If you’re looking to step into a high‑impact commercial role within a major UK retail and wholesale organisation, this is a rare opportunity. Our client is a significant player in the food, drink and FMCG sector, operating at scale and offering a fast‑paced, commercially driven environment where smart trading decisions and strong supplier partnerships directly shape business performance.
The Opportunity
As Buying Manager, you’ll take ownership of trading performance across key product categories, driving profitable sales growth through effective pricing, promotional planning, stock management and supplier engagement. This is a role where your commercial instincts, analytical capability and negotiation strength will make a visible difference.
You’ll be responsible for delivering category growth, optimising margin, shaping promotional and seasonal plans, and ensuring customers benefit from a competitive, relevant and high‑quality product offer. Working closely with cross‑functional teams, you’ll influence decisions at every stage of the trading cycle and play a central role in delivering the company’s commercial strategy.
Key Responsibilities
In this broad and commercially focused role, you will:
* Analyse sales and performance data to identify trends, risks and opportunities, supporting trading decisions with robust insight.
* Deliver budgeted margin targets across wholesale and retail channels.
* Build and execute trading strategies that drive sustained category growth.
* Lead pricing strategy across your categories, ensuring competitiveness and alignment with company policy.
* Develop annual promotional and seasonal plans that maximise profit, footfall and customer engagement.
* Manage stock efficiency, forecasting accurately and reducing waste and overstocks.
* Build strong supplier relationships, negotiating local trading terms and driving effective Joint Business Plans.
* Collaborate with Marketing, Operations, Supply Chain and Sales teams to ensure seamless execution of range, pricing and promotional activity.
* Conduct regular store and market reviews to benchmark performance and maintain competitive advantage.
* Champion product quality, compliance and market relevance across your categories.
Experience & Skills
To be successful, you’ll bring:
* Experience in retail, wholesale buying, trading or a similar commercial role. We will also consider National Account Manager who work in FMCG and are looking to move to the 'other side of the table'.
* A proven track record of delivering commercial results and achieving financial targets.
* Strong negotiation and influencing skills, with confidence engaging suppliers and internal stakeholders at all levels.
* Excellent analytical capability and sound commercial judgement.
* Strong numeracy and proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.
* The ability to thrive under pressure, manage multiple priorities and meet tight deadlines.
* A collaborative, energetic and relationship‑driven approach.
What’s in it for you
You’ll join a respected, forward‑thinking organisation where commercial ownership is encouraged and high performance is recognised. Alongside a competitive salary (DOE), you’ll receive a car allowance and generous holidays. You’ll also benefit from a supportive culture, hybrid working and the opportunity to play a key role in shaping category strategy and driving meaningful commercial impact.
What to do next
If you’re ready to take on a role where your decisions truly influence trading performance and profitability, please apply with an up‑to‑date CV.