Perry Ellis International, Inc. represents a diverse portfolio of lifestyle apparel brands. The Company, through its wholly owned subsidiaries owns and licenses nationally and with a brand portfolio of over 40 Brands domestically and internationally recognized brands including: Perry Ellis®, Original Penguin® by Munsingwear®, Laundry by Shelli Segal®, Rafaella®, Cubavera®, Ben Hogan®, Savane®, Grand Slam®, John Henry®, Manhattan®, Axist® and Farah®. The Company enhances its roster of brands by licensing trademarks from third parties, including: Nike® for swimwear, and Callaway®, PGA TOUR®, and Jack Nicklaus® for golf apparel.
Position Summary:
As the Buyer for Perry Ellis Sportswear, this person will be responsible for driving the seasonal product lifecycle, business strategy, and open-to-buy management for a large-scale, high-volume category based out of our Corporate Office in Miami, FL. Operating within the Buying department and reporting directly to the Senior Director of Omnichannel Buying, you will oversee a complex, high-caliber business scope encompassing 10 distinct product departments, managing a matrixed inventory architecture of 350 go-forward SCIs (Style-Colors) distributed across Fashion, Core, and Seasonal color capsules.
The ideal candidate must possess deep expertise in menswear buying alongside a proven track record of architecting, managing, and scaling heavy, complex assortments to the caliber of Perry Ellis. You will combine strong retail math proficiency with apparel intuition to orchestrate a high-velocity buying operation that includes developing and introducing roughly 150 new styles every single quarter. You will act as a central collaborative hub between Sales, Planning, Sourcing, and Design to construct optimized, high-velocity product assortments that safeguard margin goals and consistently deliver brand success.
Key Responsibilities:
High-Caliber Assortment Architecture: Drive the end-to-end buying strategy across 10 specialized sportswear departments. Masterfully engineer large-scale seasonal matrices to manage 350 baseline SCIs, balancing the life-cycle economics of high-velocity core lines with the injection of roughly 150 new high-impact fashion styles per quarter.
Menswear Strategy Exploration: Apply deep industry knowledge of menswear fits, fabrications, seasonal trends, and category performance to curate product lines that resonate with the Perry Ellis consumer while maintaining brand DNA.
Financial Strategy, Margin Delivery & Pricing: Execute detailed quarterly and seasonal buy plans designed to meet corporate financial targets, OTB thresholds, and gross margin requirements. Manage strategic pricing structures and deliver deep-dive product analysis including sell-through performance, best-seller tracking, and historical margin contribution to maximize ROI.
Cross-Functional Sourcing & Workflow Execution: Partner with Sourcing, Design, Marketing, Store/ECOM Teams, Allocation, and Planning teams to manage seasonal timelines, tracking critical production components from technical design sketch approvals through sample buy confirmations.
Vendor & Lifecycle Management: Systematically manage Jesta and PLM purchasing systems to accurately validate order entries, manage SKU counts, adjust for delivery changes, and prevent inventory discrepancies. Actively maintain strategic vendor relationships to ensure all Perry Ellis business needs are consistently met through intentional assortment selection, on-time delivery tracking, and preferred costing negotiations.
Market-Facing Partnerships: Attend seasonal market weeks and key retail vendor appointments to present unified collection visions and promotional strategies, fostering deep cross-functional transparency across domestic retail partners and commercial supply channels.
Qualifications:
Experience: Minimum of 5–6+ years of progressive professional experience in apparel buying, retail merchandising, or inventory demand management. Dedicated buying experience within the menswear sector is required.
Large-Scale Assortment Mastery: Proven background managing a high-volume SKU environment and architecting extensive, multi-department product assortments to a corporate/wholesale caliber.
Apparel Expertise: Strong baseline understanding of product lifecycles in menswear or sportswear fields, with explicit familiarity tracking multi-department SKU allocations and colorway hierarchies (Core, Fashion, and Seasonal).
Technical Software & Innovation Skills: Advanced proficiency with product lifecycle management (PLM) software and major enterprise resource planning systems (ERP software like Jesta or Essentus), combined with master-level execution inside Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel. Familiarity with Google Looker is a plus, alongside a forward-thinking understanding of AI platforms and how to leverage them to analyze complex business trends and seasonal selling results.
Analytical Literacy: Comprehensive mastery of basic retail math formulations (including inventory turn metrics, Open-to-Buy calculations, gross margin return on investment, and dynamic forecast modeling).
Education: Bachelor's degree in Fashion Merchandising, Business Administration, or a related commercial discipline.
Personal Attributes:
Collaborative Relationship Management: A natural cross-functional coordinator who operates seamlessly among varying creative, operational, and executive personalities to achieve uniform corporate milestones.
Analytical Focus & Precision: Rigorous attention to detail with an intrinsic knack for mapping systemic data variables across vast, shifting buying sheets and multi-tier department structures.
Dynamic Agility: High proactive work ethic with a strong sense of personal accountability; capability to maneuver under narrow market deadlines and adapt seamlessly within a high-volume corporate lifecycle.
Articulate Communicator: Polished oral and written representation skills, paired with the structural precision and cultural awareness necessary to navigate cross-functional dynamics seamlessly.
What's In It For You?
- Comprehensive Health: Premium Medical, Dental, and Vision plans designed to keep you and your family healthy and thriving.
- Financial Security: Secure your future with our 401(k) retirement plan (including a discretionary company match) plus company-provided Basic Life and AD&D Insurance.
- Work-Life Balance: Take the time you need to recharge with generous Paid Time Off (PTO) and a full schedule of paid Holidays.
- Growth & Support: We invest in your potential through our Tuition Reimbursement program for continuous learning and provide 24/7 personal support via our Member Assistance Program (MAP).
- Team Culture: Join a community that celebrates your hard work with regular Associate Engagement Events, ranging from seasonal celebrations to on-site wellness activities.
- Exclusive Style Perks: Look your best for less with generous Associate Clothing Discounts across all our company stores and e-commerce sites.
Legal Disclaimer:
Perry Ellis International is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or any other legally protected status. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their individual background and characteristics. We are committed to providing a workplace free of any discrimination or harassment. This commitment extends to all aspects of employment, including hiring, promotion, transfer, compensation, and termination. By submitting your application, you acknowledge and agree to the company's commitment to equal employment opportunities.
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