You can usually accept advice, on styles, colors, etc., from your department's major resources. These are producers who are in step with customer demand at your store, who supply a considerable share of your department's merchandise, and who have a stake in the success of your operation.
Such resources have both the background and the incentive to advise you correctly.
Resources, who supply only a minor share of your merchandise or whose experience with your store has been brief — are not necessarily as well able to give advice. They simply have not had a sufficiently close relationship with your department.
Limiting Advice
On your first trip to market, you can more or less put trusted resources on their honor to help you with your selections.
On succeeding visits, you should be progressively more able to stand on your own feet, and to judge how well or poorly these resources served you when you relied on their advice.
There is a distinct difference between accepting advice and making a habit of letting the resource make your decisions. A resource expects you, as you hit your stride in your buying job, to be more creative and more discriminating each year.
The seasoned fashion buyer doesn't merely ask advice, but actually exchanges experience with the resource. For example, the resource may recommend pastels, but the buyer may add that, in his store, pale blues outsell pastel greens two to one, and that beiges are poorly received.
Resources occasionally offer advice in matters over which you have only limited authority, such as changes in the timing of inventory commitments, price line structure, or other matters for which your department's plans have already been drawn and approved.
In such cases, your best course is not to ask for the reasoning behind the advice, but to postpone decision until you can get a ruling from your merchandise manager.
You will not lose face with either the resource or your management by declining to overstep your authority.
Demanding What Is Due
It is part of your job as fashion buyer to solicit every service to which your store is entitled and which is available from the resource.
Resources do not always mention every service they can give; you may have to make the request. There may also be services that resources do not offer, but that your store would be glad to have. Other stores, too, may want these services. If enough buyers make the request, explaining what they want and why, their resources may institute these services.
Among the services valued by your store may be any or all of these:
- cash discounts at least equal to those prevailing in the trade
- payment by the seller of some or all transportation costs
- cooperative advertising arrangements
- advertising aids, such as glossy photos (from which the store can have cuts made), copy suggestions, mats, broadcast scripts
- special numbers and prices for store promotions
- exclusive distribution
- return and exchange privileges
- allowances for markdowns on the merchandise
- participation in store fashion events by sending trunk shows, visiting fashion experts, other consumer attractions
- materials or manpower to inform and stimulate the salespeople
- assistance in stock counts and stock control
- pre-ticketing
- advance information on planned national advertising and possibility of mention of store name
- back-up stock
- precision information on fiber content, fur origin, and other requirements laid down by government regulations.
Courtesies Due to the Resources
Any resource, major or very minor, is entitled to certain courtesies from you. Aside from being guided by the Basic Trade Provisions (probably printed on the back of your store's order form) in your dealings, vendors should count on:
- promptness in keeping appointments with them
- willingness to see salesmen who call at the store
- full attention to the salesman's presentation
- prompt confirmation or cancellation of any tentative orders you place
- faithfulness in keeping any promises you make
- restraint in placing collect telephone calls.
If you view lines of resources who are among the innovators in fashion, you have a special obligation to avoid, through carelessness or collusion, exposing styles of such houses to "knock-offs". It is like biting the hand that feeds you!
Limiting Hospitality
Resources tend to roll out an impressive red carpet for visiting buyers. A good deal of restraint should be exercised in accepting hospitality.
For one thing, you haven't the time for too many lunch, dinner and theater dates. You have much ground to cover and only a few days in which to do it.
Market time is too precious for socializing with resources unless there is something really important to discuss, away from the distractions of the showroom.
