Also called: Retail Buyer, Merchandise Buyer
Chooses which clothes, shoes, and accessories a store or website will sell.
Buyers attend fashion weeks and trade shows, meet brand reps, and decide what to order and how much. They study sales data to see what sold out and what flopped. A good buyer has both taste and a head for numbers.
Based on BLS wholesale and retail buyers (13-1022), May 2024 estimates.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in fashion merchandising, business, or marketing.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Fashion Merchandising, Business Administration, Marketing.
Shrinking (about -2% over 10 years). BLS projects a slight decline for buyers as data tools streamline purchasing.
Medium risk for 10 years. AI forecasting sets quantities and reorders; trend judgment, vendor negotiations and building an assortment stay human.
Classes: Business or DECA, Statistics, Marketing.
Official data: O*NET occupation 13-1022.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.