BEAUTY BUYING MANAGER
Do you keep up to date with all things beauty?
Do you know your Charlotte Tilbury from your Le Labo?
Do you love all things luxury retail?
If YES, we may have the role for you…
Luxury department store, Harvey Nichols, is searching for a new Beauty Buying Manager to join its Beauty department in our Head Office in London – Knightsbridge. Our culture is based on inclusivity; we embrace diversity. Whoever you are, Harvey Nichols has a place for you.
How we reward your hard work…
At Harvey Nichols, we champion career development and are passionate about our people. We will do all we can to support your journey and career path with us. Alongside this you will have access to a world of amazing benefits such as;
- Up to 40% off fashion
- Up to 40% off hospitality, foodmarket and hampers
- 30% off beauty and perfumery, wine and spirits
- Clothing allowance
You will also have access to charity days, a season ticket/bike loan; learning and development opportunities; to our Employee Assistance Program - Retail Trust and recognition schemes and the opportunity to join one of our Employee groups – Wellbeing, Diversity & Inclusion and Sustainability. These are just some of the reasons people join and stay!
About the role…
As a Beauty Buying Manager you will work alongside the Group Beauty Director & key internal stakeholders to create and deliver the omnichannel strategy for Beauty at Harvey Nichols. You will oversee the Beauty Buying department, ensuring sales & profit margin targets are met whilst helping to shape the vision & long-term strategy for HN Beauty. Lead the buying team to achieve market-leading new launches, robust continuity business, promotional activities & events, physical store planning & online acceleration in line with the group strategic goals. The role includes all Own Bought beauty categories but excludes Concessions & Beauty Services. You will:
- Build and maintain strong, commercially focused relationships with existing suppliers across all categories of Beauty.
- Attend supplier meetings to ensure robust joint business plans and optimise key launch opportunities.
- Ensure beauty buying team are recruited, trained & inspired to deliver the divisional strategy.
- Develop & retain talent.
- Manage the beauty buying team to ensure data integrity & meaningful, action-driven reporting.
- Deputise for the Beauty Director when appropriate.
- Interface effectively with other Head Office functions to ensure Beauty’s success (merchandising, marketing, media, online, finance & logistics).
- Develop and maintain excellent relationships with store colleagues, (General Managers & Beauty Sales Managers), to deliver the Harvey Nichols Beauty vision on a national scale, conducting store visits as appropriate.
- Lead the team to select and buy best in class beauty (new to market, category innovation, trending, exclusivity) that speaks to an elevated customer.
- Oversee contract negotiations to ensure Harvey Nichols establish the best possible terms to meet planned gross sales, profit margins and market-leading promotional plans.
- Work alongside the merchandising team, assisting with launch buys, large event buys and suggesting ways to improve our existing stock position via trade promotions & pricing strategies.
- Work closely with the online team to support the acceleration of this channel via trade initiatives & key strategic projects.
- Identify ways of improving sales performance, especially with regard to: -
- Visual Merchandising
- Promotional sites
- Trade promotional activity, including GWP
- HN Rewards & CRM initiatives
- Ecommerce promotions, brand visibility & key projects
- Negotiated supplier contributions where applicable, to support discounts, fees for sites & media
- Support the Beauty Director to position Harvey Nichols as a leading luxury beauty destination.
- Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of category, both existing and potential brands in U.K. and overseas.
- Research & approach new brands for the Beauty department at Harvey Nichols.
- Regular review of the market, closely monitoring competitor activity and trends. Present findings to key stakeholders.
- Work alongside wider company stakeholders & senior managers on key strategic projects, prioritising effectively to ensure the productive use of the team’s time.
- Assist the Beauty Director in maintaining the unique Harvey Nichols identity for beauty across all channels.
- Work cross-functionally with teams around the business to ensure that beauty is first to adopt new strategies & routes to success such as Rewards activation and ecommerce enhancements.
- Support with the production of presentations, reports & ideas to develop and implement buying & sellout strategies.
- Be a brand ambassador of Harvey Nichols in the industry.
- Manage space planning across the division alongside the Beauty Director & relevant store stakeholders (Store Planning Management, Facilities & General Managers).
- Manage run-down or reinvention plans for brands & spaces that are being exited, reduced or moved.
- Liaise with in-store management teams on a regular basis to ensure familiarity with the ranges, reviewing local trends and adapting as necessary.
- Oversee the management of promotional sites, windows and pop-ups to drive incremental trade and activate key launches or seasonal focuses.
Is this you?
We are looking for individuals who embrace diversity, love a challenge, are passionate about luxury retail and are looking for something uniquely different.
- Recent working knowledge of beauty buying, marketing & merchandising.
- Excellent industry relationships.
- Previous experience of working in an omni-channel luxury retail environment.
- Proven commercial experience.
- Experience in leading a successful & motivated team with an adaptive leadership style.
- A strategic and innovative thinker, with a passion for luxury beauty.
- ‘Digitally savvy’ with a natural desire to seek out innovation through multiple channels
- Results and performance driven.
- Excellent communicator. Able to influence and persuade at all levels to build successful relationships.
- Ability to present to a wide range of audiences & influence appropriate action.
- Intuitive, resilient & adaptable. Excellent problem-solving & creative thinking.
- High level of attention to detail.
- Excellent planning and organisation skills; ability to drive process and new ways of working.
- Excellent knowledge of the Harvey Nichols brand portfolio, customer, market positioning and beauty trends.
If this sounds like you, we want to hear from you!
Where do I sign?
If you are already thinking of what you will wear on your first day (no we don’t have uniforms) and this role catches your eye, hit the “apply” button below to kick-start your journey with us.
