Who Is A Fashion Buyer And How To Become One

Fashion Buying is one of the most sought-after careers in fashion. When we think of what being a buyer looks like, we imagine someone who is always traveling the world in search of the latest pieces seen during fashion week. On one hand, this is very true: it is a prestigious career that offers one of the most high-profile commercial positions within the industry, and gives high-level access to designers and creatives, as well as close interactions with brands and stores.

However, behind its glamorous image, the role of the fashion buyer requires dealing with numbers and making tough business decisions every single day. It is a job where you need to have a creative and business mind at once, which can be something rather difficult to find in a person. Because usually we are attracted by – and are stronger or at the creative, or the business side of the industry.

Let’s see who is a fashion buyer, what they do, and how to become a fashion buyer, looking at what are the skills and studies needed for this job, and how to find jobs and internships in fashion buying.

Who Is A Fashion Buyer And How To Become One?

Who Is A Fashion Buyer?

Have you ever wondered while shopping at a store how the clothes ended up there? This exciting yet responsible job is handled by fashion buyers.

Have you ever noticed how in a city some products of a collection of the same brand are available in some cities but not in the others? Or how in one online store you find more bags than in another one of the same brand? In case you didn’t know, not every piece that the designer created will be available in every boutique. This is because the buyer has decided what pieces of the collection to stock in that specific store considering customers’ preferences, market behaviors, and previous sales.

The fashion buyer is therefore a fashion expert who analyzes the market, trends, customers’ behaviors, and previous sales to make buying decisions. However, since creativity is also a big part of the job, buyers need that creative vision to predict trends and trust their gut. So you can say this job requires a combination of creativity, product knowledge, and strategic thinking.

What Does A Fashion Buyer Do?

A fashion buyer must understand the customer of the specific brand, in order to select the right products based on their age, location, and purchase behaviors.

For that, buyers need to compile and review financial data to ensure accuracy for merchandising decisions, analyze weekly trading reports, and identify strong/slow sellers to make the right buying choices. There is a lot at stake because you need to be sure to buy the right items in the right amount. And make maximum profit, so the role of a fashion buyer is a very responsible one.

Fashion buyers attend fashion shows to understand the trends of the coming seasons. They notice every single detail including how fashion icons and customers respond to the new collections. Each city is a source of inspiration for future trends and helps buyers make their buying decisions.

In addition to fashion shows, fashion buyers attend trade shows and showroom appointments that are more commercial where they can get in touch with the products and accessories, and learn more about the fabrics, the colors, and the size. These appointments can last hours or even days, and they are critical to creating the orders (aka what products of the collection they decide to purchase for each store). 

It is the buyer’s responsibility to build connections with suppliers and form agreements on payments while organizing the purchase. Often afterward, a buyer will then need to oversee the deliveries and stock levels of each store. This is repeated each season with the main goal of selling in mind because fashion is a business after all. 

Finally, a fashion buyer will be communicating with partners of other departments. As well as attending internal meetings to ensure proper information flow about deliveries, exclusives, product launches, and others.

Where Do Fashion Buyers Work?

You can find buyers working for a single brand, say Gucci, and they could be responsible for sourcing fabrics and choosing from the latest collection what products to stock in Gucci stores.

Other fashion buyers work for department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Selfridges, or La Rinascente, or online retailers like MyTheresa, Net-a-Porter, Farfetch, etc.) They visit showrooms of different brands (Louis Vuitton, Fendi, etc.) to decide what to stock in their stores or eCommerce.

Global fashion brands usually don’t have a single buyer; it is common to have buying teams where each buyer has their own niche and is assigned a certain product category: the womenswear buyer, menswear buyer, and accessories buyer. In addition, there are buyers who can be collection-based only and responsible for a particular region. Some for the US market, others for Europe or Asia, and so on. 

There is common confusion about the roles of a fashion buyer and a fashion merchandiser (not to be mistaken for “visual merchandiser”) when applying for jobs. The two work hand in hand, however, what one company may call a buyer, another calls a merchandiser. It could be that the responsibilities of a buyer at Louis Vuitton might be the same as a merchandiser’s tasks at Alexander McQueen. Some companies have a clear distinction between these two positions; for example, Chanel can have both buyers and merchandisers, and they will have different functions. It can also happen that in smaller brands, the two roles are merged into one as there is a smaller scale of product to work with. Because the lines between these two roles might be blurred and change from company to company, I recommend reading the job description carefully. 

Fashion Buyer Skills

Excel

Let’s talk about the most important skill you will ever need if you want to become a fashion buyer: Excel. From interns to seniors, fashion buyers use Excel on a daily basis to:

• Analyze previous sales, purchase behaviors, and consumer preferences
• Oversee deliveries
• Keep track of the inventory
• Calculate KPIs such as sell-through, sell-in, sell-out, and OTB
• Organize meetings and trade show appointments
• Keep a contact list of designers, suppliers, etc.

When you look for fashion buying jobs and internships, start noticing how every job description requires Excel, from internships to manager roles. I even had to do an Excel test during my job interview to land my first internship at Alexander McQueen.

Though Excel may seem like an annoying and hard program, in reality, it quickly becomes every buyer’s best friend and makes their life easier. It is not as difficult to learn as it may seem.

For the firs time, Excel is fun and fashionable in my online course “Excel for fashion”, the first and only Excel course tailored to the fashion industry.

Analytical skills and affinity for numbers

Being math-savvy and have an affinity for numbers and analytical skills also helps to do the job and be comfortable working in a large pool of information and numbers, as a buyer deals with budgets and processes orders frequently. 

Organization skills

The beauty of the role of a fashion buyer is that it involves so many different tasks, but for the same reason you have to find a way to stay organized in this multifunctional role. In the morning, you could be analyzing data on Excel, in the afternoon you could be talking to the suppliers, and at the end of the day, you may have to attend a showroom appointment. Therefore, having a sense of time management, and the ability to prioritize your tasks and organize your day so that everything runs smoothly are must-have skills for fashion buyers.

Trend forecasting

Many fashion companies rely on trend forecasters and trend forecasting agencies to inform them about the current trends. However, this task is also part of your role as a fashion buyer, so you must also develop an eye for trends. From reading reviews in the press to spotting the next hottest trends at fashion shows, a fashion buyer always pays attention to what will be influencing fashion the next season, so that they can predict what products will resonate the most with consumers in the future.

Creativity

Despite its primary orientation to the business side of the industry, a career in fashion buying is also about creativity. You will need to express your vision and creativity in this role to transform the brand’s creative vision into a sellable product and find a balance between the two.

Communication skills

Finally, a successful buyer will need to have strong verbal and written communication skills as the job involves a lot of communication with brands and suppliers to build strong relationships with them, as well as talking to cross-functional teams in different departments. You should also train your presentation skills as reporting the data you previously analyzed and presenting the information in a clear manner will be part of your main duties. What’s more, because you will be doing a lot of communication with different people, you will need to have outstanding negotiating skills to negotiate the rates.

How Much Does A Fashion Buyer Make?

The income of a fashion buyer depends – like in any occupation – on the experience level and the country where you work. Nonetheless, it can be useful to have an idea about the average salaries to know the current reality of the job market. 

Let’s look first at the entry-level position as an assistant buyer with 0-1 years of experience. Currently, the average annual salary is $66,000 in New York City, £28,000 in London, €28,000 in Milan, and €24,000 in Paris. As to more experienced buyers with 4-6 years of experience, they are being paid an annual average salary of $88,000 in New York City, £43,000 in London, €39,000 in Milan, and €49,000 in Paris. 

Again, these are just approximate data. Each company has its own salary range and it can even happen that employers of the same brand but located in different countries, say buyers at Dior working in NYC and buyers at Dior working in the Paris offices, have different salaries despite they might have the same level of experience. 

What to study to become a Fashion Buyer?

Many people go to fashion schools to get a degree in Fashion Buying or Merchandising. However, at Glam Observer we always say that you can land a fashion job with a more traditional degree as well. Because the role of the fashion buyer is oriented towards numbers and analytics, the most common degree for fashion buyers is an economics, business, or finance one.

But again, there isn’t a single rule. Some of my friends graduated in law and today work as buyers at Dolce & Gabbana and other major brands. Finally, since the results of purchasing the right products depend on understanding the consumer, you can apply confidently if you have a major in marketing. 

If you are a student in a different field, that’s okay too. Recruiters won’t pay that much attention to what you studied but rather if you are Excel savvy, as well as if you have an analytical mindset and a passion for the fashion industry (which I am sure you have!). 

How to become a fashion buyer?

1. Learn Excel

As I said before, knowing how to use Excel at an advanced level is a must for fashion buyers. A lack of knowledge is something recruiters won’t compromise on because the majority of tasks that involve analysis require Excel to be done quickly and efficiently. Therefore, if becoming a fashion buyer is your dream, but so far you’ve looked at these professionals as those only playing with clothes and performing creative tasks, I want to re-extend you the invitation to learn Excel in my online course Excel for Fashion. You can enroll here.

2. Apply for fashion buying internships

If you are just starting your career in fashion and you want to become a fashion buyer, you should start with fashion buying internships.

During your internship, your main functions will be to:

• Assist buyers in analyzing the market, trends, customers’ behaviors, and previous sales to help them make buying decisions
• Assist during meetings and drafting reports
• Help control product deliveries
• Accompany buyers to showroom appointments

As we saw in the studies section above, fashion companies welcome candidates from different backgrounds, and you can safely apply to buying internships even if your degree seems totally unrelated.

How To Find Fashion Buyer Jobs and Internships

Let me start with the good news that I see fashion companies posting fashion buying jobs and internships every week, which means there are lots of opportunities for you out there 😉

The first thing you need to do is look for job postings at your favorite fashion brands or multi-brand stores and e-commerce such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Selfridges, Net-a-Porter, or Asos. Go online on the career pages of fashion brands, department stores, and luxury groups (LVMH, Kering..) to see if they have any open vacancies.

Another option is LinkedIn, which is the most popular social media platform to look for fashion jobs.

At Glam Observer, we make the job search process easier by featuring the latest (buying) fashion jobs and internships every Friday in our 365 days of fashion newsletter. Click here to subscribe.

So these are the official ways to apply. But there is an unconventional strategy to get a buying job or internship: emailing the companies directly. See, you don’t want to waste time and opportunities by waiting for brands to post buying jobs online. Be proactive and cold-email them instead and submit a spontaneous application with a strong resume, a customized cover letter, and a portfolio (yes you can and should send one to multiply your chances of getting noticed among recruiters and landing the job/internship) Companies love that; they appreciate people who think outside of the box.

I teach more about emailing companies directly as well as other unconventional strategies in my free webinar.

I hope that you have a clearer understanding by now of what a fashion buyer does. If it sounds like a dream career, start practicing the commonly required skills you might be lacking. Look for an internship at your favorite brand or retailer, and get prepared for an exciting career as a fashion buyer.