Jewellery jobs

Jewellery Buyer & Concession Manager

Department: Buying

Reports to: Head of Buying

Location: Dublin, Hybrid

Overview:

The Role will play a key role in shaping and delivering the jewellery buying strategy for Kilkenny Design and its associated brands. This is a commercially important role, responsible for building a distinctive, design-led product offer that reflects our design heritage, premium customer experience and growing omnichannel business across stores and online.

We are looking for a confident, curious and commercially agile buyer with strong jewellery buying and concession experience, excellent supplier management skills and the ability to identify newness, respond quickly to changing customer behaviour, and bring fresh, relevant ranges to market with pace and purpose.

Reporting to the Head of Buying, the role will work closely with Supplier partners, Retail, Ecommerce, Merchandising, Marketing, Logistics, and Finance to ensure the jewellery strategy is commercially aligned, operationally deliverable and executed at pace.

Success will depend on practical decision-making, strong communication and a collaborative, accountable way of working that reflects the Kilkenny Design culture: customer-focused, respectful, solutions-focused and proud of the products, people and creativity behind the brand.

Key Responsibilities

1. Jewellery Buying

• Develop and deliver a clear jewellery buying strategy aligned to customer demand, brand positioning, store and online trading priorities, and commercial growth objectives.
• Source, curate and evolve a distinctive product range that reflects Kilkenny Design's premium, design-led positioning while introducing new products, suppliers and trend-led opportunities.
• Create joint category plans with supplier partner to secure the right product, quality, pricing, margin, terms, exclusivity opportunities and delivery performance.
• Use sales, stock, margin, market, customer and competitor insight to make informed buying decisions, identify opportunities and respond quickly to trading performance.
• Work cross-functionally with Finance, Operations, Marketing, Digital, Merchandising and Retail teams to ensure the category is commercially planned, operationally supported and effectively delivered across all relevant channels.

2. Growth & Project Management

• Lead strategic jewellery projects from concept through to delivery, ensuring clear objectives, timelines, ownership and measures of success.
• Identify opportunities to grow the category across stores, online, concessions and new channels, supporting Kilkenny Design's wider omnichannel evolution.
• Develop practical ways of working that strengthen warehouse inventory management and support stores in delivering an effective customer experience.
• Coordinate initiatives that provide stores with appropriate autonomy, balancing local customer insight with overall brand and commercial priorities.
• Maintain a strong connection with retail colleagues through regular store visits and collaboration with Retail, VM and Commercial teams.
• Build strong relationships with supplier partners and internal stakeholders, creating trust, pace and shared accountability for successful delivery.
• Monitor performance against agreed commercial, operational and project objectives, escalating risks early and taking decisive action where required.

3. Commercial & Financial Management

• Manage category and project budgets, ensuring decisions balance sales opportunity, cost, quality, margin, stock investment, customer service and long-term brand value.
• Analyse commercial proposals, supplier performance, customer demand and category results to support clear recommendations, confident decision-making and timely action.
• Track projects, concessions and channel-related performance, highlighting risks, opportunities, variances and corrective actions in a clear and timely manner.
• Lead quarterly reviews and ongoing monthly analysis of performance vs agreed kpis.

Experience & Qualifications

• Extensive experience in jewellery buying and or concession management with strong knowledge of trends, suppliers, product development, sourcing, quality standards and commercial category management.
• Proven ability to grow a category through strong product selection, supplier development, pricing, margin management, stock awareness and commercial planning.
• Strong negotiation, supplier management and stakeholder engagement skills, with the confidence to influence decisions and build effective working relationships.
• Demonstrable experience leading projects and managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced, customer-focused retail environment.
• Strong analytical, financial and decision-making capability, with excellent attention to detail and the ability to translate insight into action.
• A collaborative, accountable and solutions-focused way of working, with the ability to represent Kilkenny Design professionally with supplier partners, colleagues and wider stakeholders.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role will be seen through a stronger, more distinctive jewellery offer; improved sales, margin and stock performance; trusted supplier partnerships; and the successful delivery of agreed category, concession and omnichannel growth projects. This role will also be recognised for working collaboratively across the business, making clear commercial decisions, and helping to bring Kilkenny Design's customer experience, design ethos and ways of working to life.