About Us:
Me Trading Group Pty Ltd, trading as Habitania, is an established Australian homewares, giftwares, décor, furniture and lifestyle retailer. Habitania operates a multi-site retail network across New South Wales and Victoria and an official online platform at https://www.habitania.com.au. The company offers a broad range of practical, stylish and seasonally curated products, including furniture, décor, wall art, home fragrance, skincare, bathroom products, kitchenware, drinkware, tableware, gifts and seasonal collections.
Role Summary:
We are seeking a commercially focused and detail-oriented Retail Buyer to support Habitania’s growing retail operations. The role is responsible for planning, selecting, purchasing and reviewing product ranges for our homewares, giftwares, décor, furniture and lifestyle retail business. The successful candidate will monitor sales data and stock levels, liaise with suppliers and management, assess product samples and market trends, and support pricing, promotional, display and seasonal buying strategies across our store network and online channels.
Key Responsibilities:
- Monitor weekly and monthly sell-through, stock-on-hand, stock cover and rate-of-sale reporting for every product category — furniture, décor, home fragrance, kitchenware, tableware, bathroom, skincare, gifts and Christmas — across each Habitania store in New South Wales and Victoria, the Blacktown distribution centre and the habitania.com.au and Westfield Direct online channels, identifying overstocked, slow-moving and out-of-stock lines and setting replenishment, inter-store transfer and re-order priorities against a substantial inventory holding.
- Study supplier and manufacturer catalogues, brand release calendars, trade fair previews and wholesale price lists from the branded homewares, home fragrance and giftware suppliers Habitania carries, together with competitor ranging, pricing and promotional activity in the Australian homewares market, to stay informed of new product launches, cost and exchange-rate movement, freight and lead-time changes and shifting market conditions affecting the company's purchasing program.
- Negotiate purchase arrangements with Australian wholesalers, brand agents and overseas manufacturers across a significant annual purchasing program, covering unit cost, order and minimum order quantities, payment and credit terms, freight terms and shipping method, production and delivery lead times, packaging and labelling requirements, and damage, defect and return arrangements.
- Negotiate promotional and supply support with brand suppliers — including co-funded discounts, seasonal and limited-edition allocations, exclusive or first-release product, gift-with-purchase support, display and point-of-sale material, and priority delivery into peak trading — so that store and online campaigns such as the Christmas program, VIP candle and diffuser offers and end-of-season clearance are backed by secured stock.
- Set and review retail and promotional price points for the categories bought, working from landed cost, freight, exchange-rate movement and competitor pricing to the gross margin targets required by the business, and construct markdown and clearance ladders determining the discount depth and duration applied to ageing, discontinued and end-of-season lines.
- Design how the purchased ranges are carried and presented — which lines go to which store based on store size, catchment and trading history, how new ranges such as the exclusive Chinoiserie collection and Garden Collection home fragrance are grouped and displayed, and what range information, product imagery and copy input is supplied for habitania.com.au, Westfield Direct listings, VIP mailing list campaigns and in-store display.
- Report to the Directors on category and supplier performance, margin achievement, stock investment and buying risk, and contribute to longer-term planning decisions including brand entry and exit, development of exclusive and own-label ranges, category expansion or reduction, and the opening stock requirement for new, relocated or refitted store locations.
- Work with the Directors and store management on the promotional and trading calendar — the Christmas program, gifting occasions such as Mother's Day and Valentine's Day, new-arrival launches, spring and summer ranges and clearance events — advising which lines to promote, what stock depth is available, what pricing and margin can be supported and when supplier stock will land.
- Prepare seasonal range and buying plans by category and season, working to the long lead times of imported homewares, décor and furniture — the Christmas range in particular is committed months ahead of the trading period — and phasing deliveries so that stock arrives at the Blacktown distribution centre in time for store allocation and campaign launch.
- Prepare and manage the open-to-buy budget for the categories bought, allocating spend between brands, categories and seasons, tracking committed purchase orders against budget, and adjusting forward orders in response to actual sales, stock cover, warehouse capacity and the company's inventory and cash-flow targets.
- Anticipate customer demand by tracking interior and homewares trends — colour, material, finish and styling directions such as Hamptons, coastal and chinoiserie, and the annual Christmas theme cycle — through trade fairs, supplier previews, domestic and overseas market observation, online search and engagement data, store feedback and prior-season performance, and translate them into the ranges Habitania will carry next season.
- Determine, line by line, the quantity, style, quality specification and price point of goods to be purchased — including size, materials, finish, colourway, packaging and applicable safety and labelling requirements — and the split of buy quantity between store locations and the online channels, so that the range purchased matches Habitania's positioning as a curated homewares, décor and gift retailer.
- Inspect and assess product quality and construction before committing to purchase — materials, weight, stability and finish of furniture; glaze, finish and durability of ceramics, glassware and décor; fragrance throw, burn quality and packaging of candles and diffusers — and reject, renegotiate or require correction of lines that do not meet the standard expected by Habitania's customers.
- Value each proposed line commercially by comparing supplier cost, landed cost, expected retail price, achievable margin, projected rate of sale, freight and storage cost, exclusivity, and the residual clearance risk if the line under-performs, then rank competing options within the available category budget.
- Attend supplier showrooms, homewares and gift trade fairs, brand previews and warehouse viewings in Australia and, where required, overseas supply markets, in order to inspect product physically before purchase rather than buying from catalogue images alone.
- Select and place orders at those viewings and previews, or through supplier and wholesale ordering platforms, confirming quantities, colourways, delivery windows, pricing and any exclusivity negotiated for Habitania.
- Request, receive and register product samples, pre-production samples, swatches and supplier catalogues at the Blacktown premises, and maintain sample, specification and costing records against each supplier and purchase order.
- Assess samples against the agreed specification — dimensions, materials, finish, colour match, packaging, labelling and applicable Australian safety and labelling requirements — and approve, request correction or reject before bulk production or shipment is released.
- Visit supplier factories, warehouses and consolidation points where a supply issue, quality concern or new product opportunity requires inspection at the source rather than at Habitania's own premises.
- Follow up after such visits with the supplier and the Directors to confirm corrective action, revised specifications, replacement or credit arrangements, and any resulting changes to forward orders.
Requirements:
- AQF Certificate IV or higher (or an assessed overseas equivalent) in Business, Commerce, Marketing, Retail Management, Merchandising, Supply Chain Management or a related discipline; alternatively, at least three years of relevant retail buying experience in substitution for the formal qualification (ANZSCO Skill Level 3).
- At least two years' experience in retail buying, merchandise planning, product sourcing or category management, preferably in homewares, giftware, décor, furniture or a related lifestyle retail category.
- Demonstrated ability to plan and manage a seasonal buying program and an open-to-buy budget, including forward ordering against long import lead times and phased delivery into peak trading periods.
- Demonstrated commercial negotiation skill with wholesalers, brand agents and overseas manufacturers across cost, order quantity, payment and credit terms, freight terms, delivery scheduling and promotional support.
- Ability to analyse sell-through, stock cover, rate of sale, markdown and margin data and convert it into ranging, re-order, transfer, markdown and clearance decisions across multiple store locations and online channels.
- Ability to assess product quality, construction, finish, packaging and compliance, and to evaluate landed cost, retail price point, achievable margin and clearance risk.
- Sound understanding of consumer and interior styling trends and of seasonal trading cycles in Australian homewares and giftware retail, in particular the Christmas program.
- Competence with retail inventory and point-of-sale reporting, purchase order administration and spreadsheet analysis, together with accurate supplier, product, sample and costing record keeping.
- Strong written and verbal communication and the ability to work independently, prioritise competing buying deadlines and coordinate with Directors, store management, warehouse and online staff.
Why Join Us:
- Be part of an established and growing Australian homewares and lifestyle retail brand.
- Work with a diverse product range across décor, furniture, fragrance, kitchenware, tableware, gifts and seasonal collections.
- Contribute directly to product selection, seasonal range planning and retail growth across NSW and Victoria.
- Work in a collaborative environment involving suppliers, store teams, operations and marketing personnel.
How to Apply:
Please send your CV and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the role.
For more information about Habitania, visit https://www.habitania.com.au or contact the company directly.
Pay: $78,000.00 – $80,000.00 per year
Work Location: In person
