Retail Buying

Boasting three new chapters, the Seventh Edition offers readers all the latest developments in retail buying to reflect the current market. Using a practical approach that emphasizes the major aspects of retail buying, this book provides the fundamental information new buyers need to accurately forecast and fulfill their customers' merchandise requirements. With a host of end-of-chapter materials, visual aids, and a Companion DVD, this book addresses topics such as the theoretical and practical background required for successful purchasing, as well as how buyers are now making use of the Internet for their purchasing needs. For professionals with a career or interest in retail buying, retail merchandising and/or fashion merchandising.

This completely updated edition offers three new chapters that make this text an excellent resource for those entering the field of retail buying and merchandising.

• Buying for Discount Operations. A complete presentation on how professional purchasers for such companies as Target and Wal-Mart plan their purchasing strategies and execute their buying plans.
• Consumer Analysis. The importance of the consumer in the buyer's decision-making process is discussed as well as the ways in which retail operations analyze customer demand.
• Wholesale Purchasing on the Internet. In addition to visiting the wholesale markets in the pursuit of new merchandise, many retail buyers are using the Internet as an additional means of product procurement. The concept of professional online purchasing is completely explored in this new chapter.

Included with this text is a DVD containing a two part production providing an onsite view of purchasing, planning, and buying. The video progresses from the stages of a buyer planning a purchase, through the buyer visiting the wholesale market, featuring many of the stops he/she makes in finalizing his/her purchase. The footage for the DVD was created in various buyers' premises including a New York City garment center, a residential buying office, in showrooms, and other real-life settings.