Retail Buyer - St. John's, Canada - The Outfitters

Description

Retail Buyer for Outdoor Speciality Store
The Outfitters Adventure Gear and Apparel is the leading independent outdoor speciality retailer in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Established in 1998 we have been the provinces most complete four-season outfitter offering product for hiking, cycling, paddle sports, climbing, nordic and backcountry skiing, snowshoeing, running and worldwide travel and adventure.

We pride ourselves on offering a very complete line-up of product while giving our customers outstanding customer service backed by our superior consumer warranty and competitive pricing.

We operate 2 brick and mortar locations, one in St. John's and the second in Mt. Pearl.
A competitive online store showcases the inventory with purchases coming from all over Newfoundland and Canada.

The Outfitters is looking for a retail buyer to work from our head office in downtown St. John's. This position will be responsible for ordering for all departments in our 2 locations.

We provide a flexible schedule, cost shared health plan, vacation, substantial discounts on merchandise, and a positive, friendly work environment.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategic Planning:

• Create and communicate a comprehensive buying/selling plan for all categories.
• Balance inventory, forecast sales, and plan each category's retail cycle.
• Effectively manage annual seasonal, brand and department purchasing budgets.
• Manage seasonal markdowns and encourage sell thru.

Purchasing:

• Work with the owner and store managers to create seasonal budgets for all brands and categories.
• Create orders and meet all brand deadlines maximizing potential of preseason and inseason orders. Oversee and direct the management and entering of all products into our POS (Smart Vendor) and online sales channel (Shopify).
• Create and maintain strong relationships with our vendors to ensure we are buying at the lowest possible prices.
• Carefully manage inventory to ensure sellthrough and appropriate seasonal stock levels.
• Travel to outdoor industry trade shows to learn about new products, buy products, and build positive vendor relationships.
• Assess inventory levels throughout the annual retail planning cycle and adjust buying to minimize onhand inventory.
• Adhere to vendors pricing policies keeping our inventory up to date and competitive.

Reporting:

• Create and analyze data from sales reports to assist with purchasing and administrative duties.
• Balance inventory between locations to maximize visibility and sell thru.

Customer Service

• Manage consumer special orders, delivering in a timely manner with clear communication.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Minimum 5 years retail purchasing experience
• Previous experience in retail buying for the outdoor industry.
• Extensive leadership and teammanagement experience and the ability to motivate,lead and delegate.
• Excellent verbal and written skills.
• Excellent computer skills and experience with MS Office (especially Excel), Outlook and POS Systems.
• Experience with Shopify sales channel an asset
• Must exhibit and high degree of flexibility (and flexibility goes both ways), maintain a solution driven focus in challenging situations, adapt quickly to changing business requirements.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings and weekends.
• Proven skills as an effective communicator and negotiator.
• Strong customer service and sales skills.

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Please include a cover letter detailing your outdoor experience and interests._


Company Details
The Outfitters Adventure Gear and Apparel is Newfoundland and Labradors' largest outdoor retailer for self propelled adventure enthusiasts. We operate two independent store locations in the St. John's metro area. Our original location in downtown St. John's is where our head office is located.

This is a multi level location offering a full line of clothing, outerwear, footwear, camping equipment, running apparel, Nordic and backcountry skiing equipment, climbing gear and snowshoes.

Our Mt. Pearl location has a similar offering of apparel, footwear and camping equipment. But specializes in the cycling and paddle sports disciplines. We retail the Giant and Liv lineup of bicycles along with a full selection of essential accessories and apparel.

The paddles sports department is made up of Sea kayaks, recreational kayaks, canoes and paddleboards along with a full complement of accessories and apparel.

The Outfitters is very active in the local outdoors community.

We host bi-annual Gear Swaps, Community trail runs, a Spring Short Track Series for cycling, are a major community partner with the East Coast Trail in their Trail Raiser fundraiser, sponsor the Provincial Ski Marathon, sponsor the annual Rock Fall Climbing competition in partnership with the local climbing gym, and work closely with Paddle Newfoundland and Labrador to support their initiatives.

Job Types:
Full-time, Permanent


Salary:
$17.17-$3