Buyer Manager

About Baltic Born

Baltic Børn is a women's fashion brand founded by three sisters, built on a simple idea: beautiful, well-made clothing should be attainable, and it should fit real women. We design across life stages and carry extended sizing because we believe a woman shouldn't have to shop somewhere else to find her size.

We move fast. We launch roughly a dozen collections a year, and the buying team sits at the center of every one of them - deciding what we make, how much of it, and what our customer will want six months before she knows it herself.

About the Role

We're looking for a Buyer Manager to lead our buying team through every launch on the calendar. You'll own the buy end to end - assortment planning, quantities, size curves, vendor negotiation, and delivery - across approximately twelve launches per year.

Just as importantly, you'll lead people. You'll manage a team of six spanning Junior Buyers through Senior Buyers, and a core part of this job is growing them: teaching the craft of buying, sharpening their analytical instincts, and building the kind of bench strength that lets people advance into bigger roles here.

This is a strong fit for an experienced buyer who is ready for their first management seat. We are not requiring prior people-management experience. We are looking for someone with real buying depth, sound judgment, and a genuine interest in developing others - and we'll support you in growing into the leadership side of the role.

What You'll Do

Own the Buy

• Lead the buying process for approximately twelve launches per year, from initial concept through delivery to the warehouse.
• Build and finalize buy quantities by style, color, and size, balancing newness against proven performers.
• Set and manage size curves across our extended size range, using sell-through data to refine depth by size over time.
• Partner with Design and Production on the seasonal calendar, holding buy deadlines that protect on-time launch dates.
• Manage the open-to-buy budget, flagging risk and opportunity early rather than at the end of the season.

Plan the Assortment

• Own assortment planning for each launch - category mix, price architecture, style count, and the balance of core, seasonal, and fashion-forward product.
• Analyze historical sell-through, margin, return rates, and customer feedback to inform what gets bought, repeated, or retired.
• Identify white space in the assortment and bring forward opportunities backed by data and market research.
• Build and present the assortment plan and post-launch recaps to leadership, with a clear point of view on what worked and what didn't.

Lead and Grow the Team

• Manage a team of six across Junior Buyer, Buyer, and Senior Buyer levels - setting priorities, reviewing work, and holding a high bar.
• Mentor deliberately: teach assortment logic, negotiation, and data interpretation so team members build judgment, not just execute tasks.
• Create development paths for each team member, with clear skill milestones that support promotion into more senior buying roles.
• Run regular one-on-ones, deliver honest and useful feedback, and own hiring and onboarding as the team grows.
• Delegate meaningful work - including stretch assignments - so the team gains reps on the parts of the job that advance careers.

Manage Vendors and Timelines

• Own relationships with overseas vendors and manufacturing partners, including negotiation of pricing, minimums, and terms.
• Manage production and shipping lead times across international supply chains, building calendars that account for realistic transit and customs timing.
• Resolve delivery discrepancies, quality issues, and delays, escalating with urgency when a launch date is at risk.
• Evaluate landed cost - including freight, duties, and tariffs - and protect gross margin targets on every buy.
• Source and vet new vendors to expand capability, improve turnaround, or reduce cost.

Build Better Process

• Own and continuously improve the buying team's processes, templates, and documentation - from PO workflows to sample tracking to vendor records.
• Maintain accurate demand and replenishment planning in Sage Inventory Planner, using it to drive reorder timing and stock coverage decisions.
• Keep product, vendor, and SKU data clean and current in Shopify and Asana so the rest of the business can rely on it.
• Establish reporting the team and leadership actually use - sell-through, in-stock position, vendor performance, and margin by launch.
• Partner with Marketing, E-commerce, Warehouse, and Finance to make sure every launch is supported, stocked, and on budget.

What You Bring

• Buying experience. Several years of hands-on buying, merchandising, or assortment planning experience - ideally in apparel, fashion, or a comparable consumer product category. Prior people-management experience is not required.
• Assortment judgment. A demonstrated track record of making buy decisions and owning the results, good and bad.
• Analytical strength. Fluency in sell-through, margin, inventory turn, and forecasting, with advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills.
• Overseas vendor experience. Direct experience managing international vendors, production lead times, and the realities of global shipping.
• Sage Inventory Planner. Hands-on experience with Sage Inventory Planner, or comparable demand planning and inventory forecasting software.
• Shopify and Asana. Working proficiency in Shopify and Asana, plus Google Workspace.
• Process orientation. A genuine interest in building repeatable systems - you notice when something is being done inefficiently and you fix it.
• A desire to lead. Evidence that you enjoy teaching and developing people, whether that came from formal management, training peers, or mentoring junior team members.
• Fashion instinct. Real interest in women's fashion and consumer trends, and a point of view about where the market is heading.
• Communication. Clear, professional, and direct - with vendors, with your team, and with leadership.

Nice to Have

• Experience buying for extended sizing and managing size curves across a broad range.
• Background in a direct-to-consumer or e-commerce-first brand.
• Experience in a high-launch-cadence environment with compressed seasonal calendars.
• Familiarity with landed cost modeling, tariff codes, and international shipping terms (FOB, DDP, CIF).
• Experience hiring, onboarding, or building out a team from a small base.

What Success Looks Like

In your first 90 days:

• You know our customer, our categories, and our best and worst sellers - and can explain why each performed the way it did.
• You've met every vendor of consequence and know where our supply chain is strong and where it's fragile.
• You've had real conversations with all six team members about where they are and where they want to go.

By the end of your first year:

• Launches are landing on time, in the right quantities, and at target margin.
• The buying team's process is documented, consistent, and no longer dependent on any one person's memory.
• At least one member of your team is measurably closer to their next role because of how you've developed them.

WHY BALTIC BØRN

• A founder-led brand where your decisions visibly move the business - no committee between you and the outcome.
• Monthly employee appreciation activities and a team that genuinely likes working together.
• Generous employee discount on product.
• Flexible approach to work-life balance.
• Real ownership of a function that sits at the center of the company.