Buying Manager

Buying Manager

Salary upon application

London

Position: Buying Manager – Skincare Cosmetics

Location: London

A leading UK retailer specialising in Korean beauty and skincare, offering a curated range of over 2,000 products across skincare, makeup, haircare, and body care through both ecommerce and physical stores. Since launching in 2019, the company has become a trusted destination for K-Beauty customers across the UK, supported by thousands of 5-star customer reviews and a rapidly expanding retail presence.

The Buying Manager will lead the Buying team and oversee the full product lifecycle across multiple categories, ensuring all activity supports the wider commercial strategy. The role involves managing key supplier relationships, overseeing onboarding and launch processes, and driving the commercial performance of both established and emerging brands within the UK market. This opportunity suits someone with strong leadership skills, commercial awareness, and experience working in fast-moving retail environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of Buyers across different experience levels, ensuring clear direction, strong execution, and continuous development.
• Work closely with Merchandising and wider business teams to support category planning and deliver commercially effective product strategies aligned with customer demand and business objectives.
• Manage supplier partnerships and lead commercial negotiations, including margins, funding agreements, and long-term partnership terms.
• Oversee contract reviews and renewals, ensuring agreements meet operational and commercial requirements while maintaining strong supplier relationships.
• Analyse sales, margin, stock flow, and promotional performance to identify opportunities and risks, using data to support commercial discussions with brands.
• Manage stock flow and supplier lead times, ensuring timely deliveries and resolving any supply chain issues that may impact product availability.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Merchandising, Marketing, Supply Chain, and Retail Operations to ensure successful launches, promotions, and stock planning across all channels.
• Maintain accurate launch timelines and critical paths, ensuring all stages of onboarding, labelling, compliance, and product readiness are completed on schedule.
• Support suppliers with UK labelling and compliance requirements, ensuring all products meet regulations before launch.
• Take ownership of priority and exclusive brand accounts, ensuring they receive strong commercial focus and strategic support.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with international brand teams, providing regular updates on performance, opportunities, and market growth.
• Produce weekly and monthly reports for senior leadership, highlighting performance trends, opportunities, and recommendations.

What We’re Looking For

• At least 4 years’ experience in Buying or Category Management within beauty, skincare, wellness, or fast-paced consumer retail.
• Proven experience leading and developing buying teams.
• Strong commercial awareness with a track record of driving sales and profitability.
• Experience managing supplier negotiations, commercial terms, and long-term partnerships.
• Strong analytical skills with advanced Excel capability and confidence interpreting sales and performance data.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines effectively.
• Passion for beauty, skincare, and evolving consumer trends.
• Experience working with international suppliers is advantageous.
• Korean language skills are beneficial but not essential.
• Collaborative and relationship-focused approach to working with brands and partners.