About Dear Born Baby & Kids
Dear Born Baby & Kids has been a trusted name in the baby industry since 1979. As one of Canada's leading independent specialty baby retailers, we proudly serve families across the GTA and throughout Canada through our 22,000 sq. ft. boutique showroom, Shopify website, and select online marketplaces.
We are an entrepreneurial, fast-moving specialty retailer where our buyers directly influence our product assortment, customer experience, and business success.
The Opportunity
We are seeking a Specialty Retail Buyer to take ownership of product selection, inventory planning, merchandising strategy, and vendor relationships across our specialty retail business, including our boutique showroom and online sales channels. This is a full-time, on-site position based in Thornhill, Ontario.
Success in this role requires strong commercial judgment, curiosity about products, and the confidence to make buying decisions—not simply process purchase orders.
This is a high-impact role where your buying decisions directly influence sales, profitability, inventory performance, and the customer experience. The ideal candidate is analytical, highly organized, digitally fluent, and thrives in a fast-paced retail environment where priorities can shift quickly.
This role is ideal for someone who enjoys discovering new products, identifying emerging trends, building strong supplier relationships, and making thoughtful merchandising decisions based on customer needs and business performance.
Key Responsibilities
- Own purchasing and inventory planning across retail and e-commerce channels
- Analyze sales performance, margins, inventory turns, and sell-through rates to drive buying decisions
- Manage vendor relationships, including pricing, terms, assortment planning, and negotiations
- Identify, evaluate, and onboard new brands and products aligned with customer demand and market trends
- Seek out innovative products and emerging categories that enhance our assortment and differentiate our business
- Collaborate with marketing on product launches, promotions, and campaigns
- Forecast demand and manage inventory levels to minimize overstock and stock-outs
- Collaborate with store leadership to align buying decisions with customer needs and company strategy
- Oversee SKU setup, product data management, and product lifecycle management
- Support and optimize product assortment across Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy marketplaces
- Utilize reporting tools and data analysis to improve inventory productivity and operational efficiency
- Research market trends, competitor activity, and customer insights to identify new growth opportunities
Qualifications
- 3–5 years of retail buying, merchandising, and inventory planning experience preferred
- Experience sourcing new products, developing assortments, and identifying emerging trends
- Strong analytical and financial acumen, including margin analysis, inventory turns, forecasting, and open-to-buy planning
- Proven ability to make independent buying decisions in a fast-paced retail environment
- Experience negotiating with vendors and managing supplier relationships
- Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail and follow-through
- Advanced Microsoft Excel skills
- Shopify or other e-commerce platform experience is considered an asset
- Strong systems aptitude with the ability to learn new tools and software quickly
- Comfortable working on-site in a highly digital retail environment
- Experience using AI, automation tools, or reporting systems to improve efficiency is considered a strong asset
- Experience within the baby, juvenile products, lifestyle, or specialty retail sectors is preferred
Why Join Us?
- Help shape the product assortment for one of Canada's leading independent baby specialty retailers
- Have a direct impact on product selection, merchandising strategy, and business growth
- Work closely with ownership in a collaborative, entrepreneurial environment
- Gain exposure to both specialty retail and e-commerce operations
- Opportunity to grow within an established and evolving business
Please include a brief cover letter with your resume.
In your cover letter, please tell us:
- Why this role interests you
- About your experience with inventory planning, retail systems, and product sourcing
We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
Pay: $60,000.00-$70,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- On-site parking
- Store discount
Application question(s):
- Have you been responsible for sourcing and introducing new products or brands?
- What inventory management or retail systems have you used?
- Are you able to work on-site in Thornhill, ON, Monday–Friday?
Experience:
- Retail Buying: 3 years (required)
Language:
Work Location: In person
