Buyer

Purpose:

To be the commercial expert in Co Manufactured finished Products. Source and set up contracts for supply manufacturing capacity at the right cost and in the most efficient and sustainable supply chain possible. The portfolio will include all manufacturing categories and regions and may extend to other raw materials and packaging as required. The role is responsible for Co-manufacturers supplying UK Businesses.

Role activities / responsibilities:

Category Market Expert (10%)

• Carry out market research to understand the drivers of manufacturing costs.
• Understand the capabilities and capacities of Co Manufacturers in the market, develop relationships and build supplier profiles and contingency options.
• Set budget pricing for Co Manufacturer costs. Review and revise appropriately on a quarterly basis.
• Work with Raw Material and Packaging Buyers to understand component costs and price trends
• Develop short medium- and long-term Procurement strategies across Contract manufacturing
• Build a network of contacts to improve knowledge and share ideas.

Sourcing, contracts, and Relationship Management (40%)

• Lead the review and set up of new Company Manufacturers as appropriate
• Own, manage, negotiate, renew contracts with all co-manufacturers ensuring all parameters are covered including cost model, quality service capacity stock innovation and sustainability.
• Negotiate cost changes with all co-manufacturers
• Be an expert when it comes to all things legal, from co-manufacturing agreements, IP ownership to exclusivity agreements.
• Ownership of Manufacturing, sundry and depending on cost model some Ingredient and packaging costs
• Work closely with the Technical + Quality team,
• Supply team and our Co Manufacturers to proactively drive efficiencies, contingencies and collaborative plans
• Lead commercial sections of regular Co Manufacturer review meetings involving all relevant teams
• Own, manage and review as appropriate cost sheets for each co manufacturer
• Make other teams aware of current and future cost risks.

Savings Champion (20%)

• Identify a rolling cost savings plan with Company Manufacturers
• Collaborate with co-manufacturers to drive cost improvement projects
• Lead cross-team projects to deliver value and savings
• Work Closely with Finance to develop savings calculations, cost models and reporting.

Innovation & NPD (30%)

Proactively contribute to Innovation strategy searching for Co Manufacturing capability, capacity and onboarding new partners.

Support the NPD project teams with costs and supply capability.

Develop an agenda where our Co Manufacturers proactively share NPD/Innovation ideas

Skills + experience:

• Ability and willingness to communicate effectively at all levels and provide support in a range of activities and tasks
• Ability to build strong collaborative relationships, getting things done and resolving issues across the business and with suppliers
• Proactive and driven attitude with a natural aptitude for problem solving 
• Ability to think logically and calmly especially when it’s busy.
• Demonstrate a calm and resourceful response when issues arise
• Manage a varied workload through prioritizing and communicating to the team
• Demonstrable ability to live and breathe our values: Win Together, Be Curious, Foster Inclusion, Own It and Childlike
• Be passionate and help others to be about what the company stands for
• Have a commercial mindset with proven negotiation skills
• Experience of Procurement ideally within a food / FMCG environment

Please note: Only candidates with the relevant skills and experience will be contacted regarding this position. If you do not hear back from us within 5 days you have unfortunately been unsuccessful in your application for this position, however we may contact you in the future to discuss other opportunities.

Please note:  That no terminology in this advert is intended to discriminate on the grounds of a person's gender, marital status, race, religion, colour, age, disability or sexual orientation. Every candidate will be assessed only in accordance with their merits, qualifications and abilities to perform the duties of the job