Buyer

Overview

Imperial Dade is the leading independently owned and operated distributor of foodservice packaging and janitorial supplies in North America. As a provider of customized supply chain solutions, we serve customers in many business-to-business market segments including restaurants, grocery stores, healthcare, sports and entertainment, and cruise lines. Founded in 1935 and headquartered in New Jersey, Imperial Dade serves as a mission-critical partner to more than 90,000 customers through our footprint of 125 branches.

The Buyer will join our Purchasing team to help propel the business to the next level. The successful candidate will have a mix of both strategic and tactical responsibilities and will be tasked with overseeing the management of inbound inventory flow to multiple warehouses.

Responsibilities will include processing and tracking purchase orders, negotiating with suppliers, maintaining customer fill rate while also managing stock levels within a turn goal.

The Buyer will be a product expert, interacting with both the Sales team and our suppliers to ensure our customer needs are met. The Buyer will work closely with suppliers on pricing, inventory availability, new items and complementary/substitute items.

**All correspondence will come directly from Imperial Dade and not a personal email address.**

Responsibilities

• Manage the creation and maintenance of all items for assigned vendor lines across multiple warehouses
• Maintain a clear line of communication with both suppliers and the Sales team
• Manage suppliers to negotiate and resolve performance issues having an impact on costs and customer service.
• Manage creation, release and tracking of purchase orders with source supplier
• Expedite or defer orders as required based on inventory requirements in each location
• Partner with Sales to validate orders for key items and special needs, and to gain insights on the customer needs
• Utilize existing tools and systems to analyze and take action on current inventory positions and trends
• Develop a relationship with the entire Buying team in order to effectively understand our products and the relationships with our source suppliers
• Achieve in stock service level targets, response times and inventory need dates
• Continuous improvement of KPIs for Out of stocks and Inventory Turns
• Assists in defining and reporting on key performance metrics (ex: fill rates, in stock levels, source supplier lead times, etc.)
• Continuously monitors demand forecasting to ensure accuracy and partners with Buying team to address exceptional and outlier forecasts that are identified (ex: spike sales).
• Strives to refine existing tools and methods to continually improve forecasts and processes in order to better anticipate our customer’s needs.
• Collaborative approach: Able to build effective relationships with our Sales team, Buying team, source suppliers, and other business partners.
• Strong organizational skills: Attention to detail, urgency to follow up on open issues and drive toward closure, simultaneously manage multiple tasks.
• Innovative: Willing and able to use a creative or unconventional approach if the task calls for it.

Salary:   90,000 - 100,000

Qualifications

• A minimum of 3 years of buying and inventory management/supply chain experience required.
• Bachelor’s Degree in related discipline.
• Product: Research, select and purchase the right items to fit the needs of our customers.
• Urgency: Always maintain a sense of urgency and negotiate with suppliers to maintain a proper flow of inventory.
• Analytic skills: Able to think objectively and interpret meaning of quantitative and qualitative data.
• Problem solving skills: Able to use logic and innovative methods to solve problems and identify effective solutions.
• Computer literacy: Highly proficient in Microsoft Excel. An aptitude to learn other technical applications quickly.

We offer a dynamic environment for our more than 7,100 employees to work, learn, and grow professionally. We value our people and strive to create rewarding career opportunities by offering competitive salaries and benefits, a 401(k) program with company match, life Insurance, a generous paid time off package, educational reimbursement, paid family leave, and adoption assistance. We are excited to invite talented individuals with a passion for excellence to join our team.

Imperial Dade is an EEO Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, status as a parent, national origin, age, disability (physical or mental), family medical history, or genetic information, political affiliation, military service, or other non-merit-based factors.