Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product Buy merchandise or commodities, other than farm products, for resale to consumers at the wholesale or retail level, including both durable and nondurable goods. Analyze past buying trends, sales records, price, and quality of merchandise to determine value and yield. Select, order, and authorize payment for merchandise according to contractual agreements. May conduct meetings with sales personnel and introduce new products. May negotiate contracts. Includes assistant wholesale and retail buyers of nonfarm products.
Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product is Also Know as
In different settings, Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product is titled as
- Buyer
- Grocery Buyer
- Procurement Specialist
- Purchaser
- Purchasing Coordinator
- Retail Buyer
- Trader
Education and Training of Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product is categorized in Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Experience Required for Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Education Required for Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Degrees Related to Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
- Bachelor in Wine Steward/Sommelier
- Associate Degree Courses in Wine Steward/Sommelier
- Masters Degree Courses in Wine Steward/Sommelier
- Bachelor in Apparel and Textile Marketing Management
- Associate Degree Courses in Apparel and Textile Marketing Management
- Masters Degree Courses in Apparel and Textile Marketing Management
- Bachelor in Sales, Distribution, and Marketing Operations, Gen
- Associate Degree Courses in Sales, Distribution, and Marketing Operations, Gen
- Masters Degree Courses in Sales, Distribution, and Marketing Operations, Gen
- Bachelor in Merchandising and Buying Operations
- Associate Degree Courses in Merchandising and Buying Operations
- Masters Degree Courses in Merchandising and Buying Operations
- Bachelor in General Merchandising, Sales, and Related Marketin
- Associate Degree Courses in General Merchandising, Sales, and Related Marketin
- Masters Degree Courses in General Merchandising, Sales, and Related Marketin
- Bachelor in Fashion Merchandising
- Associate Degree Courses in Fashion Merchandising
- Masters Degree Courses in Fashion Merchandising
Training Required for Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Related Ocuupations
Some Ocuupations related to Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product in different industries are
- Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
- Buyers and Purchasing Agents, Farm Products
- Purchasing Managers
- Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products
- Procurement Clerks
- Sales Managers
- Real Estate Sales Agents
- Brokerage Clerks
- Customs Brokers
- Retail Salespersons
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel
- Door-to-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers
- Online Merchants
- Counter and Rental Clerks
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products
- Marketing Managers
- Advertising Sales Agents
- Order Clerks
- Stockers and Order Fillers
What Do Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product do?
- Monitor and analyze sales records, trends, or economic conditions to anticipate consumer buying patterns, company sales, and needed inventory.
- Authorize payment of invoices or return of merchandise.
- Consult with store or merchandise managers about budgets or goods to be purchased.
- Train or supervise sales or clerical staff.
- Provide clerks with information to print on price tags, such as price, mark-ups or mark-downs, manufacturer number, season code, or style number.
- Determine which products should be featured in advertising, the advertising medium to be used, or when the ads should be run.
- Monitor competitors' sales activities by following their advertisements in newspapers or other media.
- Analyze environmental aspects of competing merchandise when making buying decisions.
- Compare transportation options to determine the most energy-efficient options.
- Develop strategies to advertise green products or merchandise to consumers.
- Identify opportunities to buy green commodities, such as alternative energy, water, or carbon-neutral products for resale to consumers.
- Monitor consumer preferences or environmental trends to determine the best way to introduce new green products.
- Buy merchandise or commodities for resale to wholesale or retail consumers.
- Negotiate prices, discount terms, or transportation arrangements with suppliers.
- Examine, select, order, or purchase merchandise consistent with quality, quantity, specification requirements, or other factors, such as environmental soundness.
- Recommend mark-up rates, mark-down rates, or merchandise selling prices.
- Obtain information about customer needs or preferences by conferring with sales or purchasing personnel.
- Collaborate with vendors to obtain or develop desired products.
- Inspect merchandise or products to determine quality, value, or yield.
- Conduct sales meetings to introduce new merchandise.
Qualities of Good Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
- Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
- Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
- Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
- Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
- Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
- Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
- Number Facility: The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
- Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
- Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
- Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
- Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
- Selective Attention: The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
- Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
- Flexibility of Closure: The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
- Far Vision: The ability to see details at a distance.
- Speed of Closure: The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
- Visual Color Discrimination: The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
- Perceptual Speed: The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
- Visualization: The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
- Trunk Strength: The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
- Memorization: The ability to remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.
- Time Sharing: The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
- Arm-Hand Steadiness: The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
- Manual Dexterity: The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
- Finger Dexterity: The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
- Static Strength: The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
- Multilimb Coordination: The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
- Hearing Sensitivity: The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
- Dynamic Strength: The ability to exert muscle force repeatedly or continuously over time. This involves muscular endurance and resistance to muscle fatigue.
- Auditory Attention: The ability to focus on a single source of sound in the presence of other distracting sounds.
- Extent Flexibility: The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Depth Perception: The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
- Stamina: The ability to exert yourself physically over long periods of time without getting winded or out of breath.
- Wrist-Finger Speed: The ability to make fast, simple, repeated movements of the fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Speed of Limb Movement: The ability to quickly move the arms and legs.
- Explosive Strength: The ability to use short bursts of muscle force to propel oneself (as in jumping or sprinting), or to throw an object.
- Gross Body Coordination: The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion.
- Gross Body Equilibrium: The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
- Sound Localization: The ability to tell the direction from which a sound originated.
- Glare Sensitivity: The ability to see objects in the presence of a glare or bright lighting.
- Spatial Orientation: The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
- Peripheral Vision: The ability to see objects or movement of objects to one's side when the eyes are looking ahead.
- Night Vision: The ability to see under low-light conditions.
- Dynamic Flexibility: The ability to quickly and repeatedly bend, stretch, twist, or reach out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Control Precision: The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
- Reaction Time: The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
- Rate Control: The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
- Response Orientation: The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
Tools Used by Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
- 10-key calculators
- Desktop computers
- Personal computers
- Point of sale POS systems
Technology Skills required for Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Product
- Accounting software
- Advanced Retail Management Systems Retail Pro
- Applicant tracking software
- Biztrak Business Solutions Biztrak
- CAM Commerce Solutions Retail STAR Point of Sale POS
- Claritas ConsumerPoint
- Contact management software
- Eclipse IDE
- Email software
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software
- Enterprise risk management software ERMS
- Graphics software
- Infor Supply Chain Management
- Intuit QuickBooks
- Inventory control systems
- JDA Software Group Advanced Warehouse Replenishment by E3
- JDA Software Group Assortment Planning by Arthur
- Kliger-Weiss Infosystems
- Materials requirement planning MRP software
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Internet Explorer
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Project
- Microsoft SharePoint
- Microsoft Windows
- Microsoft Word
- Millennium Software Atrex
- Oracle Advanced Procurement
- Oracle Database
- Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
- Oracle PeopleSoft
- Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise Supply Planning Multi-Site Material Planner
- Oracle Taleo
- Plexis Software Plexis POS
- Point of sale POS software
- POSitive Software POSitive for Windows
- Presentation software
- Product development management software
- Project management software
- Qlik Tech QlikView
- Sage ERP Accpac
- SAP POS Data Management
- SAP software
- Scheduling software
- Sourcing Simulator
- Specialized Business Solutions Keystroke POS
- Spreadsheet software
- Web browser software
- Windward Software Windward System Five
- Word processing software