Strategic Stock & Inventory Manager

Hedges Direct; Chorley; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Hedges Direct in the UK is seeking a Stock Manager to ensure the business holds the right stock, in the right place, at the right time to meet customer demand and uphold delivery promises. You will coordinate stock intake with the Buying Manager and Operations, and manage stock accuracy within Business Central to support efficient planning.

The role requires strategic planning across product categories, strong communication with suppliers and internal teams, and leadership of a small team to

Qualifications

• Strategically plan and manage stock across diverse product categories.
• Proven experience leading a team to deliver high performance and continuous improvement.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to interpret ERP data and drive inventory decisions.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, adept at influencing senior leaders and cross-functional teams.
• Meticulous attention to detail combined with a strategic mindset to balance operational demands with long-term objectives.
• Proactive, self-motivated, and capable of working independently to identify and resolve challenges.
• Exceptional organisational skills with the capacity to manage multiple priorities in a dynamic environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end inventory planning function to fulfil demand while balancing availability and costs.
• Proactively consolidate supplier orders and optimise delivery frequency to reduce transport costs.
• Ensure all purchase orders are confirmed with suppliers and updated in Business Central.
• Review supplier stock updates and reflect changes in internal systems for planning decisions.
• Coordinate with suppliers and internal teams on delivery dates, quantities, and changes to stock intake.
• Highlight stock availability or supplier issues and work with managers to resolve them.
• Develop supplier performance measures with the Buying and Trading Managers.

Skills

Stock planning

Team leadership

ERP data interpretation

Stakeholder management

Attention to detail

Independent work

Organisational skills

Microsoft Office

Tools

Business Central

Excel

Outlook

Word

Job description

Hedges Direct in the UK is seeking a Stock Manager to ensure the business holds the right stock, in the right place, at the right time to meet customer demand and uphold delivery promises. You will coordinate stock intake with the Buying Manager and Operations, and manage stock accuracy within Business Central to support efficient planning.

The role requires strategic planning across product categories, strong communication with suppliers and internal teams, and leadership of a small team to