Purchasing Specialist - Food and Beverage

Uline; Waukegan (IL); On-site; USD 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) match

Paid time off

Tuition assistance

On-site café

Job summary

Uline is seeking a Purchasing Specialist to support the corporate café operations at our Pleasant Prairie campus. You will manage purchasing for food, beverages, and equipment, analyze spending and POS data, and drive supplier negotiations to improve value and efficiency.

The role emphasizes strong analytical skills, vendor management, and cross-functional collaboration to optimize cafe performance and inventory control.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent; bachelor's degree preferred.
• 2+ years in foodservice, hospitality, procurement, purchasing, or supply chain operations.
• Experience managing vendor relations and purchasing processes.
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel and data analysis.
• Effective communication, analytical and organizational skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage purchasing for food, beverage and equipment inventory that support Uline's corporate cafe operations.
• Analyze spending, trends, cafe performance and POS data to identify opportunities and improvements.
• Build and maintain supplier relationships and support pricing discussions, contract reviews and vendor negotiations.
• Support strategic sourcing initiatives to enhance product quality, efficiency and value.
• Oversee point-of-sale systems, from setup and reporting to ensuring data-driven insights.

Skills

Analytical skills

Excel proficiency

Communication

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Bachelor's degree preferred

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Corporate Headquarters

12575 Uline Drive, Pleasant Prairie, WI 53158

Help fuel our team! Join Uline as a Purchasing Specialist and help shape the café experience at our growing Corporate Headquarters. Manage purchasing for nearly 1 million pounds of food and more than 6,000 gallons of coffee each year while using your analytical expertise to guide decisions, build strong supplier partnerships and uncover opportunities to improve quality, value and efficiency.

Careers Packed with Potential. Backed by 45+ years of success, Uline offers opportunities to grow your career with stability you can count on.

Position Responsibilities

• Manage purchasing for food, beverage and equipment inventory that support Uline's corporate café operations.
• Analyze spending, purchasing trends, café performance and point-of-sale data to identify opportunities and recommend improvements.
• Build and maintain supplier relationships and support pricing discussions, contract reviews and vendor negotiations.
• Support strategic sourcing initiatives to enhance product quality, efficiency and overall value.
• Oversee point-of-sale systems, from setup and reporting to ensuring accurate data and insights that support business decisions.

Minimum Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent. Bachelor's degree preferred.
• 2+ years of experience in foodservice, hospitality, procurement, purchasing, or supply chain operations.
• Experience managing vendor relations and purchasing processes.
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel and data analysis.
• Effective communication, analytical and organizational skills.

Benefits

• Complete health insurance coverage and 401(k) with 6% employer match that starts day one!
• Multiple bonus programs.
• Paid holidays and generous paid time off.
• Tuition Assistance Program that covers professional continuing education.

Employee Perks

• On-site café and first-class fitness center with complimentary personal trainers.
• Over four miles of beautifully maintained walking trails.

About Uline

Uline, a family-owned company, is North America’s leading distributor of shipping, industrial, and packaging materials with over 10,000 employees across 15 locations.

Uline is a drug-free workplace. All new hires must complete a pre-employment hair follicle drug screening. All positions are on-site.

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Our employees make the difference and we are committed to offering exceptional benefits and perks! Explore https://www.uline.jobs/#working-here_blankUline.jobs to learn more!