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Ollie attended the Fashion Retail Academy in London. Everything he learned came together when he took a Primark internship. And he hasn’t looked back.
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Meet Rosie. Assistant Buyer.
Reading Head Office
I’m currently the Assistant Buyer on men's knitwear, shorts and swims after being in the jersey department for just over two-and-a-half years. I've now been at Primark for nearly 4 years and it’s absolutely flown by! I've recently just been signed off to Buyer, so I'm in the midst of waiting to find out what department I'm going to be in, which is really exciting.
Taking a chance on Primark
I was contacted by the HR team on LinkedIn and they asked if I would be interested in coming to Reading for an interview. I was based in South East London at the time with no intention of moving, but having heard great things about Primark from old colleagues, I was keen to give it a try. The first time I drove to Reading it took nearly two hours, I thought, "this is quite a long commute." For my second interview, I took the train and it was about the same. I knew if I was to take the job, I’d need to be based in Reading. So, I decided to take the plunge and moved – I haven't looked back.
Reading life
Reading is really good, there's a great community. My main concern after working and living in London was being away from my friends and family. I’m quite a sociable person and like to be surrounded by people, so I was worried that by being in Reading away from everyone, I could lose that. In reality though, a lot of the people that work at Primark live in Reading, so there’s a big community of people who go out in the evening and at weekends, which is lovely.
Having a passion for menswear
I think a good buyer can buy anything, but first and foremost, you have to be passionate about your area. I've always had a massive interest in menswear, so keeping up with the latest and greatest in terms of trends and brands almost comes as second nature. I come from a big family and have 4 brothers, so in a weird way men’s fashion comes easier to me than women’s.
Why join Primark? One, the people. Two, the career progression. And three, you can see the company’s growth.
No day is the same
Our days are very varied and what we do day to day changes a lot. On a Monday, we'll come in early and review last week's trade before presenting our findings to our Controllers and Directors. We use this meeting to highlight our best and worst performing products and discuss what trading actions we’ll be taking to mitigate risk and maximise opportunities. The rest of the week can be absolutely anything – from fit sessions and sign-off meetings to development catch‐ups and trips to Dublin, but that’s what keeps it interesting!
An opportunity to see the world
I love travelling with the business and one of the best things about Primark has to be the opportunity to travel. Trainee and Assistant Buyers get to attend sourcing and inspiration trips, which is extremely rare in other companies and it means you are exposed to on-the-job learning; seeing factories and meeting suppliers you may not meet otherwise.
Other reasons to join
Your experience at Primark is about so much more than your job. It’s also about our people and our culture. Our beliefs as a business and our aims for the future. It’s about all the exciting, empowering, amazing things that make us who we are – and you who you are.
I always knew I’d leave my home town eventually to explore further afield.
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I did a degree in Fashion Marketing Management before getting into Visual Merchandising at Primark.
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