Buyer - Sourcing, Garden

myview; Brampton; On-site; CAD 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Loblaw Companies Limited in Canada is seeking a Produce Category Procurement professional to support weekly and seasonal buys, vendor negotiations and cost management across our retail divisions.

You will partner with internal teams to lead item setup, pricing changes, and supply chain collaboration to deliver on budget, ensure product availability and contribute to our category insights and strategic plans.

Responsibilities

• Source and implement weekly and seasonal product buys for baseline and promotional volume on behalf of our retail divisions.
• Influence and implement buying strategies that align to category playbooks and deliver on our annual budget obligations.
• Build trusted relationships with the vendor community and our external partners.
• Set and achieve goals, working united with various colleagues in merchandising, operations, control brands, supply chain, loyalty, e-commerce, marketing, media, and other divisions.
• Lead and assist the Director with vendor meetings and product costing negotiations. Play an active role in managing vendors' fulfilment and financial performance.
• Lead promotional programs from end-to-end, including product selection and forecasting, financial impact analysis, pricing decisions, vendor engagement, flyer, and digital content, and evaluate program success.
• Use data and analytics to build strategic plans that best serve customers, and that achieve intended financial outcomes.
• Research the competitive landscape and understand industry benchmarking standards on pricing, assortment, merchandising, promotional activity and more.
• Provide support by handling the financial performance for the category (profit and loss) and driven health of the category (market share performance.)
• Evaluate new product and/or platform innovation and work with our Loblaw Brands team and retail divisions on product innovation and program sourcing for our private labels.
• Collaborate with our supply chain replenishment and transport teams to resolve product availability challenges and/or fulfilment obstacles.
• Research the competitive landscape of the category and understand industry benchmarking standards on costing, global sourcing strategies, product quality specifications etc.
• Proudly represent the Produce category with the Sourcing Team.
• Building and leading diverse teams that foster a workplace of inclusiveness and belonging
• Execute and complete new item set-up process
• Execute and complete item discontinuation process
• Key all promos into JDA and run integrity reports
• Pricing and Inventory Management
• Execute cost and retail price changes in templates/systems
• Resolve SAP store notifications
• Billings
• Input regular O&A into systems
• Track O&A and follow up with vendors on auto and manual O&A

Job description

Come make your difference in communities across Canada, where authenticity, trust and making connections is valued - as we shape the future of Canadian retail, together. Our unique position as one of the country's largest employers, coupled with our commitment to positively impact the lives of all Canadians, provides our colleagues a range of opportunities and experiences to help Canadians Live Life Well®.

At Loblaw Companies Limited, we succeed through collaboration and commitment and set a high bar for ourselves and those around us. Whether you are just starting your career, re-entering the workforce, or looking for a new job, this is where you belong.

Why is this role important :

Reporting to our Produce Sourcing Director you'll participate in every aspect of category procurement including domestic and offshore sourcing, vendor relationship and performance management, RFPs, cost negotiations and cost mitigation, supply risk management, quality management, vendor onboarding and much more. You'll also work with the Director to provide our retail divisions with rich category insights on cost inflation forecasting, commodity trends, competitive landscape analytics and global product innovation.

What you'll do:

• Source and implement weekly and seasonal product buys for baseline and promotional volume on behalf of our retail divisions.
• Influence and implement buying strategies that align to category playbooks and deliver on our annual budget obligations.
• Build trusted relationships with the vendor community and our external partners.
• Set and achieve goals, working united with various colleagues in merchandising, operations, control brands, supply chain, loyalty, e-commerce, marketing, media, and other divisions.
• Lead and assist the Director with vendor meetings and product costing negotiations. Play an active role in managing vendors' fulfilment and financial performance.
• Lead promotional programs from end-to-end, including product selection and forecasting, financial impact analysis, pricing decisions, vendor engagement, flyer, and digital content, and evaluate program success.
• Use data and analytics to build strategic plans that best serve customers, and that achieve intended financial outcomes.
• Research the competitive landscape and understand industry benchmarking standards on pricing, assortment, merchandising, promotional activity and more.
• Provide support by handling the financial performance for the category (profit and loss) and driven health of the category (market share performance.)
• Evaluate new product and/or platform innovation and work with our Loblaw Brands team and retail divisions on product innovation and program sourcing for our private labels.
• Collaborate with our supply chain replenishment and transport teams to resolve product availability challenges and/or fulfilment obstacles.
• Research the competitive landscape of the category and understand industry benchmarking standards on costing, global sourcing strategies, product quality specifications etc.
• Proudly represent the Produce category with the Sourcing Team.
• Building and leading diverse teams that foster a workplace of inclusiveness and belonging
• Execute and complete new item set-up process
• Execute and complete item discontinuation process
• Key all promos into JDA and run integrity reports
• Pricing and Inventory Management
• Execute cost and retail price changes in templates/systems
• Resolve SAP store notifications
• Billings
• Input regular O&A into systems
• Track O&A and follow up with vendors on auto and manual O&A

Our commitment to Sustainability and Social Impact is an essential part of the way we do business, and we focus our attention on areas where we can have the greatest impact. Our approach to sustainability and social impact is based on three pillars - Environment, Sourcing and Community - and we are constantly looking for ways to demonstrate leadership in these important areas. Our CORE Values - Care, Ownership, Respect and Excellence - guide all our decision-making and come to life through our Blue Culture. We offer our colleagues progressive careers, comprehensive training, flexibility, and other competitive benefits - these are some of the many reasons why we are one of Canada's Top Employers, Canada's Best Diversity Employers, Canada's Greenest Employers & Canada's Top Employers for Young People.

We have a long-standing focus on diversity, equity and inclusion because we know it will make our company a better place to work and shop. We are committed to creating accessible environments for our colleagues, candidates and customers. Requests for accommodation due to a disability (which may be visible or invisible, temporary or permanent) can be made at any stage of application and employment.