as boxing, yoga and padel;
• Staff discount on our clothing;
• Parties and drinks that tend to become stories;
• And, most importantly, a role where you can genuinely influence product, people and performance.

READY TO PUT BETTER BUYING INTO MOTION?

Good sign.

If knitwear buying, sourcing, supplier management and team leadership are where you do your best work — and you want commercial responsibility rather than another layer of corporate approval — we should talk.

Bring your experience. Bring your judgement. Bring your point of view.