Retail Buyer and Product Developer

Your new organisation 

York Museums Trust is an independent charitable organisation created to manage York Art Gallery, York Castle Museum, Yorkshire Museum & Gardens, and York St Mary’s.  Our vision is to work together with audiences and communities to inspire, to share and to care for cultural heritage.  

Your new role 

We are seeking a Retail Buying and Product Developer to work with the Retail Services Manager to develop and purchasing new goods for sale of a value up to £250k. This role will be responsible for sourcing product through a full understanding of translating brand through retail, customer needs and demands, market trends and financial budgets.  

You will establish partnerships and new commercial projects, externally, with artists, designers and makers. Work with the collections teams to use the YMT collections to develop appropriate product ranges which are venue appropriate, maximize sales and meets customer expectations. 

What you’ll need to succeed 

You will have a background in stock management and shrinkage control, achieving sales and profit targets as well as the ability to recognise and respond to retail and social trends. You may also have experience in bespoke product development and buying for the heritage market. 

You will have excellent knowledge of current retail practise and relevant heritage retail suppliers, experience of product development and range creation as well as the understanding of and ability to apply sales techniques. 

You will have proven negotiation skills and an ability to forecast trends. You must be comfortable with working in both a museum and art gallery and be sensitive to the challenges that arise in cultural settings.  

We offer a competitive salary, a defined benefit pension scheme, and a generous leave allowance. Our working hours are flexible with the bandwidth between 7 am and 7 pm, and we offer flexibility to balance time in the office with working from home.  

As an organisation York Museums Trust is committed to encouraging and increasing diversity amongst our workforces. YMT aims to attract and retain talented people from all backgrounds. We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian, ethnic minority, and/or disabled applicants as these groups are currently underrepresented in the cultural sector.  We also welcome applications from all socio-economic backgrounds.  

How to apply:   

Please download the following documents:  

• Job Description 
• Terms and Conditions 
• Equal Opportunities Form 
• Our Organisation
• Applicant Privacy Policy   

Please send your CV, the completed Equal Opportunities forms and a covering letter which answers the following questions (in no more than 500 words each) to [email protected]  

1. Please provide details of when you have created a new product. How did you measure its success?  
2. Which trade shows would you anticipate attending as part of this role?  
3. Who do you think the key visitors are at the York Castle Museum in relation to retail spend 

Applications can only be accepted from candidates who have permission to work in the UK.  If, after applying, you have not heard from us by two weeks after the closing date, please assume you have not been successful on this occasion.  

Dates to bear in mind… 

Closing date for applications is 9am on Monday 15 August 2022 

Interviews will take place in York on the 25th August 2022