Senior Buyer

Licensed sponsor London Full-time Posted 5 hours ago

JOB TITLE: Senior Buyer - Nike & Mono Brand

DEPARTMENT: Merchandising

LOCATION: Stamford Bridge, London

CONTRACT: Permanent, Full Time

Closing date: 24th November

We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the position may be filled before the listed closing date. To avoid missing out, please submit your application at your earliest convenience.

JOB FUNCTION

The Senior Buyer is responsible for ensuring Chelsea FC's product ranges are commercially balanced, strategically invested and aligned to business objectives.

Working closely with both the Product and the Merchandising functions, the role will evaluate opportunities across our Nike and mono-brand categories, support range sign-off, manage buy budgets and ensure investment is directed towards the most commercially attractive categories, collections and launches. The role acts as the commercial bridge between product creation and merchandising execution.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Category & Range Commercialisation

Review commerciality of proposed Nike/mono-brand ranges and assortments per season.
Assess category opportunities based on sales performance, customer demand and market trends, in conjunction with product team.
Support range sign-off decisions alongside Product and Merchandising.
Ensure product ranges are commercially balanced across key categories, customer segments and price points and in accordance with the product pyramid.
Identify opportunities for category expansion and commercial growth.

Seasonal Investment Planning

Develop seasonal buy plans aligned to sales and margin objectives.
Recommend budget allocation by category, collection and launch.
Identify priority areas for investment based on strategic goals and historical performance.
Support business decisions around new categories and retail growth opportunities.

Buy Budget Management

Manage seasonal buy budgets and commitment plans.
Ensure category investment remains aligned to agreed financial targets.
Monitor commitments against approved budgets.

Commercial Performance Review

Conduct post-launch and post-season performance reviews.
Evaluate the effectiveness of category investment decisions.
Provide recommendations to improve future range and investment planning.
Use sales analysis to support future commercial decisions.

Cross Functional Collaboration

Work closely with the Product team throughout the range planning process.
Partner with the Merchandise team to align category investment plans with inventory and trading strategies.
Support key launches, major campaigns and strategic retail initiatives.
Act as a key stakeholder during seasonal sign-off and investment reviews.

SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

Significant buying experience within a multi-category retail, sports, fashion, lifestyle or licensed merchandise environment, with latest role at senior level
Proven ownership of seasonal buy plans, open-to-buy budgets and category investment decisions.
Strong understanding of assortment architecture, product pyramids and range planning.
Experience assessing ranges across customer segments, price points and retail channels.
Strong commercial analytical capability across sales, margin, sell-through, stock and customer-demand data.
Demonstrable experience conducting post-launch and post-season reviews and translating insights into future range decisions.
Track record of identifying and delivering category growth opportunities.
Experience supporting new product propositions, launches or retail expansion.
Strong collaborative experience across Buying, Product Development, Merchandising, Retail and Marketing.
Confidence presenting commercial recommendations and influencing senior stakeholders.

OUR EXPECTATIONS

To embody the club’s BLUE behaviours (Brave, Lead, Unity, Edge) in the approach to work and interaction with others
To adhere to the club’s policies and procedures, including Health & Safety, Financial Authorisation, Confidentiality and GDPR.
To act as an ambassador for diversity, equality, and inclusion, and demonstrate a positive commitment by treating others fairly in line with our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy and reporting any acts of discrimination through appropriate channels
To create a safe environment and act to protect all young people and vulnerable adults that are either in your care or attending club premises, and report any concerns to the Safeguarding Lead
To report any misconduct or suspected misconduct to the HR Department

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

At Chelsea we recognise that the diversity of our people is one of our greatest strengths and we are taking positive action to ensure our existing colleagues and job applicants can fully be themselves and bring their own unique experiences and perspectives to Chelsea FC. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity.

If you need reasonable adjustments made to the recruitment process, please reach out to your recruiter, who will be able to advise and support you.

Chelsea FC is fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all children, young people and adults at risk (vulnerable groups). We therefore require all successful applicants to complete a DBS Check prior to starting employment. Depending on the role, successful applicants may also be required to undergo other child protection screening where appropriate.

This Job Description is not intended to be exhaustive; the duties and responsibilities may therefore vary over time according to the changing needs of the Club.