NEXT Wholly Owned Brands
Buying Manager 12 month FTC (Friends Like These)
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Buying Manager 12 month FTC (Friends Like These)
Location | Head Office, Tottenham Court Road, London Working style | Hybrid
NEXT Wholly Owned Brands… Our growing portfolio includes Lipsy, Love & Roses, Friends Like These, Beauty at NEXT and Seraphine - all available through next.co.uk, connecting with millions of customers across the UK and beyond. At the heart of our business is a passionate team driven by creativity, innovation, and a shared ambition to deliver exceptional results. We foster a culture where individuality is celebrated, curiosity is encouraged, and challenging the status quo is part of how we grow.
Who are Friends Like These…? Friends Like These is for the go-getter - she’s strong, feminine and always on the move, so we offer her a gorgeous wardrobe line-up she can bank on every time.
About the Job
As Buying Manager, you will support the Head of Brand in driving the creative and commercial direction of the brand across multiple categories. You will lead a high-performing team to develop a superb product offering that drives the overall profitability of the brand.
You will be…
Role Responsibilities
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Strategic Leadership & Commercial Performance
- Drive commercial performance by developing and delivering short- and long-term brand objectives focused on profit, margin, and growth.
- Maximise profitability through strategic decisions on product direction, category innovation, pricing, sourcing and intake.
- Demonstrate high-level strategic awareness, understanding how departmental decisions impact different channels and overall company objectives.
- Challenge and improve existing processes, contributing innovative ideas to evolve buying strategies and streamline operations.
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Range Planning & Product Development
- Oversee the planning and structure of the range in collaboration with Merchandising and Design, ensuring a balanced, customer-focused offer.
- Incorporate global fashion trends, market dynamics, and customer insights into commercially viable and trend-led collections.
- Monitor and react to performance by reviewing sales and product data to identify opportunities for repeats, cancellations, or future optimisations.
- Identify and implement new product categories that could enhance the brand's current range and offer.
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Supplier & Stakeholder Management
- Oversee the sourcing and management of suppliers, assessing capability, supporting buying with supplier issues & finding solutions.
- Lead buyers to strategically plan production & fabric booking to optimise cost prices & lead times.
- Manage buyers to ensure ethical, timely, and quality production while maintaining existing relationships and encouraging new partnerships.
- Build strong cross-functional relationships with Marketing, PR, Creative & Technical teams to align commercial and creative goals.
- Collaborate across the wider business to share insights on trends and competitor behavior to influence broader strategy.
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Team Leadership
- Lead and develop the buying team by managing workloads, delegating effectively, and setting clear objectives.
- Conduct regular performance reviews to drive capability, engagement, and accountability within the team.
- Mentor and motivate others, identifying and nurturing talent while fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
Your Talent…
- Experienced Buying Manager with experience in a similar fashion retailer
- Multi-category womenswear experience
- Strategic, commercial, and innovative thinker.
- Deep knowledge of fashion trends and market dynamics.
- Strong commercial acumen and negotiation skills.
- Excellent communication, presentation, and influencing abilities.
- Leadership skills to motivate and develop teams.
- Adaptable, organised, and results-driven with a focus on growth and margin improvement.
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What we can do for you…
- 25% off a huge selection of Next, Next Wholly Owned Brands, GAP and Victoria's Secret products & 10% off most partner brands & up to 15% off Branded Beauty
- Hot deals and exclusive offers from over 3,500 retailers through Perks At Work
- We recognise hard work with our company performance-based bonus
- Life Assurance
- Join our Next Sharesave Scheme
- Digital GP Service for help at home
- Lessen the impact with our Annual Travel Card Loan
- Never miss a package and with Direct to Desk delivery
- Bag a bargain at our sample sales
- Hybrid & flexible working across the business to support your work-life balance
- Learn, develop and grow with our personal development plans
- Enjoy more time with friends and family with Early Bank Holiday finishes
- Join in the fun with our year-round office events
Diversity & Inclusion
We recognise that our differences are what make us who we are. We want people to want to work for us and be their true selves. We are dedicated to attracting and developing a talent team, and recognise that all unique backgrounds and experiences contribute to our future success. We want to create an inclusive and inspiring environment where individuals feel valued and respected, and where people can achieve their full potential and be their very best, whoever they are.
Wellbeing
We believe that wellbeing is having the opportunity to achieve your full potential, cope with day to day pressures, be productive and thrive in all aspects of your life. We encourage a culture that promotes and enables us all to achieve positive wellbeing, by focusing on mental, physical and financial health.
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