Can AI Replace Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products in 2026?

Moderate exposure. AI could handle about 73% of today's wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products tasks by 2036, and there is a 54% chance the number of jobs falls by a fifth or more. AI is likely to take over many tasks outright.

See how not to be replaced

Timeline

Year2030

Tasks AI can do

36%

Headcount (2025 = 100)

Chance of 20%+ fewer jobs

18% 2030 · 54% 2036

One person could cover, 2036

2.4 roles

Share of today's tasks AI can perform

Headcount index, 2025 = 100 (dashed line)

Your survival map

Not every part of your job is at the same risk. Tap a number to see what to do about each task.

Your human coreDo it with AIHand to AI

Tap a number on the map or a task below.

Lower-risk jobs that use similar skills

Stockers and Order Fillers12% risk by 2036 Retail Salespersons35% risk by 2036 Door-to-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers17% risk by 2036

Your plan

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Try an AI tool on one task you'd normally do by hand: "Provide clerks with information to print on price tags, such as price, mark-ups or mark-downs, manufacturer number, season code, or style number".Learn one AI tool well enough to show it in an interview, for: "Recommend mark-up rates, mark-down rates, or merchandise selling prices".Get visibly better at your human core: "Conduct sales meetings to introduce new merchandise".Rewrite the top of your CV around judgment, people and decisions, not routine output.Read about a lower-risk move: Stockers and Order Fillers.

Lower-risk jobs with similar tasks

Stockers and Order Fillers — 12% chance of contraction by 2036
Retail Salespersons — 35% chance of contraction by 2036
Door-to-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers — 17% chance of contraction by 2036

Similar occupations

Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products · Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products · First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers · First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers

Based on 20 O*NET tasks for "Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products" (SOC 13-1022.00). LLM alone: 3% of tasks; with AI tools: 90%. Projections are a model, not official statistics. How we calculate this · Data version 2026-10