Location

Hybrid: Typically 1-2 days per week at our Support Centre in Coleshill, Birmingham.

Why The Works?

🏆 10th Best Big Company to Work For in the UK 2024 - 'Best Companies'

We don’t just sell products.
We inspire reading, learning, creativity and play.

We’re all about unlocking imagination and making creativity accessible to everyone, through screen free activities.

Our purpose is to inspire reading, learning, creativity and play, so that people can use their Time Well Spent.

With your Buying skills, keen eye, and negotiation skills, you'll be right at the beginning - sourcing the best products to help us deliver quality, affordable, value-led products to our customers. It all starts with you.

Become a Senior Buyer (Books)

Books are so important to us at The Works. Not only are they one of our hero categories, but they are also part of our purpose to inspire reading, learning, creativity, and play.

As the Senior Buyer for our Books category, you’ll steer the ship and have keen eye on our adult book offering, ensuring that The Works consistently offers the finest books. Our customers will return for the latest releases, all at an affordable price point, whether they seek fantasy adventures, detective noir mysteries, heart-warming journeys, laugh-out-loud moments, romantic fairy tales, educational insights, or Biographies - There truly is something for everyone.

Your Mission

• As the Senior Buyer, you’ll hold ultimate responsibility and accountability for delivering all commercial metrics.
• Your leadership will inspire, lead, and guide the Buying team to exceed objectives.
• Responsible for defining and driving the strategy, growing our licensing partnerships, and keeping ahead of the curve with market trends.
• You’ll cultivate strong relationships with existing suppliers while actively seeking out potential new partners, both domestically and internationally.
• You’ll play a pivotal role in managing supplier negotiations and performance throughout the supply chain. Collaborating closely with Sourcing and Quality Assurance teams, you’ll ensure that product quality meets our standards and aligns with our environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments.

Skills/Behaviours That Will Set You Apart

• Proven buying experience and a genuine love for books and reading
• As a customer-centric Senior Buyer, you’ll be attuned to market trends, competitors, and our valued customers.
• You’ll excel at building robust relationships with suppliers and publishers. Your strong negotiation skills will be key in ensuring successful partnerships.
• Collaborating with internal teams, you’ll support promotional calendars and launch events. Your analytical skills will come into play as you work on pricing strategies and product ranging.
• A comprehensive understanding of the entire end-to-end process and product lifecycle, spanning multiple internal departments from creation to point of sale in both physical stores and online channels.

Being a great leader

As a great leader with wonderful people skills, you'll create an environment that's more than just co-workers — it's a team.

• Align Goals with Values: Ensure that your team’s goals are clearly connected to the company’s values and purpose. This helps colleagues see the bigger picture and understand how their work contributes to the overall mission.
• Clear Communication: Ensure that your team understands the goals, expectations, and their roles. Regularly share updates, encourage open dialogue and have regular check-ins.
• Role Model: Lead by example. Demonstrate the behaviours and attitudes you expect from your team, such as punctuality, responsibility, and being a brand ambassador.
• Provide Feedback: Offer constructive feedback regularly. Recognise achievements and address areas for improvement in a supportive and continuous growth manner.
• Empower Your Team: Delegate tasks and trust your team to handle them. This builds confidence and promotes professional growth.
• Conflict Resolution: Address conflicts promptly and fairly. Foster an environment where issues can be discussed openly and resolved amicably.
• Empathy: Understand and consider the feelings and perspectives of your team members. This helps in building strong, supportive relationships

And let's not forget about the most important part… your team's well-being and aspirations. You'll be their biggest supporter, cheering them on. You'll have amazing everyday conversations with your team, discussing everything from their performance to their wildest career aspirations.

Our PERKS really are ‘The Works’

• 💪 25% Colleague Discount! - Plus, exclusive Double Discount days!
• 😎 MyWorks - Access exclusive online discounts across hundreds of retailers, holidays, utilities deals, tech and more!
• 🚀 Holiday – 33 days including bank holidays.
• 💃 Holiday Purchase - Purchase an additional 5 days
• 🎓 Can-Do Academy - Grow your skills and career with instant access to further training and development in areas that interest you.
• 💸 Wagestream - Claim early access to 50% of your wages as you earn them – for when ‘life’ happens!
• 🏬 Share Scheme - Unleash your inner Monopoly mogul and own a piece of The Works!
• 💛 24/7 support for you and your family - Through our partnership with the Retail Trust who provide an Employee Assistance Programme and so much more!
• 🩺 Healthcare Cash Plan – To support your everyday healthcare costs
• 🥳 And loads more! – Long Service Awards, pension, life assurance, Cycle to Work and optional charity giving.

Our Purpose

To inspire reading. learning, creativity and play - making lives more fulfilled.

Our Values

We are Crafty | We are Caring | We are Can-do

We Listen. We Care

Each year, we run an anonymous colleague engagement survey. This is so important for us to hear your feedback and suggestions. We want to know what’s going great, and what needs a couple of tweaks to help make The Works the best place you’ve ever worked! You’ll have opportunity to help give us that direction.

Promoting Diversity, Inclusion, and Applying Reasonable Adjustments

At The Works, we are proud to have an inclusive culture where everyone truly feels able to be themselves. Our roles are open to all, including under-represented groups such as ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, carers & members of the LGBTQ+ community (including those who identify as lesbian, gay, bi, trans, non-binary, or use another term).

We are open to discussions around working hours and flexible working. And, where possible, we'll try to support this. If you need reasonable adjustments for an interview you might attend with us, let us know in your application and we’ll be happy to help!