How Much Money Does a Fashion Buyer Make?
The fashion industry includes a wide range of specialists, experts and entrepreneurs. Creative professionals design the clothes/accessories, skilled professionals produce the final products and the business professionals ensure that money is wisely spent, made and invested. A position as a fashion buyer combines creative skills and business acumen.
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Salary
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According to career search site Simply Hired, the average salary for a fashion buyer is $72,000. The exact salary of a fashion buyer depends on a number of factors including experience level and location. Some employers also offer benefits. Many fashion buyers work about 40 hours a week, but during fashion week and other special occasions, fashion industry professionals typically work more hours.
Education
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Each company has different expectations and requirements for hiring a fashion buyer. But according to Fashion-Schools.org, an online resource for information on fashion industry careers, college degrees in business or fashion are the most useful for a fashion buyer. College students who are interested in pursuing a career as a fashion buyer should consider majoring in fashion merchandising, public relations or related fashion and business majors.
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Experience and Training
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Monster, a website for job seekers, notes that several large fashion companies offer executive level training programs for fashion buyers. In such a program, a person is provided with on-the-job training as well as additional courses in various positions that if completed successfully, end in a job as a fashion buyer. Experience in retail sales is also a plus for prospective fashion buyers.
Duties and Skills
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Fashion buyers select and purchase items on behalf of their employers. The items are sold in storefronts or through online stores. Fashion buyers must have a firm grasp of what their employers' customers want and what they would be willing to pay for it. Fashion buyers must also keep abreast of trends and be able to accurately forecast future trends. Such duties require fashion buyers to conduct extensive market research for quantitative and qualitative information. Fashion buyers must know also know how to negotiate with suppliers for the best possible prices.
Employers
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Many different types of commercial entities hire fashion buyers. Typical employers include department stores, boutiques and wholesalers. Budding fashion entrepreneurs may don many hats in the same company such as fashion buyer, merchandiser and designer.
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- Photo Credit fabric swatches image by Empath from Fotolia.com
