Buying Industrial Placement
- Salary £22,643.87
- LocationManchester
- Job duration12 months
- Discipline Industrial Placement
- Reference019082
The role
We’re Recruiting for our 2025 Buying Industrial Placement Students join our Retail Team
We are looking for passionate students to join various Buying teams across Fashion, Home and Technology for a 12-month period from September 2025, fulfilling an Admin Assistant position.
Here, a career in Buying involves working in a fast paced, commercial environment. Our Buyers have the ability to recognise the latest shapes and trends and turn them into commercial product. Our teams are responsible for developing, selecting, sourcing and trading trend led products to excite our customers. The Buying teams also work closely with our Design and Merchandising teams to ensure the business has the right products to exceed our customers’ expectations.
This is a truly fantastic opportunity where you will be given responsibilities that will add to the success of the business and you will become an integral part of the team whilst building your work experience in a commercial fashion head office environment. You’ll also develop crucial industry relationships along the way which may help your employment prospects after you’ve graduated from university!
What will you do as a Buying Industrial Placement at N Brown?
- Supporting the Buying teams with administrative requirements.
- Attending departmental range and selection meetings.
- Assisting in fit sessions.
- Sample management.
- Regular benchmarking of competitors.
- Liaising with suppliers to progress orders; forging and maintaining strong supplier relationships.
- Attending appointments with suppliers alongside the Buyer as and when required.
What skills and experience will you have?
- We’re looking for current students on a Fashion or Buying related degree (or equivalent) course who can commit to placement of 12 months.
- The primary role is to support the buying team in an administrative role which will require strong attention to detail and excellent organisation skills, as it’s crucial that work is completed accurately and sometimes to tight deadlines.
- You should be PC literate with the ability to quickly adapt and learn new systems.
- You’ll be a confident communicator with an energetic approach and exceptional levels of personal motivation.
- You’ll need to display a keen commercial eye for product along with good knowledge of the latest trends.
- A genuine passion and drive for a career in retail is essential as well as the ability to demonstrate a sound understanding of the purpose and value of a Buying function within a business.
What’s in it for you?
- 24 days holiday (+ 8 bank holidays) with the option to buy an additional 10 days
- Annual bonus scheme
- Enhanced maternity and adoption leave
- Access to Apricity, a self-funding IVF benefit at a reduced rate
- Company pension with up to 8% N Brown contribution
- Mental Health support both internally and externally, including access to our wellbeing champions and counselling services
- A range of financial wellbeing support
- Colleague discount across all N Brown brands
- Onsite café with subsidised rates and local restaurant discounts!
- Life Assurance and Private Medical Insurance
- Paid volunteer time – all our colleagues can take a full day paid to volunteer for a charity of their choice
N Brown – who we are and why work for us?
At N Brown, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce and creating an inclusive environment that values equality for all. Our vision is that by ‘championing inclusion, we’ll become the most loved and trusted fashion retailer’. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging are, therefore, at the heart of our culture.
We’re a forward-thinking digital retailer with a financial services proposition to be proud of. We’re customer-obsessed, serving them through three core brands: JD Williams, Simply Be, and Jacamo. We’re experienced, with over 160 years of trading under our belt. We’re inclusive, as we believe in fashion without boundaries; and we’re sustainable, striving to make as little impact on the planet as possible.
In May 2024 we were delighted to be named one of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2024. We work hard to create a happy and inclusive culture for everyone and we’re so proud to have made this list - as voted for by our very own colleagues!
Ways of Working
We offer hybrid working which varies across the business depending on the role you’re in. Our Head Office is located in the Northern Quarter in Manchester City Centre. So if you are travelling by train, tram or bus we’re perfectly located, plus we’re surrounded by cool cafes, trendy bars and the best places to eat!
Our full-time working hours are 36.17 per week over 5-days. We don’t have strict working hours therefore there is some flexibility around start and finish times as long as you are meeting the needs of the business.
Our promise to you:
We’re an equal opportunity employer and value diversity. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, colour, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
How to apply
As soon as we receive your application, we’ll send you an email to let you know. We always aim to come back to you as soon as possible with an update and we really appreciate you taking the time to apply for a role with us. Good luck!
- Applications will close on 15th November 2024
- If your application is successful, then you will be invited to a face-to-face assessment centre. This will be in early December and following this, you will be notified of the outcome within 2 weeks.