Senior Buyer - Packaging

Senior Buyer - Packaging
Location: County Durham (due to the nature of the role, this will be 4 days onsite, 1 day working from home)
Salary: £50,000
Type: Full-time, perm

Help shape the future of manufacturing by ensuring the right packaging materials are in place - at the right time, cost, and quality.

We're recruiting for a Senior Buyer to take a lead role in the procurement of raw materials and packaging for a well-known manufacturer. Sitting at the heart of the procurement team, you'll take ownership of key direct spend categories, develop strategic sourcing plans, and deliver tangible commercial results.

Day In The Life:

1. Managing the procurement of raw and packaging materials to meet business needs and support wider Procurement KPIs.
2. Developing purchasing plans and robust category strategies to secure sustainable, cost-effective supply.
3. Building and managing supplier relationships - negotiating contracts and commercial terms including price lead-times, and MOQs.
4. Monitoring market trends and providing recommendations on price locks and supplier awards.
5. Leading cross-functional projects across NPD, Technical, Production, and Finance to support cost optimisation and innovation.
6. Preparing budgets and ongoing reporting on Purchase Price Variance (PPV) performance.
7. Issuing contracts, POs and managing purchasing activities through SAP.
8. Line managing and mentoring junior buyers / purchasing administrators.
9. Supporting the Head of Procurement on strategy and representing the function internally.

What We're Looking For:

1. Proven experience in direct procurement, ideally within food manufacturing or FMCG.
2. Strong commercial mindset with a solid grasp of commodity markets and supply risks.
3. Skilled negotiator, confident handling supplier performance and contract management.
4. Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
5. Able to balance long-term strategy with day-to-day delivery.
6. Organised, analytical, and comfortable with ERP systems - ideally SAP.
7. Experience leading or mentoring others would be a bonus.

Package & Benefits:

1. Salary up to £50,000 based on experience
2. Holiday 25 days plus bank holidays
3. Hours 8:30am to 5:00pm
4. Various other benefits such as 4 x death in service, employee assistance programmes, retail discount schemes etc…

Why Join Us?
This is a high-impact procurement role in a business that values strategic sourcing and cross-functional collaboration. You'll have the chance to lead category strategies, influence at senior levels, and help drive growth through smarter buying. If you're commercially sharp, procurement-savvy, and ready to step up - we'd love to hear from you.