Assistant Buyer - Imaginative Play & Games (8 month FTC)

We are committed to being a truly inclusive retailer, so you’ll be welcomed whoever you are and wherever you work. Around here, there’s always the chance to try something new-whether that’s as part of an evolving team or somewhere else across the business - and we take development seriously and promise to support you. We also recognise and celebrate colleagues when they go the extra mile and, where possible, offer flexible working. When you join our team, we’ll also offer you an amazing range of benefits. Here are some of them:

Starting off with colleague discount, you'll be able to get 10% off at Sainsbury's, Argos, TU and Habitat after 4 weeks. This increases to 15% off at Sainsbury’s every Friday and Saturday and 15% off at Argos every pay day. We've also got you covered for your future with our pensions scheme and life cover. You'll also be able to share in our success as you may be eligible for a performance-related bonus of up to 5% of salary, depending on how we perform.

Your wellbeing is important to us too. You'll receive an annual holiday allowance, and you can buy additional holiday. We also offer other benefits that will help your money go further such as season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, health cash plans, pay advance (where you can access some of your pay before pay day) as well access to a great range of discounts from hundreds of other retailers. And if you ever need it there is also an employee assistance programme.

Moments that matter are as important to us as they are to you which is why we give up to 26 weeks’ pay for maternity or adoption leave and up to 4 weeks’ pay for paternity leave.

Please see www.sainsburys.jobs for a range of our benefits (note, length of service and eligibility criteria may apply).Please note, due to the volume of applications we receive, our roles may close early.

About the team

Our Toys Buying teams bring together commercial thinking, customer insight and a passion for product to create ranges customers love. Within Imaginative Play and Games, you could work across areas such as dolls, games, pushchairs and prams, partnering with well-known branded suppliers as well as supporting selected own-brand development. It is a close, collaborative team split across London and Ansty, working with colleagues throughout Commercial, Digital, Marketing, Product Development and Global Sourcing.

More about the role

As an Assistant Buyer, you will support the Buyer and Senior Buyer in delivering category sales, margin and supplier-funding targets. You will take ownership of an allocated subcategory from end to end, contributing to product selection, range strategy, pricing and promotional planning while maintaining accurate product and trading information across our channels.

Day to day, you will review performance and competitor activity, build productive supplier relationships, support negotiations and develop compelling promotional plans. You will work to critical-path milestones with Merchandising, Product Development, Global Sourcing, Digital and Marketing colleagues to deliver accurate, compliant and customer-focused ranges and launches. The exact product area will be confirmed based on business needs when the successful candidate joins.

More about you

You will bring practical buying experience and be comfortable working with branded suppliers, commercial terms and supplier funding. You can use sales, margin, customer and competitor information to form clear recommendations, and you understand how range, price, promotion and product placement influence commercial performance.

You will be organised and accurate, able to manage multiple milestones and keep stakeholders informed in a fast-moving environment. Strong working relationships matter in this role, as you will collaborate across several functions and balance customer, commercial, quality and compliance requirements. Experience in Toys is welcome but not essential where you can demonstrate transferable buying capability.

Essential criteria

• Experience supporting or delivering buying activity, including range selection, pricing, promotions or trading decisions
• Experience working with branded suppliers, including commercial terms, negotiation or supplier funding
• Evidence of using sales, margin, market, customer or competitor data to make commercial recommendations
• Experience managing multiple deadlines and maintaining accurate product, promotional or supplier information through a critical path
• Evidence of working cross-functionally to deliver a range, launch, promotion or trading outcome

Location: Coventry or London Store Support Centre and Home

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