Category Buying Assistant
**Would suit a Buying Assistant or Import Merchandiser with experience in setting up / managing critical paths**
Oldham - Hybrid working
Home Textiles
Our Client is a supplier of beautiful home textiles who now have an excellent opportunity for a Category Buying Assistant to join their team in Oldham.


Role Overview:
Responsible for managing the critical path, preparing and analysing commercial data and market trends to support profitable sales growth. Support the Category Manager to deliver a pipeline of new product for customer selection. Maintain required administration accurately and completely.


Responsibilities:
*Critical Path Management – New Ranges
* Setting up critical paths with factories for selected products ensuring we can meet the required shipment dates to meet launch.
* Creating and sending out internally packaging forms and photography forms
* Responsible for weekly Intake sheets being updated and sent to our Customer giving overview of approvals and what is outstanding.
* Escalating and tracking any products at risk and agreeing an action plan.
* Work with the Technical team to highlight any potential issues. Track these through development to resolve.
* Communicate across various departments to ensure we are hitting key dates on critical path.
* Creating and sending out internally packaging forms and photography forms.
*Market / Competitor Understanding - Understand what the competition are selling / pricing structures / marketing for given product areas.
*Pricing - Costing for new factory designs
*Range Management - Ensuring all live lines costing sheets is correct and up to date and corresponds with the system. Each Season adding new and removing discontinued lines ready for the following seasons negotiations.


Experience Required:


*Setting up / managing critical paths
*Advanced excel skills required and ability to work with mass data.
*Ability to communicate with Customers and Suppliers on Teams calls and face to face meetings.
*Ability and the confidence to produce and present Power points internally and externally.
*Attention to detail is critical as dealing with large amounts of data.
*Understand the specification of the product in more detail to give you greater understanding on developing right products for the customer.
*Able to work on own initiative.
*Enjoys working as part of a wider team and likes to get stuck in.


Apply online or for further information contact one of our specialist consultants quoting reference number: NJR16482