Assistant Buyer

**Assistant Buyer - Job Description**

We are looking for a passionate assistant buyer to support our purchasing/commercial department with the selection and procurement of commodities. The assistant buyer's responsibilities include maintaining positive vendor relations, preparing pricing strategies, placing and tracking purchase orders, managing inventory, buying the right stock at the right time and keeping track of market trends.

To be successful as an assistant buyer, you should be confident, highly organized and an excellent communicator. An outstanding assistant buyer has an analytical mind and excellent negotiating skills.

**Assistant Buyer Responsibilities**:

- Carry out the procurement function across oils and fats commodities under the mandates and guidance of the department head.
- Writing, placing, and tracking purchase orders.
- Ensuring products are purchased at the right time, to specification and at a good price.
- Negotiating with vendors and building positive, long-term relationships.
- Researching new suppliers and making recommendations to the buyer.
- Determine and executing of pricing strategies.
- Planning, monitoring, and maintaining suitable inventory levels.
- Maintain the position (short/long) for priced and unpriced oils and fats commodities across the group in line with board mandates. Alert management as to when there are potential problems and provide solutions.
- Compiling reports on product performance and statistics.
- Ensure that procurement is performed strategically to remain competitive in the market and beat monthly market average pricing. Keep up to date with market movements across all commodities and dollar currency
- Ensuring maintenance of data across various systems
- Product expert - passionate and knowledgeable on your category
- Liaise carefully with department Head to ensure that budgeted margins are achieved across all SKU’s. Review margins and provide business insight.
- Perform the approval process of all sales orders received, reviewing for margin achievement and reasonability, attain guidance from department head on strategic customer retainment initiatives.
- Probe the department head to negotiate the best conversion rates with suppliers and bring in baseline savings after attaining an understanding of charge structures from the relevant suppliers applicable.
- Provide support to the department head/customers on market movements/trends and advise on pricing strategy and invoice and shelf/customer level.
- Provide technical and commercial support to the sales team and the ELT/Board on market trend analysis on commodities and currencies and assumptions for the annual budget.
- Assist with the review of the valuations monthly with the FM to ensure that stock is carried at the lower of actual cost/NRV.
- Serve on the Extended Leadership Team.
- Negotiate & maintain open book pricing models with corporate customers.
- Maintain proper record keeping of weighted average cost per commodity after excluding forward sales using the FIFO method.
- Regularly interrogate costing schedules to ensure correct bombs are being applied for correct margin management.

**Supporting the buyer**:

- Monitor and manage the on-going trading performance of the category, ensuring we plan and forecast rigorously, to allow us to deliver our revenue, margin, profit and market share ambitions.
- Drive procurement benefits through developing supplier partnerships and buying alliances.
- Lead the charge on delivering ESG (Environment & social governance) targets—packaging, product, science based targets and emissions data for all partners
- Deliver innovation across the categories.
- Monitor and manage the customer experience measures, ensuring tactical interventions are implemented where appropriate.
- Work with the channel and operational teams to ensure we are maximising the trading opportunities available

**Assistant Buyer Requirements**:
Degree in BCOM Accounting ,business, economics or related field preferred.

Exposure to the oils and fats industry, including commodity hedging/price setting, is ideal

Multi year track record in commodity trading

Previous experience in the manufacturing or retail industry is a plus.

Excellent interpersonal, communication and negotiation skills.

Strong analytical and organizational skills.

Ability to multi-task and perform under pressure.

Significant experience in bottom line profitability analysis with a strong understanding of financial principles.

Experience with merchandising software systems is a plus.

Proficiency in Microsoft Office.

Administration skills critical.

Good commercial acumen and analytical.

Strong execution and planning rigour.

Competent with Microsoft packages

Ability and confidence to present impactfully to broad audiences

Pragmatic and grounded / ability to drive delivery.

Detailed and comfortable working with data and data entry.

Collaborative cross functional working.

Hands on, and able to respond to