What is a senior merchandise buyer and how to become one

Key steps to become a senior merchandise buyer

1. Explore senior merchandise buyer education requirements

   Most common senior merchandise buyer degrees

   Bachelor's

   69.5 %

   Associate

   18.9 %

   Master's

   8.4 %

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2. Start to develop specific senior merchandise buyer skills

   Skills	Percentages
   Market Trends	24.49%
   Trade Shows	23.04%
   Product Development	11.99%
   Drive Sales	7.53%
   Direct Reports	7.30%

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3. Complete relevant senior merchandise buyer training and internships

   Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior merchandise buyers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior merchandise buyer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior merchandise buyer resumes.

4. Research senior merchandise buyer duties and responsibilities

   • Coordinate and provide direction to inventory teams by managing product placement, open-to-buy, and logistics.
   • Work closely with the logistics department and internal warehouse to coordinate just in time deliveries and maintain daily inventory reconciliation.
   • Manage business relationship with Japanese OEM of wide-format printer engines.

5. Get senior merchandise buyer experience

   Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a senior merchandise buyer. The most common roles before becoming a senior merchandise buyer include merchandise buyer, buyer team lead and senior buyer.

6. Prepare your senior merchandise buyer resume

   When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior merchandise buyer resume.

   You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a senior merchandise buyer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

   Choose from 10+ customizable senior merchandise buyer resume templates

   Build a professional senior merchandise buyer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior merchandise buyer resume.
   

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7. Apply for senior merchandise buyer jobs

   Now it's time to start searching for a senior merchandise buyer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

   1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
   2. Consult your professional network
   3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
   4. Watch out for job scams