Want to help pets live their best lives?
We’re proud to be where the pets go and where the pet people go. If you want to make a real difference, create an exciting career path, feel welcome to be your whole self and nurture your wellbeing, Petco is the place for you.
Our core values capture that spirit as we work to improve lives by doing what’s right for pets and people.
- Pet First – Protect & Empower. All pets should Live their Best Life. We put the needs of pets and pet parents at the center of everything we do.
- Foster the Fun – Connect & Bond. Our Passion for pets brings us together! We celebrate the journey of pet parenthood through district experiences, products, and services.
- Let’s Go! Own & Commit. We are stronger as One Petco team. We bring our unique superpowers and champion authenticity in everyone to drive success.
About Petco:
We’re proud to be "where the pets go" to find everything they need to live their best lives for more than 60 years — from their favorite meals and toys, to trusted supplies and expert support from people who get it, because we live it. We believe in the universal truths of pet parenthood — the boundless boops, missing slippers, late night zoomies and everything in between. And we’re here for it. Every tail wag, every vet visit, every step of the way. We are 29,000+ strong and together we nurture the pet-human bond in more than 1,500 Petco stores across the U.S., Mexico and Puerto Rico, 250+ Vetco Total Care hospitals, hundreds of preventive care clinics and eight distribution centers. In 1999, we founded Petco Love. Together, we support thousands of local animal welfare groups nationwide and have helped find homes for approximately 7 million animals through in-store adoption events.
The Associate Buyer is a high-potential omnichannel merchandising professional responsible for owning one department while supporting an Omnichannel Buyer or Senior Buyer on more complex categories. This role is designed as a primary development path to a future Omnichannel Buyer role and blends strong execution of retail fundamentals with growing responsibility in trend discovery, innovation, and category strategy. The Associate Buyer contributes to product, price, promotion, and placement decisions and supports — and at times leads — product style-outs and category walks with the Chief Product & Customer Officer and senior leaders. The role partners cross-functionally, engages vendors, negotiates costs and programs, and helps drive a steady flow of product newness that meets evolving customer expectations while delivering to financial plans.
Key Responsibilities
Department Ownership & Strategy Support
- Own day-to-day performance and execution for one department across store and digital channels.
- Support category strategy development and execution for additional complex departments.
- Translate trend insights and customer needs into actionable assortment recommendations.
- Contribute to seasonal and annual assortment and category plans aligned to Buyer/Senior Buyer strategy.
- Support product architecture, price ladders, and assortment segmentation.
Product, Trend & Innovation Focus
- Continuously research trends, competitive assortments, and innovation opportunities.
- Conduct regular competitive shopping and market analysis and share actionable insights.
- Recommend new products, vendors, and concepts that drive differentiation and newness.
- Support product selection, line reviews, and assortment edits.
- Support and at times lead product style-outs, assortment reviews, and executive walks.
Financial & Business Performance
- Own and manage department-level KPIs with guidance, including sales, margin, and inventory metrics.
- Partner with Merchandising Planning and Demand Planning on forecasts, OTB support, and reflow actions.
- Track weekly performance and recommend actions on opportunities and risks.
- Ensure promotional and pricing execution aligns with strategy and financial goals.
- Maintain strong command of item-level and department-level performance details.
Vendor Partnership & Negotiation
- Support vendor relationships and communication for owned department and assigned categories.
- Participate in vendor meetings, line reviews, and negotiations.
- Negotiate costs, programs, and funding opportunities with guidance.
- Help build long-term, performance-based vendor partnerships.
- Partner with Owned Brands, Sourcing, Product Development, and QA as applicable.
Omnichannel Execution (Product, Price, Promotion, Placement)
- Support product and assortment execution across stores and digital channels.
- Partner with Digital, Store Operations, and Marketing on launches and product stories.
- Collaborate with Space and Visual Planning on assortment placement and flow.
- Ensure item setup, product data, and execution details are accurate and on time.
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Work closely with Merchandising Planning, Demand Planning, Space & Visual Planning, Owned Brands, Product Development, Store Operations, Digital, Marketing, Sourcing, and QA.
- Coordinate timelines, deliverables, and cross-functional inputs to support on-time launches.
- Represent department needs and priorities in cross-functional forums when needed.
Retail Fundamentals & Operational Excellence
- Execute core retail fundamentals with excellence and precision.
- Maintain strong item-level accuracy across cost, retails, specs, attributes, and timelines.
- Ensure systems, samples, and assortments are managed accurately and efficiently.
- Drive follow-through and detail discipline across all merchandising processes.
Qualifications
Experience
- 3–5+ years of merchandising, buying, or related retail experience.
- Experience supporting or owning a product category preferred.
- Exposure to omnichannel retail environments strongly preferred.
Skills & Capabilities
- Strong analytical and financial aptitude; knows and manages the numbers.
- High attention to detail and operational discipline.
- Growing product and trend judgment.
- Effective vendor communication and early negotiation capability.
- Strong cross-functional collaboration skills.
- High learning agility and coachability.
- Strong organization and prioritization skills.
Development & Leadership Profile
- High-potential future Buyer with strong growth mindset.
- Brings energy, ownership, and commitment to the business.
- Excited to competitive shop and stay close to stores and customers.
- Demonstrates curiosity around trends, innovation, and product newness.
- Balances creativity with retail fundamentals and execution excellence.
- Eager to learn, take feedback, and grow into greater category ownership.
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Qualified applications with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act.
The pay ranges outlined below are presented in accordance with state-specific regulations. These ranges may differ in other areas and could be subject to variation based on regulatory minimum wage requirements. Actual pay rates will depend on factors such as position, location, level of experience, and applicable state or local minimum wage laws. If the regulatory minimum wage exceeds the minimum indicated in the pay range below, the regulatory minimum wage will be the minimum rate applied.
Salary Range: $73,800.00 - $122,200.00
Hourly or Salary Range will be reflected above. For a more detailed overview of Petco Total Rewards, including health and financial benefits, 401K, incentives, and PTO - see https://careers.petco.com/us/en/key-benefits
Petco Animal Supplies, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or any other protected classification.
