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Overview
Course summary
Learn how to turn product performance data into confident buying decisions that boost sales and profitability. Over three interactive sessions, you’ll review past performance, plan commercially focused ranges, and buy with precision — reducing overstocks and maximising returns.
In retail, profit depends on how well your product ranges reflect customer tastes. Without a structured approach to reviewing past performance and planning ahead, businesses risk investing in stock that doesn’t sell — leading to overstocks, lost sales, and reduced profitability.
This practical, three-part course shows you how to reduce retail risk by linking review, planning, and buying into one structured process. You’ll learn how to:
- Analyse past performance using key KPIs.
- Plan ranges that balance commercial insight, trend forecasting, and customer demand.
- Buy with confidence, ensuring your ranges are profitable and aligned with space, sales, and margin targets.
Whether you’re just starting out, running an established business, or working within a larger retailer, you’ll leave with the tools to build product ranges that sell — and to drive sustainable profit growth.
Who is this course for?
This course is ideal for:
- Early-career fashion professionals or students building a buying and merchandising foundation.
- Entrepreneurs and start-ups looking to establish profitable retail practices.
- Retail professionals seeking to enhance processes and results in established businesses.
- Those working in fashion, lifestyle, wholesale, or non-fashion retail across any channel — from multi-site to single boutique, online-only to multi-channel operations.
Discounts and offers
Groups
If you are booking as a group or institution, please contact us before you book as you may be able to benefit from our 15% group or corporate discounts.
Returning short course delegates
We offer a 10% discount to returning short course delegates. If you’re not booking your first short course or professional qualification with us and this discount is not applied to your course at checkout, please contact us.
UoW undergraduate/postgraduate students, alumni and colleagues
We also offer a 20% discount to our undergraduate and postgraduate students, alumni, and colleagues. To receive your discount code, please contact us before booking your course.
Course structure
- Use KPIs to analyse sales drivers across product, attributes, stores, and suppliers.
- Interpret results to identify opportunities and challenges for future planning and buying.
- Develop space, sales, and buying plans based on review results.
- Incorporate commercial insight, trends, and new opportunities into your range and margin planning.
- Apply your review and planning work to forward-range buying.
- Quantify purchases and track buying progress against your plans.
Teaching and assessment
The course is highly interactive, blending example scenarios, discussion, and real-life case studies. You’ll work through data analysis, planning exercises, and buying strategies that can be applied directly to your own business or role.
There is no formal assessment.
Entry requirements
No prior knowledge required. A willingness to work with numbers, attention to detail, and a commitment to applying commercial insights are essential.
Tutor information
Tony Scott
Tony is a retail expert with 35 years’ experience in buying and merchandising — this course draws on real-world successes from roles such as Head of Merchandising and Product Director at George Clothing and Per Una, and a decade of retail consultancy.
Tony’s proven methods have delivered significant sales and profit growth for fashion and lifestyle retailers of all sizes. He has also lectured in Fashion Business at the University of Westminster for the past five years.
Accreditation
You'll receive a digital certificate from the University once you have successfully completed the course.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course you'll be able to:
- Identify key drivers of retail performance using KPIs.
- Conduct detailed business reviews and interpret results commercially.
- Develop range, sales, and margin plans that align with space and customer demand.
- Make confident buying decisions that maximise sales and profit while reducing stockholding.
Benefits for your organisation include:
- Improved performance visibility.
- More targeted and attractive product ranges.
- Increased sales and profitability.
- Reduced overstocks and waste.
- More efficient, structured ways of working.
Booking
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