Key Responsibilities

A. Core Buying & Category Management

Lead end-to-end buying for the Bags category, from market research and trend identification to product selection and assortment finalisation.
Develop a strong understanding of fashion trends, consumer preferences, competitive offerings, and emerging category opportunities.
Identify the right product mix across styles, occasions, price points, materials, colours, and silhouettes.
Ensure the product range is aligned with the brand's positioning, target customer, and overall business strategy.
Drive seasonal buying plans and ensure timely product availability in line with the retail calendar.

B. Range Architecture & Assortment Planning

Develop seasonal range architecture based on category objectives, customer insights, historical sales, and market trends.
Define the assortment mix across subcategories, including handbags, shoulder bags, sling bags, totes, clutches, backpacks, and other relevant segments.
Establish the right balance between core, fashion, seasonal, and trend-led products.
Build a balanced assortment across price bands, product types, colours, materials, and design aesthetics.
Analyse sales performance and customer preferences to refine range depth, width, and product productivity.
Identify assortment gaps and opportunities to improve category growth and differentiation.

C. OTB Planning & Inventory Management

Own Open-to-Buy (OTB) planning for the category, ensuring alignment with sales budgets, stock levels, inventory norms, and margin targets.
Develop seasonal and monthly buying plans based on sales forecasts, stock cover, sell-through, and planned markdowns.
Monitor actual buying against OTB and ensure disciplined budget utilisation.
Drive effective inventory management by maintaining optimum stock levels and minimising excess and slow-moving inventory.
Review stock ageing, sell-through, weeks of cover, and replenishment requirements to support timely buying decisions.
Work closely with Planning, Merchandising, and Retail Operations to align inventory with business requirements.

D. Business Performance & Profitability

Drive category performance against revenue, gross margin, sell-through, stock turn, and inventory productivity targets.
Analyse sales trends, product performance, and margin realisation to identify growth opportunities.
Take data-driven decisions on product repeats, assortment rationalisation, markdowns, and seasonal transitions.
Monitor category performance across retail channels and store clusters, where applicable.
Prepare regular business reviews covering buying performance, category trends, risks, and corrective actions.

E. Vendor & Supplier Management

Identify, evaluate, and develop vendor partnerships aligned with the brand's quality, cost, and delivery requirements.
Negotiate product costs, margins, minimum order quantities, lead times, payment terms, and commercial agreements.
Build a reliable vendor base to support product innovation, quality consistency, and timely deliveries.
Work closely with vendors on product development, sampling, material selection, and cost optimisation.
Monitor vendor performance on quality, pricing, delivery timelines, and service levels.

F. Cross-Functional Collaboration

Work closely with Design, Merchandising, Planning, Sourcing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Retail Operations teams.
Partner with Design to translate market trends and customer insights into commercially viable products.
Coordinate with Planning and Merchandising teams to align buying decisions with demand forecasts and inventory plans.
Ensure timely product launches and availability in line with seasonal calendars and retail requirements.
Support business reviews with actionable insights on category performance and future buying opportunities.

3. Candidate Profile

Minimum 12 years of relevant experience in core buying within fashion retail, bags, handbags, accessories, or a closely related category.
Strong hands-on experience in range architecture, assortment planning, and end-to-end category buying.
Proven expertise in OTB planning, inventory management, sales forecasting, and margin optimisation.
Strong understanding of the bags category, including product construction, materials, finishes, pricing, and consumer preferences.
Experience in vendor negotiations, product costing, sourcing coordination, and supplier development.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to translate sales and inventory data into buying decisions.
Proficiency in MS Excel and retail merchandising or planning systems.
Strong commercial acumen, negotiation skills, and cross-functional stakeholder management capabilities.

4. Critical Requirement

The candidate must have strong, hands-on expertise in core buying, range architecture, and OTB management for the Bags category. Candidates whose experience is primarily limited to sourcing, vendor coordination, or merchandising support without direct buying and commercial ownership will not be suitable for this role.

Buying Manager