Staples U.S. Retail is accelerating its off-price and closeout business, and we are seeking a Senior Closeout Category Merchant with deep experience operating in a fast-paced, opportunistic buying environment.  This role is responsible for identifying, negotiating, and procuring high-value closeout deals that surprise and delight customers while driving strong financial results. You will cultivate vendor relationships, evaluate deal flow daily, and make rapid purchase decisions that support a true treasure-hunt retail experience in our stores. 

This is a high-impact, high-visibility role for a merchant who thrives on agility, relationship-building, and the excitement of landing exceptional deals.

Key Responsibilities Opportunistic Buying & Deal Evaluation

 • Source, evaluate, and purchase closeout, excess inventory, and special-buy opportunities across multiple product categories.

 • Make fast, well-informed buying decisions based on margin targets, brand value, quality standards, and store relevance.

 • Partner with vendors, liquidators, manufacturers, and distributors to identify ongoing and one-time buying opportunities.

 • Travel to vendor locations, trade shows, and marketplaces to assess products and negotiate deals.

Vendor & Relationship Management

 • Build and maintain strong vendor networks to ensure a consistent pipeline of high-quality closeout offerings.

 • Negotiate cost, terms, freight, quantities, and multi-load opportunities to deliver the strongest value for the business.

 • Manage end-to-end deal flow—from discovery to purchase order to delivery into DCs and stores.

 Assortment Strategy for Off-Price Retail

 • Curate a compelling, ever-changing assortment that supports the treasure-hunt experience central to off-price retail.

 • Balance branded opportunistic buys with core planned purchases to maximize customer excitement and sales productivity.

 • Work closely with planning and allocation to ensure right quantities, flow, and in-store presentation.

Financial Ownership

 • Own category financial performance including sales, gross margin, sell-through, turn, and targeted inventory levels.

 • Analyze deal profitability quickly and accurately to ensure purchases meet financial thresholds.

 • Manage OTB (Open-to-Buy) in a flexible, dynamic environment where deal flow changes daily.

 Cross-Functional Collaboration

 • Partner with Store Operations, Marketing, Allocation, Inventory Planning, and Finance to support execution of off-price strategies.

 • Influence partners to ensure fast movement from deal approval to store delivery.

 • Support in-store presentation to highlight value, brand integrity, and the treasure-hunt experience.

Team Leadership

 • Develop and mentor junior buyers or merchandise specialists.

 • Support cross-training in off-price buying practices, market trends, and negotiation strategies.

Essential Skills & Qualifications

 • Bachelor’s Degree in business, marketing or operations OR equivalent work experience.

 • 6+ years of experience in off-price, opportunistic, closeout, or liquidation buying.

 • Proven ability to evaluate deal profitability in real time and negotiate aggressively but strategically.

 • Demonstrated success managing vendor relationships and securing high-value branded buys.

 • Strong financial acumen with expertise in margin analysis, deal modeling, sell-through management, and Open-to-Buy ownership.

 • Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment with shifting priorities.

 • Deep understanding of customer value perception within off-price retail.

Preferred Qualifications

 • Experience purchasing across multiple categories (general merchandise, housewares, stationery, seasonal, consumables, etc.).

 • Advanced negotiation training and experience handling multi-truckload or multi-million-dollar purchase commitments.

 • Strong market intelligence: brand cycles, excess inventory patterns, supply chain trends, and off-price competitive landscape.