Season 4 Episode 5: Buyers of the Future. Ex M&S, BHS, White Company and QVC Buyer Sarah Hansford talks to us about her buying journey and how rewarding it is to be teaching “buyers of the future” at the Fashion Retail Academy

Today we are joined by the lovely Sarah Hansford, a buying professional with many hats! Sarah has been in the buying world for over 20 years and worked for lots of different retailers. She’s a fellow ex M&S buyer and most recently is doing some amazing work teaching and inspiring at the Fashion Retail Academy. From the M&S grad scheme to working across multiple big high street names, such as, BHS, The White Company and QVC to name a few, plus working suppliers side Sarah’s journey is incredibly varied and interesting. Sarah talks about what inspired her to get into buying and how she progressed through the ranks. We talk how much she loved working at M&S and how nice it is to see how well it's doing. Her favorite product category (fashion accessories) and what a buzz you get when launching a successful range. We discuss how much she loves working supply side and how much you get to understand the manufacturing process from the other side! We talk about some of the perks Sarah has had in different roles including a one spa treatment a month! Sarah spills the tea on some hilarious moments and stories with certain buying teams she's worked in. Those devil wears prada moments and also how fun it was to work for brands like QVC with live trading. Her passion and knowledge for the industry really shines through! We talk about her proudest moments working with the Fashion Retail Academy and how rewarding it is to be educating and inspiring our new buyers of the Future. Sarah tells all about the amazing new courses and opportunities there are at the FRA and how much she gets out of teaching and learning from the new generation! Our key takeaways: Learning from a really experienced buying professional like Sarah is such a privilege. She really has seen it all in her time in industry working in so many different areas of retail. It's such an exciting time for the next generation and with their collaborative mindset from the outset retail really has a chance to thrive once again. Lets try and bring the fun back into buying. The industry has moved on for the better but we still need to work out how to laugh and bring enjoyment into the job we LOVE - combat the stress with a little light humour! If you're thinking about a career in buying then reach out to Sarah on linkedin she's happy to chat and help with any questions you have. You can also check out the FRA website https://www.fashionretailacademy.ac.uk/ Alternatively if your a buyer in industry and can relate to all these stories please do get in touch we would love to have you on the podcast! Support the show If you've liked this episode please rate, follow, subscribe and share :) - and if you already have, thank you! It honestly really helps to keep this going and growing! Follow us @buyingandbeyond on Instagram Send us a DM or email [email protected] We also have a retail buyers membership @jointhebuyersclub Find out more at www.jointhebuyersclub.co.uk Autumn fair coffee meet up- come and meet us at Autumn fair at our coffee meet up and podcast live, see link below for all the details on how to sign up: https://www.autumnfair.com/buying-beyond?utm_source=partner&utm_medium=buying_beyond_channels&utm_campaign=buying_beyond If you'd like to show a little more love, then head here to give us just a little bit *extra* and show us your support :) thank you! https://www.buzzsprout.com/2300060/support