Lead Buyer - Furniture

Location: Bengaluru

JOB DESCRIPTION
The Lead buyer is responsible for end-to-end ownership of the category, including buying strategy, assortment planning, vendor management, margin delivery, and inventory optimisation. The role focuses on building commercially strong, customer-relevant assortments while ensuring profitability and operational efficiency.

Key Responsibilities
1. Category & Buying Strategy
Develop annual and seasonal category strategies aligned with business objectives
Build balanced assortments across price points, styles, and customer segments
Drive range planning, SKU optimisation, and lifecycle management
2. Vendor & Product Management
Lead vendor sourcing, negotiations, and cost optimisation
Drive new product development in collaboration with design and sourcing teams
Ensure quality standards, compliance, and ethical sourcing
3. Financial & Inventory Management
Own category margins, OTB, pricing, and markdown management
Partner with Planning to manage inventory turns, ageing, and availability
Monitor sell-through, ROS, and stock productivity
4. Market & Trend Insights
Track market trends, customer insights, and competitor activity
Translate insights into commercial product decisions
Cross-Functional Collaboration Work closely with Supply Chain, Visual Merchandising, Marketing, and Store teams
Ensure on-time launches and strong in-store execution
5. Team & Stakeholder Management
Guide and mentor junior buyers / executives Manage internal and external stakeholders effectively

Ideal Candidate Profile
8–15 years of experience in furniture buying/category management
Experience in large format retail
Strong exposure to domestic + import sourcing
Proven track record of managing category P&L
Deep understanding of furniture materials, construction, and price architecture
Strong negotiation and analytical skills