Buyer - Wine

We are recruiting for a Wine Buyer to join the Wine & Spirits team here at Harrods. This role is pivotal to the success of this area and a fantastic opportunity to collaborate with some of the best wine producers in the world in a unique omni channel business.

About the Role  

Reporting directly into the Buying Manager for Wines & Spirits, the Wine Buyer is responsible for implementing the commercial strategy to deliver sales and profit across the category. This is an end-to-end trading role, focussed on the sourcing, buying and selling of the highest quality range at the best price.

You will spend time building supplier relationships and understanding the customer, and always be on the lookout for new and exquisite products to wow our customers. You will continuously analyse range performance and have a clear oversight of trends and opportunities in the market. You will be responsible for creating an annual category plan and then delivering the plan through the cross functional team across all channels. Close collaboration with marketing and sales specialists to articulate and activate our proposition is integral to success in this role. Where relevant, you will also be responsible for brands operating within a concession model and sourcing own-label.

As the Wine Buyer you will also:

• Be accountable for developing and driving own category strategy to deliver and exceed financial KPI's.
• Build and nurture key relationships within Harrods, external suppliers and partners.
• Lead development and launch of Own Brough and Concession product range in line with the overall strategy for Food Halls, alongside the Product Developers, Food Technologists, Supply, Retail, Visual Merchandising, and Marketing.
• Support the Buying Manager with the development and execution of the Food & Beverage strategy across all channels and strategically procure wine ranges for our restaurants.
• Demonstrate excellent buying skills including supply management, price architecture, range building, quality and merchandise management.
• Take responsibility for supplier negotiations to source product at the lowest cost and highest quality within own category; work alongside the Buying Manager in more complex negotiations.
• Own the shop floor layout and planogram of products on the sales floor; responsible for engaging and training the Sales Floor team to implement the vision.
• Support in the delivery of store development projects, displays, pop-ups within own area.

About You  

You will be an accomplished commercial professional looking to expand their horizons, or an established and proven Assistant Buyer, ready for a new Buyer role. You will be commercially minded, and process driven whilst being an inspiring leader, who is able to bring your team on the journey. You will also be highly organised, in on the detail with a creative flair. 

You will have trading experience in food or drink across brands, own-label and ideally concessions. You will have sound knowledge of wine and be keen to develop this further leveraging expertise across the team and industry. This role is supported by a team Buying Assistant & Assistant Buyer.

You will have experience operating in a Retail Business or Wine Supplier, where you have been involved in range optimisation, price negotiation, trade planning and ideally marketing. You will be an expert category manager balancing product knowledge, commercial perspective and industry insight to drive the category to success.

You will also:

• Be able to demonstrate effective leadership, able to inspire, nurture and develop a high performing team.
• Hold or be prepared to work towards the WSET Diploma or have equivalent industry experience. MW/MW student also advantageous.
• Be happy to travel frequently to see suppliers and visit competitors. 
• Have a creative, solution based approach. 
• Be PC Literate (Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook and ideally SAP) 

About Us 

Harrods is one of the world's leading luxury department stores and we're becoming a destination for the most sought-after brands from around the globe. Our combined mission is to make visiting our iconic Knightsbridge store one of the world's most inspiring shopping experiences.     Our Promise to You    Help us make the impossible possible for our customers and we'll do something remarkable for you. As well as offering a friendly environment to inspire your best work, we provide abundant opportunities and support to build an exceptional career across the varied specialisms of our business.

In return, you'll receive an excellent benefits package, including a company pension, flexible working, 25 days' holiday, and your birthday off, up to 33% in-store discount (including across our food hall and restaurants) and a season ticket loan.     Uniquely You    At Harrods we believe the personality and authenticity of our people sets us apart.  We celebrate and invite applications from all cultures, backgrounds, tastes, and experiences and are proud of our culture where people from all walks of life can grow and thrive. What makes you unique makes us exceptional. 

While our job adverts outline the ideal qualities, skills, and prior experience for the role, we believe in the potential for growth and value individual strengths. If you do not meet every desired criteria but feel you have the skills and experience to thrive in this role as well as a genuine interest in working for Harrods and you can demonstrate an alignment with our values, we would encourage you to apply.   If you want to know more about our people and our culture, search #TogetherHarrods on LinkedIn, Facebook or follow us on Instagram @togetherharrods