Buying Assistant | Retail | ACE Hardware

Buying Assistant | Retail | ACE HardwareEstablished in the 1930s as a trading business, Al-Futtaim Group today is one of the most diversified and progressive, privately held regional businesses headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Structured into five operating divisions; automotive, financial services, real estate, retail and healthcare; employing more than 35,000 employees across more than 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, Al-Futtaim Group partners with over 200 of the world’s most admired and innovative brands. Al-Futtaim Group’s entrepreneurship and relentless customer focus enables the organisation to continue to grow and expand; responding to the changing needs of our customers within the societies in which we operate.By upholding our values of respect, excellence, collaboration and integrity; Al-Futtaim Group continues to enrich the lives and aspirations of our customers each and every day.Overview of the roleTo be passionate in supporting our Category Teams with the selection and procurement of products. The Buying Assistant’s responsibilities include maintaining positive vendor relations, preparing retail and pricing strategies, placing and tracking purchase orders, managing inventory and keeping track of market trends.To be successful as a Buying Assistant, you should be confident, highly organized and an excellent communicator. An outstanding Buying Assistant has an analytical mind and excellent negotiating skills. The Buying Assistant communicates with suppliers, planning, visual merchandising, marketing and logistics teams to support the Category Manager, maximising the effectiveness of the Category Teams, to achieve sales, profits and market share objectives for the Business.What you will doMonitor OffersAssisting the Category manager with the selection of the right commercial offerResearching new suppliers and making recommendations to the Category managerReviewing retail/buying prices and margins regularlyRegularly review competitors and wider market to monitor prices, range, suppliers, trends and new productsUnderstanding of the merchandising process, product lifecycle and being able to come up with relevant proposals and recommendations for actionPO ManagementEnsuring products are purchased at the right time, to specification and at a competitive price.Following up on orders placed and working close with vendors & the logistics team to resolve shipping/delivery issues and assure the target stock levels are metPlanning, monitoring and maintaining suitable inventory levelsVendor ManagementLiaise with suppliers on correct completion of article master templates in order to provide accurate and timely information to the Master Data Team (MDT)Creating on a regular base & ad hoc business reports such as newness sales report etc as and when requiredSubstituting for the Category Manager adequately when necessary to ensure business needs are met and assist in additional activities related to new store opening in UAE and other countriesTraining and mentoring new Buying Assistants and sharing best practices with themProactively support e commerce team and category development team on their requirementsAbility to produce accurate and timely reportsStrong communication to all departmentsCollaborative approachSharing best sellers and newness to achieve e-com goalsRequired skills to be successfulAdvanced technical knowledge of ERP systems (SAP).MS Office products (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).Above average computation abilities.Feeling comfortable with various calculationsWhat equips you for the roleEducation:University/ College DegreeMinimum Experience and Knowledge:Minimum 2 years of experience in similar role or 2 years product experience in another role coupled with SAP knowledge and advanced excel skillWe’re here to provide excellent service but a little help from you can ensure a five-star candidate experience from start to finish.Before you click “apply”: Please read the job description carefully to ensure you can confidently demonstratewhythis opportunity is right for you and take the time to put together a well-crafted and personalised CV to further boost your visibility. Our global Talent Acquisition team members are all assigned to specific businesses to ensure that we make the best matches between talent and opportunities. We not only consider the requisite compatibility of skills and behaviours, but also how candidates align with our Values of Respect, Integrity, Collaboration, and Excellence.As part of our candidate experience promise, we also want to make ourselves available to you throughout the application process. We make every effort to review and respond to every application.#J-18808-Ljbffr