Job Description
As part of the Centre of Plate category transformation plan, we are currently recruiting for a Chilled Pork Buyer covering Pork, Bacon, Sausages and Gammon categories, to join the Merchandising team on a full time, permanent basis, reporting to the Head of Procurement.
As the chilled Pork Buyer you will be responsible for managing Fresh Centre of Plate supply base in line with agreed strategy for designated category and business function in compliance with company policy and procedures. You will work with internal colleagues and suppliers to ensure required costs, quality and service standards are met or exceeded at all times, and provide the ability to deliver cost saving strategies through driving change and proactively finding solutions.
We are offering a remote base contract with 1-2 days every 2 weeks in our Ashford, Kent office, so you will ideally be located in the South East/London. Flexibility will be required for team and supplier meetings.
Key Accountabilities & Responsibilities:
- Negotiate contract terms (e.g. pricing, rebates, promotional support etc.) with suppliers to achieve optimum commercial benefit
- Conduct product and category panels to deliver continuous improvement in product range, quality, service and pricing
- Conduct regular gap analysis, commercial benchmarking, range reviews and market research to ensure opportunities are identified and evaluated
- Liaise and attend meetings with other departments and external stakeholders to ensure continuity of supply and successful execution of new product launches
- Conduct regular review meetings and build strong relationships with suppliers to monitor product/supplier performance and ensure commercial targets are hit
- Act as category commercial lead for Brakes head office and liaise with other Sysco members for shared deals, market insight, product and supplier information
- Off-site visits including but not limited to; Exhibitions, Suppliers, Sysco meetings, Sales accompaniment days and Networking events
- Running and analysing reports to recognise areas of underperformance within sales & supply base with the ability to identify appropriate solutions
- Control cost of goods and manage terms and business planning effectively with our supplier base, including our Sysco GB & European buying alliance partnerships.
- Source responsibly and support our CSR credentials
- Manage relations, engagement and partnerships across the supplier base
- Customer interaction: working with key customers to talk about market and agricultural conditions. More significantly working to develop our range and that of our customers supporting the meat category sales specialists. This will create a USP with our customers and support to mitigate inflation and protect margin
- Cost tracker measuring cost of goods and better than market inflation/deflation, which enables Brakes & Sysco GB to compete within the marketplace and drives Number of Buying Customers (NOBC) and share of wallet
- Work on contributions to annual buying income KPI through rebates, supplier terms, cost saving initiatives
- Deliver compliance of contract terms through engagement and commitment of stakeholders and senior management team. Both parties to have fully signed, accurate terms, filed ahead of contract start dates
About you:
The successful candidate will have previous experience in a similar Chilled/ Ambient/ Grocery Buyer/Procurement Manager role looking to join a global organisation for the next step in their career. We are looking for an experienced buyer who is comfortable working cross-functionally in a team and enjoys building relationships internally and with external suppliers to maximize performance. A confident and organised Buyer who has the demonstrated experience of supplier/contract negotiation and delivery of significant cost savings combined with commercial problem-solving abilities is crucial to this role. You will be someone who has strong planning and prioritisation skills whilst demonstrating your resilience under pressure and can manage conflicting priorities using your excellent time management skills.
What you'll receive:
- A competitive salary
- Company car allowance of £5,500
- Pension scheme
- Life Assurance
- Single private medical healthcare cover
- Generous holiday allowance of 25 days + bank holidays, with option to purchase additional holidays
- Huge discounts on all sorts of lovely food and award-winning products through our staff shop
- Discounts on Cinema tickets, shopping and earn cashback on purchases through Sysco benefits portal
- Recognition awards and Incentives
- Real career opportunities - being part of Sysco, the world's leading foodservice business, opens up a world of possibility