Buyer

Lumbermens Merchandising Corporation; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Lumbermens Merchandising Corporation is seeking a Buyer to work with its member network of independent family-owned lumber and building material companies across the US. The Buyer identifies sources, negotiates optimal prices, and ensures purchases meet member specifications while delivering high quality service.

You will manage vendor programs for assigned categories, build relationships with suppliers, analyze data, and support sales growth through strategic planning and proactive

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, or related field or equivalent experience.
• 2+ years of professional business experience working with customers.
• Strong customer service and communication skills.
• Ability to learn product lines and CRM systems.
• Willingness to travel to events and supplier locations.
• Proactive outbound calling and relationship-building abilities.

Responsibilities

• Proactively contact members by phone and email to promote programs and offers.
• Negotiate prices and vendor terms to achieve best value.
• Develop strategic plans to optimize sales for assigned product groups.
• Analyze purchase data and monitor dealer performance.
• Maintain documentation for quotations, orders, and claims.
• Coordinate with suppliers and regional managers on program updates.

Skills

Customer service

Outbound calling

Relationship building

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Travel willingness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, or related field

Tools

CRM systems

LumberTrack

Purchasing Workbench

Power BI

Job description

LMC is a leading buying group for a network of independent family-owned building material companies across the US. As their buying group, LMC negotiates and facilitates procurement opportunities for the most desired brands in the lumber and building materials industry. We also work to provide operational support with focus on logistics, capital equipment, technology, and marketing. By leveraging the billion dollar buying power of our members, LMC ensures our members have a competitive edge to capture more of their local market share.

The Buyer interacts with LMC’s members regarding their program requirements. The incumbent identifies the best source to obtain the products and/or services, negotiating an optimal price while providing high quality customer service to our members. The Buyer is responsible for ensuring the purchase is made to the specifications of the member. This position supports members with purchasing needs and is authorized to negotiate price and program enhancements with approved vendor sources. The Buyer is responsible for increasing share of the dealer’s business in regard to their vendor program responsibility.

Typically, the Buyer is assigned a specific product line or category specialty. The incumbent negotiates purchases for the Stockholders and manages the vendor programs for the applicable category.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

• Proactively contacts members through both phone and electronic communication channels to build relationships, learn about business needs, promote programs and special offers designed to provide the best combination of price, quality and product availability.
• Maintains good relationships with the supplier base, striving for high level vendor connections on key vendor lines.
• Develops and maintains knowledge of all product lines within area of responsibility.
• Provides the highest level of support and customer service to LMC members and ensures dealer problems are solved in a timely manner.
• With assistance from management, develops a strategic plan to optimize sales for assigned product groups. Executes the agreed upon strategic plan.
• Improves market penetration with LMC members for assigned product lines by professionally driving sales and servicing assigned accounts, meeting assigned volume targets.
• Identifies opportunities for competitive programs for new suppliers or product categories that meet LMC’s members’ needs. With assistant from management conducts analysis and negotiates programs.
• Implements, promotes and maintains purchasing programs designed to provide the best possible combination of price, quality and product availability at the best price.
• Solves and identifies solutions for routine problems. Addresses issues and handles conversations with members and suppliers. Elevates more complex problems and conversations to management.
• Analyzes purchase data for assigned dealers and possesses a solid understanding of dealer’s businesses.
• Visits dealer and vendor locations with a manager or senior team member. With assistance develops targeted plans for visits and follows-up with an overview of meeting results.
• Maintains frequent contact with members to ensure orders are accurately expedited and timely delivery is made.
• Examines bids and negotiates prices with dealers, ensuring the best procurement prices while meeting the delivery specifications.
• Maintains current market knowledge of new products and developments in the field and ensures members are informed.
• Interacts with Regional Managers to provide consistent communication regarding Stockholder issues, including sales updates.
• Serves as a liaison with suppliers regarding quality issues, cost reduction efforts and overall performance of the business interaction.
• Participates in LMC sponsored events, such as trade shows.
• Maintains complete and accurate documentation for all quotations, orders, claims and any other significant transactions.
• Supports all programs designed to increase the sales and service to new dealers/customers.
• Provides timely prevailing market conditions and analysis, trends, prices and other appropriate information to ensure purchases are at the optimal price points and least cost.
• Keeps supervisor informed of the status of projects and purchasing/sales activities.
• Performs other duties as required and/or assigned.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, or other related field, or equivalent experience required.
• 2+ years of experience in a professional business environment, working with customers
• Strong customer service skills.
• Ability to gain a solid understanding of assigned product lines.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills and interpersonal skills with the confidence to initiate conversations, overcome objections and build rapport over the phone.
• Ability to proactively make outbound phone calls to engage LMC's members, follow up on leads, conduct surveys, perform outreach campaigns, etc.
• Ability to understand customer needs and industry trends.
• Ability to build and maintain strong professional relationships.
• Ability to learn LMC systems and reporting tools (CRM, LumberTrack, Purchasing Workbench, Power BI, etc.)
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to address customer issues.
• Ability to work in a collaborative team environment.
• Ability to complete required tasks with some regular supervision.
• Ability to travel to LMC events and/or member or supplier locations as needed.