AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 13-1022.00
Will AI replace Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products?
Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products: AI can already handle 3 of 20 tasks; the work mostly needs a standard-tier model.
Have a team in this role?
Get your free 10-role sample: send this role and up to nine others, and a founder sends a board-pack PDF within two business days.
Every task, scored
The 20 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products, from most to least exposed. 3 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recommend mark-up rates, mark-down rates, or merchandise selling prices. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Determine which products should be featured in advertising, the advertising medium to be used, or when the ads should be run. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Consult with store or merchandise managers about budgets or goods to be purchased. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Collaborate with vendors to obtain or develop desired products. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Develop strategies to advertise green products or merchandise to consumers. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Monitor and analyze sales records, trends, or economic conditions to anticipate consumer buying patterns, company sales, and needed inventory. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Negotiate prices, discount terms, or transportation arrangements with suppliers. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Train or supervise sales or clerical staff. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Buy merchandise or commodities for resale to wholesale or retail consumers. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Examine, select, order, or purchase merchandise consistent with quality, quantity, specification requirements, or other factors, such as environmental soundness. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Provide clerks with information to print on price tags, such as price, mark-ups or mark-downs, manufacturer number, season code, or style number. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Obtain information about customer needs or preferences by conferring with sales or purchasing personnel. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Authorize payment of invoices or return of merchandise. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Monitor competitors' sales activities by following their advertisements in newspapers or other media. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Conduct sales meetings to introduce new merchandise. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Analyze environmental aspects of competing merchandise when making buying decisions. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Compare transportation options to determine the most energy-efficient options. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Identify opportunities to buy green commodities, such as alternative energy, water, or carbon-neutral products for resale to consumers. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Monitor consumer preferences or environmental trends to determine the best way to introduce new green products. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Inspect merchandise or products to determine quality, value, or yield. | Estimated | Frontier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 3 of 20 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 17 of 20. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A standard-tier model or lower covers 81% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 100% of the work is something AI can address at some tier.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025) publishes no national employment or wage figure for this O*NET occupation.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products 76% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure42
- Buyers and Purchasing Agents, Farm Products 74% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure63
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products 65% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure41
- Purchasing Managers 63% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure63
- Procurement Clerks 61% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure70
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products and AI
Will AI replace Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products?
AI already handles 3 of the 20 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 39 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears.
What is the AI exposure of Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products?
39 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 3 of the 20 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 17 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Recommend mark-up rates, mark-down rates, or merchandise selling prices; Determine which products should be featured in advertising, the advertising medium to be used, or when the ads should be run; Consult with store or merchandise managers about budgets or goods to be purchased. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 81% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/wholesale-and-retail-buyers-except-farm-products
Have a team in this role?
Get your free 10-role sample. Send this role and up to nine others, with no employee data, and a founder sends a PDF in board-pack format within two business days.
A founder replies within one business day.