Patricia L.
About me
| Patricia L. | |
| Politics, Economics and Philosophy | |
| Philosophy and Politics | |
| Undergraduate | |
| Derwent | |
| 2011 | |
| United Kingdom |
My employment
| Wine Buyer | |
| WM Morrisons | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Retail and sales | |
| 2012 |
Like this profile?
Add this profile to your favourites so you can return to it later from your account.
A day in the life of a Wine Buyer in the United Kingdom
My career history
Straight after graduation, I spent a year working for a wine importer/agent implanted in the Morrisons wine team as general support, focused on wine. I was offered a job by Morrisons as a Trainee Buyer, specifically to launch MorrisonsCellar.com, Morrisons first ecommerce venture. I was promoted to Wine Buyer quite quickly and recognized as one of The Grocer's Top New Talents in 2013 for my work on Morrisons Cellar.
Courses taken since graduation
WSET Level 3 Advanced Award in Wines & Spirits
Where I hope to be in 5 years
My next step will be to develop my people management skills and start managing a team. I also want to gain experience of other areas, such as marketing, to broaden my skills portfolio. I really enjoy working in the drinks industry so, long term, I want to take on a senior leadership role in an international drinks firm.
My advice to students considering work
1. Think laterally. How can you demonstrate skills or commitment to a potential employer? What do you have experience of outside your degree? I worked in restaurants whilst studying - so I knew I could demonstrate customer service, hard work, performance under pressure, attention to detail and a little wine knowledge. Even a part time job, explained well, can make the difference between you and another candidate.
2. Be willing to start at the bottom. If you know the industry you want to work in or the company you want to work for, take the first job available. Then demonstrate your ability and tell everyone you meet what your ambitions are - if a role comes up, someone will think of you and let you know or recommend you. Don't hold out for the ideal job straight off, and you'll be surprised how quickly you can get your ideal job. This is how I got my role, and I'm doing the job I want much faster than if I'd been on the more glamorous grad scheme.
3. Work experience. Relevant work experience is great, non-relevant is good too. Employers want to know you have the basic skills required to hold down a job!
4. Be a bit quirky. Nothing over the top, but do add some personality to your applications. In my first year at York I spent a week dressed as a lemur to raise money for charity. I put it on my CV and discussed it at interview. It stuck in people's minds and provided a bit of colour about me as a person.
What I do
I buy all of Morrisons' French, Spanish, and Portuguese wines, so the crux of my job is achieving the sales and profit targets for these categories, and delivering them in line with company strategy.
The reality of that is tremendously varied and really far reaching. I'm responsible for deciding what products should be in our range, where they should sit on shelf, what price we should sell them for, and what promotions we should run. I own supplier relationships for my categories and negotiate deals and business plans. Each week is different and varied. I might start some weeks in Spain, France, or Portugal, visiting wineries to source new products, and finish the same week in supplier negotiations or analysing data to implement range reviews. I also input into overall wine strategy.
What I like most
Grocery retail moves at break neck speed (FMCG really is FM!) and I love the energy and pace we work at. As a buyer, I see the very real impact of my decisions on shelf in stores and in my numbers, which is very rewarding.
Working in wine, I work in an endlessly fascinating category which allows a greater degree of creativity than other grocery categories. And, from time to time, I get to travel to wine producing regions... and they're not usually bad parts of the world.
What I like least
Although I enjoy the pace of work, the flip side of that is that there's always too much to do. Learning to prioritise is very important but facing a to-do list that's not achievable can be demoralizing.
Next steps...
If you like the look of Patricia’s profile, the next steps are down to you! You can send Patricia a message to find out more about their career journey.