How to get Hired as a Buyer

Welcome to our new series “Tips on Getting Hired As a …….” where we will share tips and tricks from the EB team, as well as our clients for being hired for specific positions within the fashion, home goods and beauty industries. We hope to help our candidates in knowing what hiring managers are looking for and to help hiring managers know how to narrow down their search and find that perfect candidate.

Resume Highlights

Hiring managers often look for skills that can be transferred from role to role so be sure to speak to these skills on your resume and in your interview. Examples for a Buyer role include strong negotiation and problem-solving skills.

Erin Hogue, who has worked in Merchandising for The Container Store and JC Penney and has handled the hiring of many Buyers and Assistant Buyers over the years, says she looks for “talent and past successes” that would complement the open role and then trains to the specifics of the role if needed. Since Buyers with experience in housewares can be hard to find, Hogue said “It’s not what the candidate bought previously that is important to me but more their skill level at negotiating, communication and problem solving”.

Interview Preparation

Give clear concise examples of times you have had successes as a Buyer that could translate well to the role you are interviewing for and expect to answer behavioral based questions. One question Hogue asks her Buyer candidates is to share an example of a time that they had a tough negotiation and looks for them to share what happened, how they problem solved and what the result was. Using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Result, Method) will help you be sure to give a complete answer to these types of questions.

Also, be sure to research the company you are interviewing with! This is advice we give to all of our candidates, no matter what job they are interviewing for. It shows that you are serious about the role, excited about the company, and have respect for the time of the person you are interviewing with. As a hiring manger, Hogue appreciates that prior research by the candidate “allows for the conversation to transition to what they can bring to the company and what they will learn/gain from working for your company.”

First Impressions

Researching the company will also help you decide what to wear to the interview. Buyers need to show that they have a good sense of the company’s style, as well as a strong fashion sense, and your interview outfit should reflect that. Look at a company’s social media profiles and try to reflect the look and the feel of the brand you see there.

One Last Thing

When interviewing for a Buyer position, show your passion for the brand and how your past experiences can help take that brand to the next level by shaping their collections of the future! One of the most important traits Hogue looks for in a Buyer candidate is curiosity. She feels curiosity is needed to go to the next level in buying and naturally leads to problem-solving abilities as well. Ask questions, do your research on the company, and nab that new job!

Want to read more of our tips and tricks? Click here!

WFH Spaces That Inspire

WFH Productive Office Spaces

Whether you’re working from home, in the midst of a job search, or brushing up on your skills during this time, it’s important to recognize the value in curating and designing your personal workspace. Social distancing has presented us with the unique opportunity to establish a new space for productivity, creativity, and connection… and the home office has taken on a new sense of importance. 

Follow the below links to find WFH spaces that seamlessly combine practicality with inspired design choices.

We love the article from Insider with great tips on creating the perfect WFH space.

Check out Pinterest for lots of workspace inspiration:

WFH Space from Pinterest

For Home Office Designs that will actually make you want to sit down and complete your to-do list:

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/gallery/home-offices-slideshow

However you design your workspace, take cues from the things that inspire you.

Click on tips and WFH for more ideas and staffing inspiration.

Join us for a Networking Event!

Sign-up here for the event on July 29th at 12:00 PST/3:00 EST! 👉 https://lnkd.in/dS45h5u 👈

Beauty Sites We Love: Wellness Tips To Consider Before Your Next Interview

Video Interview Beauty & Wellness

If you’re stressed out by your job search, it’s helpful to keep your personal wellness in mind. Keeping your skin healthy at home and creating a positive routine will help to alleviate stress during these uncertain times.

Combating wrinkles hardly seems important now given the global pandemic, but if you want to look your best for a Zoom interview, we love the following articles that offer tips to keep your skin glowing. 

1. Refinery29

2. Glamour

3. InStyle

4. NY Times Magazine

Click for more Tips about Interview Prep.

WFH and Video Interviewing Fashion Trends You Don’t Want To Miss

Video Interview and WFH Fashion Trends.

WFH and video interviews during Covid-19 is where it’s at for the foreseeable future.

If you’re looking for inspiration on what to wear?  Check out @wfhfits, our daily dose of hipster outfits for WFH trends, or video job interview options. Some of the outfits are hilarious and some are spot on.

If you’re looking to nail your outfit for those Zoom calls or a job interview, be sure to check out our amazing client Mizzen + Main, who’s products take a nod from the athleisure industry - but are styled for any occasion.

For those luxury fashion pieces to complete your look, consider consigning clothing, and participating in a circular economy with our client TheRealReal. Did you know that for every one item consigned, one-third of that item is not produced anew?

No matter where you search,we know that finding the perfect outfit sometimes leads to the perfect job!

For more helpful tidbits about video interview prep, check out our Tips.

5 Sites to Brush Up Your Skills.... for free!

Amidst the global pandemic, many distance learning organizations, educational websites and apps are offering free access to some, or all, of their courses, allowing you to brush up on your skills and learn some new ones!

Photoshop

Business, Data Science, and Language

UI/UX, Web Development, and More

Cultural & Educational Programs

Language Skills

Emerging Blue fills jobs in the fashion, home, and beauty industries. Contact us to learn more.

Check Out These Top 5 Sites to Ace Your Next Interview

1. Ambitionbox - You can search company reviews, salaries and interviews via this site.

2. AceThelnterview - bridges that gap and provides tools to write and chat about industry concepts to better prepare you for the interview.

3. Geeksforgeeks - this site offers thoughtful and well explained examples for interview questions.

4. Leetcode - helps enhance your skills and knowledge all while preparing you for technical interviews.

5. Guide4info - provides career insight and advice, and motivational stories.

6 Job Sites to Perk Up your Day!

{ Fashion }

www.stylecareers.com

{ Creative }

https://www.krop.com/

{ Outdoors }

www.outdoorindustryjobs.com

{ Growth Marketing }

www.grow.co/

{ Multiple Industry Listings }

https://candor.co/hiring-freezes

{ Gig and Remote }

https://moderndayjobs.com/?ref=producthunt#list

Suggestions before Reopening the Workplace from our EB Crew

Conversations regarding reopening the workplace are occurring daily, so here are some action items we suggest for the next coming weeks.

Take time to review all organizational charts and update all job descriptions

With the changes that occurred in staffing, org charts will need to be updated and communicated out. Additionally, update all job descriptions including new departmental responsibilities. Document any new processes and update vendors as needed, using the opportunity to receive their updates as well.

Consider benefits additions to help the transition

Many companies are offering transit vouchers and child-care reimbursements during the return phase to the norm. Any equipment needed to #wfh and cell phone reimbursement is also a great way to ensure employees of your commitment. Reexamine Sick Days policies and any PTO perks that can help the team.

Define and communicate updated expectations and goals

Post updated expectations and goals reflecting the changes in the economic climate, org chart shifts, and updated job descriptions. Bring corporate calendars up to date while considering the competitive landscape. And, embrace #inthistogether approach to welcoming the routine -)

Need help? Knock on our door info@emergingblue.com to hear more about our services.

Join Christina on Tuesday, May 5 for a Talent Talk

Have you been laid-off or thinking about making a change in this current environment? What can you do to stand out from the mass of candidates flooding the market? Should you just play it safe and stay put?

We invite you to an interactive live conversation to answer: What's happening in the job market today? How you can survive, if not thrive, job searching right now.

Join Christina Jones, along with Laura Leach, and other seasoned recruiters on Tuesday, May 5th at 1:30 PST. Register here to the #FREE live event: https://bit.ly/2Wc6wqC

Resume Tips and Ideas

If you’re in the market for a new job and sprucing up your resume, check out some awesome tips from the EB Crew.

Images below are zoomed in for a closer look.

If you are looking for more resume tips you can:

• Reach out to us for one-on-one resume assistance @ Info@emergingblue.com

• Check out our previous resume writing blogs: Top 5 Resume Tips from a Recruiter, Resumes, It’s the Little Things

Spring Cleaning Your Network

Set yourself up for success and keep your network warm so during rainy days, you will be able to reach out for support.  From current and past colleagues, to individuals in associations, you have a ton of people in your network, you may just not have thought about them until you needed to. We can find ourselves in situations we never imagined, so building and organizing your network will have positive benefits allowing you to leverage a sea of warm and cool connections to potentially lead to new, exciting opportunities.

{ LinkedIn + Facebook }

Since we cannot attend networking events in-person with the current social distancing guidelines, then social platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook are useful tools for you to use to build and maintain your networks. When on LinkedIn, you can click “My Network” to view people you may know from the companies you listed you worked for, the schools you attended, places you volunteered, as well as people in your same industry and similar roles. You can also create a group and add people to it that share similar interests and roles. This is a great way to keep your networks engaged and organized.

{ Warm + Cool Connections }

Another opportunity for organizing your network is to list connections as warm or cool prospects by looking at the strength of each connection in order to determine which they are. This is a great way to see who your low-hanging fruit is, and then continue strengthening those relationships. It also gives insight as to who you need to a build a stronger connection with depending on your needs and wants at the time.  By organizing your network, you may begin to see a lack of needed associates that you can then focus on building strong and collaborative connections, so set solid goals for what you wish to attain.

{ Consolidate + Label }

We have an umpteen amount of contacts stored in our phone, email (many of us have multiple email addresses), Rolodex of business cards, and all the social platforms we’re connected with. It is super helpful to consolidate all your contacts into one document and organize them into categories in the document for when you need to do some outreach to your network. You will know who the best is to contact for what if things are labeled correctly. It’s time consuming and unproductive to search through all your tools to find someone’s contact information, when you can save time and have everything stored safely and neatly in one place. And lastly, save as you go! Set yourself up to achieve and turn on “auto-save” so that you never lose any work, or even better, connect it to your Cloud so you can access the information from anywhere and on any device that has Internet capabilities.

How to Maintain Culture While #WFH

{ Promote the Remote }

As we work virtually, it is the technological tools that enable us to promote a positive work culture. Video-conferencing platforms allow us not to lose sight of culture, but further foster it by continued engagement to steer culture towards a collaborative and comforting direction. Utilize LinkedIn as well, so you’re not only connected with your teammates and other key people in your company, but also so you are building collaborative networks. Transitioning virtually doesn’t mean you lose a sense of your work culture, but more so an opportunity to further develop and influence it.

{ Empower Leadership }

This is a great time to continue motivating your team and identifying those partners whose solid vision aligns with business needs. This will build trust and productivity, and gives you the perfect gateway to ensure expectations are clearly defined.  Understanding that while working remote our teams are wearing many hats, so to strengthen your team, continue communicating in both short-term and long-term orientation.  Remember to stress taking a digital detox weekly, and not be ‘on-call’ digitally 24 hours a day.

{ Cultivate Transparency }

Being honest and candid during uncertain times, or anytime for that matter, is critical to a supportive and positive work culture. Scott, Founder of Emerging Blue, leads by this example every day by continually sharing information along with weekly and monthly goals with the team.  This builds trust and leads to a team working at greater efficiency while keeping the vision, and continuing to identify new opportunities. No one likes to be left in the dark, so be the leader that brings your team a flashlight!

{ Uphold Company Values }

If you have a website that lists out your “isms” or company values, or perhaps they are placed in your employee manual and written all over the walls of your office space, it’s key to live out and be those values. Discuss these values in your remote meetings and showcase them with commitment by promoting an esteemed culture.  And by all means, share those kid photos, pet photos, and virtual happy hours!

#WFH Tips from Remote Talent Matchmakers

{ GET DRESSED }

Get up, get ready, and get going in the morning!  Eric, one of our talent matchmakers, knows that getting ready for work in the morning makes a huge positive impact on the workday.  For Eric, building in a morning routine as though he’s going into the office really helps train his brain to switch into work mode versus ‘lounge-at-home’ mode. He still loves his athleisure clothing but tries to save it for after work to help him maintain the work-life headspace. But, be comfortable so you are still confident and yourself, because when you feel confident, you then do amazing things!  

{ DESIGNATE A WORK AREA }

Another #WFH tip that is super important is to have a designated work area. Christina, our VP, finds it productive to have a specific work location in her home for the work week. Whether it is her kitchen table, home office, or out on her gorgeous Charleston patio, it is key to have a space set up that encourages work, as well as making sure you have your tools and resources accessible. Christina suggests having not just your laptop or desktop computer, but also file folders, organizational tools, highlighters, sticky notes, and access to a printer, as major tools and resources to have while working from home.

{ CREATE A DAILY AGENDA }

Move the peg forward a little every day, and having a daily agenda really helps keep us moving forward and staying committed. Additionally, during these times when schools and daycares are closed and babysitters aren’t able to step in and support, it is helpful to create schedules and to stick to them; create a schedule that works for each person so not only can they support their families but also productively work from home. Lindsay, another of our talent matchmakers, knows it’s intrinsically rewarding to check things off your list and feel accomplished at the end of the workday.

{ EMBRACE YOUR WORK AND HOME LIVES }

Separating work and home lives can be a challenge due to the current crisis, with many of us sharing spaces with multiple people within our homes. We want to shift the idea of separating work and home lives to the idea of embracing the two. If we adjust our perception of this new normal to embrace the many daily distractions, then we will, in turn, be happier and less burdened. It may take a few distractions, such as your adorable child walking in while you’re on a ZOOM call with a client, or your dog barking, for us to cherish being able to work at home and be with our families and loved ones.

{ COMMUNICATE OFTEN WITH YOUR TEAM } 

We all agreed that this tip was one of the most important while working from home. Our team often works remotely, and one thing that keeps us successful is our level of communication. We use virtual platforms and various tools to openly and genuinely communicate. Scott, our Founder, builds in consistent communication into our culture daily by using different channels. We not only communicate to ensure that we are sharing information with each other to achieve business needs but also use it as a time to create deeper relationships and a stronger crew.

{ TAKE BREAKS }

We cannot stress this enough when working from home… take breaks! They don’t need to be long, but they can be a simple 10-15 minute walk around the block (even better if you have a dog and take them with you) or a 10-15 minute at-home yoga or meditation session; these small breaks throughout the day will help you trailblaze through your tasks. This is especially true for Sally, our Chicago-based director, who loves to step away after hours of building relationships with candidates and clients to go for a bike ride around her neighborhood. It helps reset her brain, and of course, is social distancing.    

{ PLAY MUSIC }

Music is in all of us! You may be stressed or feeling anxious during these times, and a great remedy is to listen to your favorite music. Just remember to mute the music before taking a work call or joining a virtual meeting. Once the call or virtual meeting is over, turn that music back up and use that energy it gives you to slay the rest of the workday.  Follow us on Instagram @emergingblue to see some of our favorite #WFH playlists!  Share your playlists with colleagues or clients to spread the joy!

{ REWARD YOURSELF! }

We are firm believers that when you work hard, you get to play hard! Rewards are great motivators to encourage you to do great work. One of Eric’s favorite rewards for himself is a glass of the infamous TikTok Dalgona coffee while he listens to podcasts on The Bachelor. Some people reward themselves with purchasing things or divulging in treats; whatever way you like to reward yourself to celebrate your accomplishments, make sure you do it!  We recommend no happy hour drinks until 5 p.m. (your time zone), unless you’re a mixologist influencer on YouTube, then, by all means, shake up the cocktail!

We can be your {HR} essential crew!

While companies are reducing their workforce due to the COVID-19 outbreak, many are left without integral members or even entire teams. That’s where we can help! We are a crew of strategic human resources pros with a proven track record of supporting companies within all facets of HR.

• Understanding state and federal HR laws

• Strengthening COVID-19 emergency plans

• Payroll processing

• Organizational structure changes

• Setting up electronic and virtual onboarding for new hires

• Creating employee assistance programs

• Administering employee benefits

• Strategizing and implementing a recruitment process

We are here to help! Our talent, and HR expertise, are your strengths.

About Emerging Blue:

Emerging Blue is a brand focused talent resource partner that represents freelance, temp-to-perm, and full-time talent in Fashion, Home and Beauty. We fill jobs from San Francisco to New York, and everywhere in-between. We represent top candidates, the hottest brands and innovative companies of all shapes and sizes. If you need recruitment and hiring support, we would love to partner with you. Our talent is your strength. Get in touch with us at info@emergingblue.com.

Laid Off? Take a Deep Breath and Then Take Action

· Acknowledge the emotions! It’s totally fine to go through the emotional stages. Whether you’re angry, sad, fearful, shocked, happy… feel it. These emotions will inevitably help you move forward.

· Check unemployment benefits. Reach out to your local state employment agency to see if you’re eligible for unemployment benefits. Click here for more information on filing for unemployment.

· Talk it through. This is a great opportunity to reach out to past friends, colleagues, collegemates, and whoever else is in your network.

· Make a list of companies who are hiring, and then narrow it down to the ones that you’re interested in and passionate about.

· LinkedIn should be your new best friend. If you don’t have a LinkedIn profile set up, then this is the time to make one. If you already have one, update it.

· Network like it’s your job. After you’ve embraced the emotions that follow from being laid-off and have created a road map of companies you’re interested in and where you want to go, next up is to network with people outside of your current network. Don’t forget to add a personalized message when adding new people on LinkedIn.

· Connect with a recruitment agency. Recruitment agencies are fantastic resources to help job seekers as well as they have tons of connections with companies, and even better, they know who’s hiring. Here at Emerging Blue, we love supporting job seekers.

About Emerging Blue:

Emerging Blue is a brand focused talent resource partner that represents freelance, temp-to-perm, and full-time talent in Fashion, Home and Beauty. We fill jobs from San Francisco to New York, and everywhere in-between. We represent top candidates, the hottest brands and innovative companies of all shapes and sizes. If you need recruitment and hiring support, we would love to partner with you. Our talent is your strength. Get in touch with us at info@emergingblue.com.