Senior Buyer in London

About Refyne: We are redefining recruitment across the Personal Care, Beauty, Aesthetics & Wellness space. We partner with ambitious businesses to source high-impact talent and make hiring feel seamless - and we guarantee our results every time.

Our Client: Our client is one of the UK’s fastest-growing beauty retail businesses, operating within a highly trend-driven and culturally influential category. Since launching as an e-commerce-first business in 2019, the brand has rapidly scaled its omnichannel presence, building a loyal customer community and a strong reputation within the beauty and skincare space.

Overview: We are seeking a commercially driven Buying Manager to lead a growing Buying function within a fast-paced beauty retail environment. Reporting directly into the CEO, this is a highly strategic and visible position responsible for overseeing the Buying team, managing key supplier and brand relationships, driving commercial negotiations, and ensuring smooth execution across product launches, trading performance, and stock management.

The successful candidate will combine strong commercial acumen with exceptional relationship-building skills, balancing a commercially firm approach with a highly collaborative and culturally aware communication style. This role is particularly suited to someone who thrives in entrepreneurial businesses, enjoys mentoring and developing teams, and has a genuine interest in beauty, skincare, and emerging international consumer trends.

Key Responsibilities

• Buying Leadership & Team Development: Lead, coach, and develop a growing Buying team across varying levels of seniority, creating structure, accountability, and clear commercial direction. Act as a hands-on leader who can support junior team members while building a high-performing and collaborative team culture.
• Category Strategy & Commercial Performance: Work closely with Merchandising and senior leadership to develop commercially strong category plans aligned with customer demand, market trends, and business growth objectives. Monitor trading performance across sales, margin, stock flow, and promotions, identifying opportunities and risks to maximise category performance.
• Supplier & Brand Relationship Management: Build and manage strong long-term relationships with international brand partners, maintaining regular communication around performance, launches, growth opportunities, and commercial strategy. Lead supplier negotiations across margins, exclusivity agreements, promotional support, and long-term partnership terms.
• Product Launches, Contracts & Operations: Oversee product launch critical paths, ensuring smooth onboarding, launch readiness, stock flow, and delivery timelines. Lead contract review and renewal processes, ensuring agreements support wider commercial and operational objectives.
• Reporting & Cross-Functional Collaboration: Produce and present regular trading and performance reports to senior leadership, highlighting key commercial insights, risks, and opportunities. Act as a key commercial partner across the wider business, strengthening collaboration between Buying, Merchandising, and operational teams.

Qualifications

• Experience: Minimum 4+ years’ experience within Buying, Category Management, or Commercial roles across beauty, skincare, wellness, or fast-paced consumer retail.
• Leadership: Proven experience managing and developing buying or commercial teams within a high-growth environment.
• Commercial Acumen: Strong negotiation capability with experience managing margins, supplier terms, exclusivity discussions, and commercial partnerships.
• Relationship Management: Exceptional relationship-building skills with the ability to communicate confidently yet diplomatically with both internal stakeholders and external brand partners.
• Analytical Skills: Strong commercial and analytical mindset with the ability to interpret sales performance, trading data, and category trends.
• Organisation: Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple priorities, launches, deadlines, and supplier relationships simultaneously.
• International Exposure: Experience working with international suppliers or global brands is highly advantageous.
• Cultural Awareness: Exposure to Korean culture, international beauty brands, or Asian consumer markets would be highly beneficial.

Core Competencies

• Commercially Savvy: Understands how to balance strong commercial decision-making with long-term relationship management and customer demand.
• Culturally Aware: Appreciates the importance of communication styles and relationship dynamics within international supplier partnerships.
• Relationship-Led: Builds trust quickly and maintains collaborative, respectful, and productive supplier and stakeholder relationships.
• Hands-On Leader: Comfortable operating within a relatively flat business structure with direct exposure to senior leadership and founders.
• Entrepreneurial Mindset: Thrives in fast-paced, evolving environments where agility, ownership, and initiative are highly valued.
• Trend Conscious: Passionate about beauty, skincare, and emerging global consumer trends, with a strong awareness of market developments.

Additional Information

• Salary: up to £50,000 depending on experience.
• Location: London - full-time office-based role.
• Perks & Benefits: Employee discount across online and retail channels, company pension scheme, casual and collaborative working environment, strong opportunities for professional growth and development, direct exposure to founders and senior leadership, opportunity to make a visible impact within a rapidly scaling business.

Why Join? This is a unique opportunity to join one of the UK’s most exciting and fastest-growing beauty retail businesses at a pivotal stage of expansion. You will have genuine ownership, significant commercial influence, and the chance to shape strategic brand relationships within a highly engaged and globally influenced consumer category. Working directly alongside founders and senior leadership, you will play a key role in scaling both the Buying function and the wider commercial success of the business. If you enjoy entrepreneurial environments, relationship-led commercial roles, and the opportunity to combine strategic thinking with hands-on execution, this is an exceptional opportunity to make a meaningful impact within a rapidly growing business.