Assistant Buyer I

Ross Stores; New York (NY); On-site; USD 63,000 - 77,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) match

Paid time off

Employee stock plan

Wellness benefits

Charitable matching

Job summary

Ross Stores is seeking an Assistant Buyer in New York to build foundational merchant skills through structured training and hands-on exposure. You will learn product knowledge, vendor relations, and buying processes while supporting the merchandising team in daily activities.

You'll gain experience in purchase orders, markdowns, retail math, and assortment planning, with mentorship and real-world decision-making in a fast-paced off-price environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree required.
• Strong communication and numerical skills.
• Interest in merchant and buying processes.

Responsibilities

• Perform support activities for the buying team, such as purchase orders and markdowns.
• Provide basic analysis of key business data using retail math and regional reports.
• Assist in negotiations and vendor meetings to build relationships.
• Coordinate with warehouse operations to schedule deliveries and optimize processing.
• Develop product knowledge by shopping in-store and at competitors.
• Track planned receipt flow and alert Buyer to receipts.
• Prepare reports for key business meetings and assortment planning.

Skills

Strong communication

Flexibility

Results driven

Analytical mindset

Intellectually curious

Resilient

Retail product enthusiasm

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Job description

Our values start with our people, join a team that values you!

Bring your talents to Ross, our leading off-price retail chain with over 2,200 stores, and a strong track record of success and growth. Our focus has always been bringing our customers a constant stream of high-quality brands and on-trend merchandise at extraordinary savings. All while providing a fun and excited treasure hunt experience.

As part of our team, you will experience:

• Success. Our winning team pursues excellence while learning and evolving
• Career growth. We develop industry leading talent because Ross grows when our people grow
• Teamwork. We work together to solve the hard problems and find the right solution
• Our commitment to Diversity, Equality & Inclusion, and our community. We celebrate the backgrounds, identities, and ideas of those who work and shop with us because our differences make us stronger. We strive to be a positive force in our community.

Our Corporate headquarters are in Dublin, CA, we have 3 buying offices in key markets in New York City, Los Angeles, and Boston, and 8 distribution centers nationwide. With 2023 revenues of $20.4 billion, we are a Fortune 500 company who is committed to providing an inclusive work environment with continuous learning opportunities and development for our teams.

About this opportunity...

The Assistant Buyer is a learning role that allows you to build a foundation of skills for your future career as a merchant. As an ABI, we invest in you through structured training and one on one apprenticeship with a skilled Buyer. You will begin to build your product knowledge, operational expertise, concepts of off-price retail, personal leadership skills and understand the customer!

What you will do and what you will learn...

• Perform support activities for the buying team, such as purchase order management and processing markdowns, while building foundational merchant skills and learning the keys to becoming a successful merchant.
• Provide basic analysis of key business data to the Buyer, including the use of retail math to understand the business, monitoring of regional merchandise reports, Open-To-Buy, stock analysis and other ad hoc analysis to project sales and inventory levels.
• Learn the elements of negotiation and how we build relationships with our vendors. Develop effective relationships with vendors by participating in in person meetings. This includes following up on shipments and resolving problems to ensure product is delivered and processed as directed by the Buyer.
• Begin to effectively utilize and understand the merchandising systems and warehouse process. Provide operational support by serving as the key interface between the merchant team and warehouse operations, coordinating and scheduling daily merchandise deliveries to optimize warehouse processing capacity and efficiency.
• Develop and demonstrate foundational product knowledge through in person shopping at Ross Stores and at the competition. Utilize product knowledge to communicate to the Buyer new resources.
• Track planned receipt flow on a consistent basis. Display awareness of when merchandise is being received and make call outs to Buyer.
• Support Buyers in preparation of key business meetings (i.e. vendor appointments, style-outs, assortment planning) including formatting of reports.

What you need to be successful...

• Strong communication skills: You can "read the situation" you actively listen, ask clarifying questions, and demonstrate the ability to build relationships.
• Flexibility: You can pivot, are adaptable, and receptive to feedback.
• Results Driven: You are tenacious, and achievement focused. You can prioritize your work and deliver it with accuracy.
• Intellectually curious: You can analyze and draw conclusions, are a critical thinker, and see the big picture.
• Resilient: You are persistent and persuasive. You stay focused on your goals and finding creative solutions to problems.
• Enthusiasm for the product and retail business. Product is the center of what we do.... you must have an enthusiasm for the retail business and the product.
• Analytical Mindset: Helping to run a business depends on analysis and retail math.
• Bachelor's Degree required.

Perks and Benefits of joining our team...

Our Associates are at the heart of everything we do and we're proud to offer a range of benefits that reflect how much we value their contributions. Here's a peek into what you can expect as an eligible Ross Associate:

• A broad range of affordable health insurance options & personal medical plan concierge
  401(k) with employer match and Life insurance
• Ample PTO including accrued vacation, paid holidays, diversity day, summer Fridays and the ability to purchase additional vacation.
• Employee stock purchase plan*
• Access to health and wellness benefits such as BetterHelp and Headspace
• Charitable donations matched by Ross Stores Foundation
• And more....

*benefits vary by level and position and are subject to change

DISCLAIMER

This job description is a summary of the primary duties and responsibilities of the job and position. It is not intended to be a comprehensive or all-inclusive listing of duties and responsibilities. Contents are subject to change at management’s discretion.

Ross is an equal employment opportunity employer. We consider individuals for employment or promotion according to their skills, abilities and experience. We believe that it is an essential part of the Company’s overall commitment to attract, hire and develop a strong, talented and diverse workforce. Ross is committed to complying with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, age, national origin, ancestry, physical, mental or developmental disability, sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding), veteran status, military status, marital or registered domestic partnership status, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics), genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, as well as any other category protected by federal, state or local laws.

The base salary for this role is $70,000. The salary listed is just one component of the total compensation package for employees. Other rewards vary by position and location.