Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products (13-1022)

Occupation description:  Buy merchandise or commodities, other than farm products, for resale to consumers at the wholesale or retail level, including both durable and nondurable goods. Analyze past buying trends, sales records, price, and quality of merchandise to determine value and yield. Select, order, and authorize payment for merchandise according to contractual agreements. May conduct meetings with sales personnel and introduce new products. Includes assistant wholesale and retail buyers of nonfarm products.

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Career Ladder/Lattice

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Employment and Job Openings

  Average employment Average annual openings
  2010 estimate2020 projectionPercent change GrowthReplacementTotal
Alaska 7887 11.51 22
United States 122,000133,000 9.01,100 3,0704,170

Job outlook

  • Alaska: Alaska’s employment growth is moderate with low employment opportunities. Read more.


2012 Wages

  Mean Wage and
95% Confidence Interval
Wage by Percentile
  LowMeanHigh 10thMedian90th
United States n/a27.60n/a 14.0024.7544.53
Alaska 25.7627.4629.16 15.3128.5237.90
Anchorage/Mat-Su Area (MSA) 27.9929.7131.43 19.7031.2637.86
Balance of State 16.3920.2924.19 11.3716.3939.98

Labor Force Indicators

2011 Worker Characteristics
Total workersNonresident workers Percent nonresidentPercent age 45 plusPercent age 50 plus
929 9.853.5 40.7
2011 Potential Supply
Qualified but working in another occupation26
Currently employed in a lower paid occupation12
UI claimants previously working in occupation5
2011 ALEXsys Employment Data
Number of registrants 239
Number of job position postings 8
Ratio of registrants to job position postings 29.9

Typical Entry-level Education, Experience, and/or On-the-job Training

Education: High school diploma or equivalent Work experience: None On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training