Junior Buyer/planner Add-ons

**BUSINESS OVERVIEW**:
UCOOK is a tech enabled dinner-kit delivery service based in South Africa. UCOOK’s head office is in Woodstock and the warehouse in Paarden Eiland.. We deliver perfectly-portioned, locally-sourced, fresh ingredients to our customer’s door - from farm-to-fork We have been delivering nationwide since 2013. We have since grown into much more than a dinner-kit only business. Our range also includes frozen meals, desserts, wine and a market selection of pantry staples. We have also recently established a presence in the retail environment.

UCOOK is part of the Silvertreebrands group of companies, which includes UCOOK, Faithful to Nature, SKOON. Skincare, Pet Heaven, Sprout Performance Partners and PriceCheck. Silvertreebrands focuses on building amazing customer experiences that are “Good for you, good for the planet.” We trust our employees with full accountability and autonomy from day one. This unique entrepreneurial and performance-driven culture enables us to achieve executional excellence.

This role is ideal for a young and energetic junior buyer eager to contribute and learn within a fast-growing company.

**JOB OVERVIEW**:
The Junior Buyer/Planner is responsible for purchasing, planning, and managing suppliers for a variety of categories, including but not limited to Wine, Craft (frozen) Meals, and Market items and ad hoc store requests. It is their responsibility to compile accurate forecasts using historical sales data, and manage inventory accordingly in order to maximize sales, avoid stock build up, and closely manage wastage. The Junior Buyer/Planner is responsible for maintaining effective communication with both internal and external stakeholders, namely our New Product Development, Marketing & Meal Kit Buying teams, with whom they will work closely with, as well as the group of suppliers who deliver products within the relevant ranges. It is the responsibility of the Junior Buyer/Planner to maintain sources of supply through regularly conducting risk assessments, raising purchase orders as per supplier lead times, and managing the delivery process through to the end. This individual is expected to be a collaborative team player, and must have the ability to work alongside multiple departments in the interest of a common goal. The Junior Buyer/Planner will be expected to extract, manipulate and analyse sales data in order to build forecasts and purchase orders for our suppliers.

**ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES**:

- Forecasting & ordering - use sales data to compile purchase orders as well as forecast plan for suppliers that adhere to their lead times. Including but not limited to
- Replenish stock and plan for promotions etc
- Managing stock transfer between UC warehouses (Johannesburg & Cape Town) and store
- Supporting stock teams with correctly receiving, counting and putting away orders Reporting on supplier fill rates

- Supplier management - ensure effective communication with suppliers that encourages a collaborative approach to business, while also prioritizing UCOOK’s operational requirements. This includes:

- Onboarding suppliers
- Terms negotiation
- Ensuring suppliers adhere to UCOOK’s Quality Management Systems
- Ensure financial queries are addressed timeously to allow for an easy financial month end closure.

- New product development - Work closely with the UCOOK NPD team on NPD, EPD and continuous improvement within the add ons ranges. This includes:

- Suggesting new products to bolster ranges & increase average basket size
- Planning timelines from a buying perspective when considering new launches
- Reporting on product performance and assigning necessary actions

- Stock health - Ensure that forecasting & supplier fill rates are such that they maximize sales and build on revenue growth, while closely managing write offs and wastage.

- Reporting - report weekly on stock health and identify actions, such as:

- When to run promotions on items
- How to improve supplier fill rates when they are below target
- Margin analysis
- Waste & root cause analysis

**Reports To: Head of Procurement**

**KPI’s**

- For categories owned - ensure purchasing adheres to budgets set by the business
- Maintain and/or reduce wastage below set targets
- Maximize sales through optimal stock levels and product selection
- Manage OTIF deliveries from relevant suppliers
- Plan promotions alongside Marketing when considering stock levels

**REQUIREMENTS**

- Ability to work with data
- Ability to work collaboratively with others
- Bachelor's degree and/or 1-2 years of buying experience in the food industry.
- Computer literacy with advanced Word and Excel skills/experience
- Knowledge and understanding of supply chain
- Practical understanding of food safety / H&S
- Strong numerical skills and attention to detail
- Ability to work in a team-oriented environment while maintaining an individual workload
- Good communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to take initiative on