Associate Buyer, Men's Footwear

Sears is committed to improving the lives of our customers by providing quality services, products and solutions that earn their trust and build lifetime relationships. We are proud of our diverse, high-performance team work environment and we strive for continuous improvement through keen focus on growth, effectiveness and a sense of urgency. Individuals who are driven to earn our customers' trust and business every day, who act with integrity, who treat everyone fairly and value diversity, and who are accountable for their actions are welcome to show interest in becoming a member of our winning team.

The Associate Buyer takes ownership of a portion of the buyer's overall business and manages the processes to achieve sales, margin and inventory turnover. Assists the Buyer in execution of processes and functions for the Buyer's merchandise area. The Associate Buyer is responsible for assortment planning, product selection, vendor negotiation, and marketing of specific lines. This position reports directly to the Buyer and closely with the buyer, buying management team, merchandise planning team, promotional planning team, merchandise placement team and the merchandising support team to significantly improve the profitability and maximize shareholder value.

Qualifications
Responsibilities
Executes sales, margin and inventory plans for their assigned area
Monitors and respond to issues and opportunities resulting from deviations in plan variances
Maintains relationships with vendors and interacts with the vendor community within Sears standards and codes of ethics.
Supports the development of customer driven assortment plans for their assigned area
Supports buyer in executing defined lines
Identifies and shops competition and makes product recommendations to the buyer
Maintains knowledge base of industry and competitor market trends as it relates to their assigned business area
Partners with the Planner to complete accurate forecasts, evaluating sales, markdowns and receipts
Obtains samples and provides direction during advertising turns-ins and proofing
Provides correct information and inputs for point of sale signage and maintains integrity of quality of signage for ease of store execution level
Creates and inputs advertising plan
Establishes collaborative relationships with placement to ensure availability and the timely delivery of merchandise
Monitors and maintains promotional performance
Manages and controls the markdown process and communicates variances to the buyer
Analyzes sales trend, key items, vendor profitability and aged inventory and makes recommendations for driving improved performance
Assists in the development of product and negotiation to include cost, subsidy and terms

Skill/Experience Requirements
Bachelor's degree; or four years related experience and/ or training, or equivalent combination of education and experience
3-5 years with a mix of buying, planning and placement responsibilities
Merchandising, product and analytical skills
Proficiency in the use of desktop applications and Windows-based programs
Retail math literacy and application of concepts to daily operations
Strong working knowledge of Assortment Planning, Clustering, SPRS, AdPlan, Frequency, MRE, Promotional Performance Reporting (AdEffect), SignRiter

Benefits
As a Sears professional, your career path options will be determined by your performance as well as your desire to advance further within the Sears organization. You'll also get some of the best benefits in the industry: -Medical, Dental and Legal Plans -Flexible Spending Accounts -Associate Discounts -Group Universal Life Insurance -Long-Term Disability Insurance -Long-Term Care Insurance -Business Travel Accident Insurance -Short-Term Disability -Vacation/Personal and National Holidays -WorkLife Solutions Please Note: Different eligibility rules apply to certain benefits. Some businesses do not offer all benefits shown.


Sears is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.