Sr Buyer - Fresh Meat

Grocery-Outlet; Emeryville (CA); On-site; USD 125,000 - 145,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Base salary

Annual bonus program

Equity

401(k) Profit Sharing

Job summary

Grocery Outlet is seeking a Senior Buyer of Meat to lead a small team and drive a $350M annual segment with at least 5% growth. You’ll oversee P&L for the group, manage key supplier relationships, and optimize assortment, pricing, and purchasing strategies to improve gross margin.

You will guide 2–3 buyers, deliver weekly priorities, and mentor the team toward higher responsibilities while collaborating with Marketing and Operations to execute growth plans.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of procurement experience, preferably fresh meat consumables.
• Experience using syndicated data to optimize business performance.
• Experience leading a team and defining goals.
• Experience conducting RFP campaigns and managing complex sourcing.
• Proven ability to influence decisions and negotiate effectively.
• Strong vendor relationship management and sourcing strategy skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Own and grow opportunistic buying to deliver gross margin goals.
• Source products relevant to customers and exceed expectations.
• Manage new and existing vendor relationships.
• Develop understanding of Grocery Outlet’s target market.
• Identify new product opportunities and incorporate into assortment.
• Source best-in-class product assortment via competitive analysis.
• Advocate innovative solutions during negotiations.
• Be adaptable in a fast-paced, changing environment.
• Collaborate with cross-functional departments.
• Prioritize short and long-term goals per strategic initiatives.

Skills

Procurement leadership

Syndicated data analysis

Vendor management

Team leadership

Negotiation

GMROI optimization

Strategic thinking

Communication skills

RFP campaigns

Meat commodity knowledge

Job description

• Our Mission: Touching lives for the better
• Our Vision: Touching lives by being the first choice for bargain-minded consumers in the U.S.

About the Team:

Our Purchasing team’s mission is to provide bargain-minded customers with the deepest discounts on quality and branded products. In many ways our team is the heart of the organization- building and maintaining vendor relationships and providing solutions for our supplier partners and independent operators. Our buyers are empowered with speed, flexibility, and freedom while their passion and creativity embody the art of closeout buying. Successful members of our team are motivated to exceed annual comp sales, thrive in a collaborative environment, have an entrepreneurial spirit, and be motivated by relationship building.

About the Role:

As a Senior Buyer of Meat, you will be responsible for a segment of business generating $350M of annual sales and expected to deliver a minimum of 5% total sales growth. You will act as the “Team Leader” for a group of 2-3 people consisting of Buyers and Assistant Buyers. You will act as a “player-coach” having total P&L responsibilities (revenue, margin, inventory & expenses) for your entire team while managing several Key Categories yourself. Improving GMROI by aligning product assortment, pricing, and purchasing strategies will be a constant focus. You will need the ability to think strategically and develop growth plans that can be communicated clearly to cross functional areas of the company (Marketing, Operations) and executed by your team. You will need to provide clear weekly direction to your team on the current priorities most relevant to achieving your growth plans. You will help your team make quick buying decisions, manage WORLD CLASS key supplier relationships and above all… train & develop the members of your team for additional responsibility. You will role model industry leading category management practices including but not limited to ongoing analysis and benchmarking of GO’s business against syndicated data, execution of growth opportunities, assortment optimization, promotional planning, seasonal strategies, and ongoing performance analysis. This role reports to the Sr. Director - Purchasing.

Responsibilities Include:

• Own and grow opportunistic buying to deliver gross margin goals.
• Source products that are relevant to our customers and exceed their expectations.
• Manage new and existing vendor relationships.
• Developing a strong understanding of Grocery Outlet’s target market.
• Successfully identify new product opportunities and incorporate them into the assortment.
• Source a best-in-class product assortment through competitive analysis studies.
• Consistently recommend and advocate innovative solutions during the negotiating process.
• Be comfortable and flexible in a fast-paced, changing environment.
• Work collaboratively with cross functional departments.
• Prioritize short and long-term goals based on the company’s strategic initiatives.

About The Pay:

• Base Salary Range: $125,000 - $145,000 Annually
• Annual Bonus Program
• Equity
• 401(k) Profit Sharing
• Final compensation will be determined based upon experience and skills and may vary based on location.

About You:

• You have 10+ years of procurement experience - preferably fresh meat consumables.
• You have 5+ years of experience using and analyzing syndicated data to optimize business performance.
• Experience conducting RFP campaigns and managing complex sourcing scenarios.
• Experience leading a team, defining team and individual goals, sharing best practices, and developing talent.
• You love people, are collaborative and have demonstrated leadership qualities in previous roles.
• You have an entrepreneurial spirit and enjoy taking calculated risks.
• You’re able to react quickly and re-prioritize competing priorities… you love this environment!
• You have an ability to influence decisions and a skilled negotiator.
• You have an innate ability to identify product trends and hot selling items… you enjoy this!
• You are well organized, detail oriented and have good follow-through.
• You have excellent written and oral communication skills.

Equal Opportunity Employer

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.