Product Specialist

Sonepar Canada, Inc.; Coquitlam; On-site; CAD 50,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player seeks a Product Specialist to enhance the Wire and Cable business. In this dynamic role, you'll collaborate with sales teams and vendors, providing essential application expertise and market insights. Your responsibilities will include managing vendor relationships, sourcing specialty products, and supporting inventory and pricing strategies. Join a company committed to sustainability and diversity, where your contributions will help shape the future of energy-efficient solutions. Embrace the opportunity to grow your career in a thriving environment that values your skills and dedication.

Benefits

Career development opportunities

Diversity and inclusion initiatives

Sustainability commitment

Employee recognition programs

Qualifications

• 5+ years of related experience in electrical products and market knowledge.
• Strong technical knowledge focusing on wire and cable products.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain vendor relationships for effective product management.
• Provide sales and technical support to sales and purchasing teams.

Skills

Electrical product knowledge

Market knowledge

Technical knowledge

Vendor relationship management

Sales support

Education

High School Diploma

College/University Diploma in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business, or Electrical

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

With over 60 years of industry experience, Gescan has 29 branches located across Western Canada. At Gescan, we leverage our strong global resource base, our local expertise, and our family-oriented values to deliver the best service to our customers and suppliers.

We are a proud member of the Sonepar Group, the world's largest privately-held electrical distributor. The Sonepar Group is present in more than 40 countries with over 45,000 employees. In Canada, we are represented by 9 locally managed electrical and industrial distributors and have over 110 locations with coverage in 8 provinces.

What’s In It For You?

• You will be joining a market leader with over 40 years of experience to help you elevate your potential.
• You will be working for the world's #1 privately held business to business distributor of electrical products and related solutions.
• A chance to get involved in the forever growing electrical industry.
• We house the largest inventory to better service our customers and deliver on sales commitments.
• An opportunity for career development across many business departments within our organization.

The Product Specialist works closely with the Sales teams to provide application expertise and drive the growth of Gescan's Wire and Cable business by assisting branches in quoting and securing orders. This role involves direct interaction with vendors to quote projects, source specialty items, and stay informed about market pricing changes. Additionally, the Product Specialist offers category expertise and up-to-date market insights to support the Purchasing, Inventory, and Pricing teams in executing effective purchasing, inventory management, and customer pricing strategies.

Major Responsibilities:

• Develop and maintain vendor relationships.
• Conduct ongoing vendor evaluations and meetings.
• Address vendor-related inquiries from the business and vendor community.
• Handle product transitions, launches, and vendor returns.
• Determine category strategy, direction and roadmap, ensuring alignment with Supply Chain Strategy.
• Stay informed about available products and current market conditions.
• Identify product gaps within product categories.
• Source non-stock products to assist sales and project teams in quoting wire and cable business.
• Offer sales and technical support to sales and purchasing teams.
• Provide pricing expertise to sales and project teams for quoting wire and cable.
• Deliver and/or facilitate product training and support sales process for branches, new hires, sales, and purchasing teams.
• Collaborate with the Inventory Manager on inventory assortment changes, adjusting sales forecasts based on feedback from branches and vendors, and ensuring appropriate branch wire and cable stock levels.
• Partner with the Purchasing Manager on booking or bulk buy strategies to secure vendor production capacity and timely stock availability.
• Collaborate with the Director of Supply Chain, Vendor Relations, and Purchasing Manager to identify and onboard new vendors.
• Work with Sales Leadership to define the core vendor list by product.
• Other duties as required.

Requirements:

• 5+ years of related experience required.
• Strong electrical product, market, and technical knowledge, with a focus on wire and cable, required.
• High School Diploma required.
• College/University Diploma required, with a focus on Supply Chain, Logistics, Business, or Electrical preferred.
• Intermediate knowledge of Microsoft Office.
• Up to 20% travel may be required.

Sonepar places the planet and diversity and inclusion at the core of its vision driving our business ethos.

Today, Sonepar is the leading distributor of energy-efficient products, pioneering the energy transition and making sustainability a priority. At Sonepar, we firmly believe that every action is crucial in safeguarding the environment, driving our commitment to a more sustainable future.

This commitment is tangible in our detailed Global CSR report. Sonepar has been recognized as a Diversity Leader by the Financial Times’ 2024 Diversity Leaders ranking and was awarded GEEIS Certification in 2022. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, welcoming submissions from all candidates.

Next steps:

We are interested in knowing more about you. Start an exciting new career and enjoy a number of benefits by applying online. While we are very grateful for your interest in joining the team, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.