Senior Protein Procurement Lead: Margin & Availability

Whetstone Distribution; Kansas City (KS); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

On-site work at Queen Foods facility

Job summary

Queen Foods, a member of the Whetstone Distribution family, seeks a Protein Buyer responsible for local sourcing, purchasing, and pricing of beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and related products. You’ll manage ~5,000 SKUs and 500,000–600,000 lbs weekly, negotiate with brokers, and own inventory from purchase through sale at Queen Foods’ facility in the Kansas City area.

You will collaborate with the local GM and sales team to set pricing, adjust strategies, and support broker/customer conversations

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in protein procurement or purchasing.
• 5+ years of protein buying experience with vendor/broker negotiations.
• Strong negotiation skills with vendors and brokers; experience with bulk and block purchases.
• Experience in high-volume purchasing (roughly $400k–$500k weekly across ~5,000 SKUs).
• Comfort setting and adjusting pricing based on market data, margin targets, and inventory position.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain relationships with brokers and vendors across all protein categories, negotiating pricing, terms, and delivery conditions directly.
• Understand the market and secure the best available price across brokers, packers, and vendors.
• Evaluate bulk buying opportunities vs market conditions, storage capacity, and inventory needs; negotiate terms accordingly.
• Maintain familiarity with block order structures and standard industry purchasing mechanisms.
• Work with brokers on sourcing and support direct sales conversations with brokers/customers as needed.
• Establish a weekly cadence with the sales team to adjust pricing—daily or weekly as needed—for core protein items.
• Create and monitor weekly pricing for protein items, considering market conditions and sales feedback to drive margin while ensuring rotation.
• Own weekly protein margins, monitor performance and adjust pricing strategy.

Skills

Vendor negotiation

Pricing analytics

Cross-functional collaboration

Market dynamics understanding

P&L basics

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent in protein procurement/purchasing

Tools

Canopy ERP

Job description

Queen Foods, a member of the Whetstone Distribution family, seeks a Protein Buyer responsible for local sourcing, purchasing, and pricing of beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and related products. You’ll manage ~5,000 SKUs and 500,000–600,000 lbs weekly, negotiate with brokers, and own inventory from purchase through sale at Queen Foods’ facility in the Kansas City area.

You will collaborate with the local GM and sales team to set pricing, adjust strategies, and support broker/customer conversations