Junior Buyer

**Junior Buyer** **Competitive Salary + Benefits Package** **Aylesford** KFF is a leading local supplier to caterers and chefs, supplying an extensive range of over 4,000 fresh, frozen, grocery and non-food products, backed up by unrivalled service. We pride ourselves in offering a range of specialist products to our customers,working with many smaller artisan British producers and supply partners. As a member of the Sysco global family, Sysco Speciality Group, our customers benefit from global reach, economies of scale, worldwide insight and all the benefits of a highly successfuland professional parent company. We are proud to be a Sysco company. As a **Junior Buyer**, you will support the procurement team with wide ranging buying activities as well as managing a core set of suppliers and maintaining strong supplier relationships in order to achieve optimum commercial benefit.. You willwork with internal colleagues and suppliers to ensure required costs, quality and service standards are met or even exceeded, at all times. **Key Responsibilities**: - Participate in product and category panels to deliver continuous improvement in product range, quality and pricing - Conduct category reviews and product gap analysis to deliver continuous improvement in product range, quality and pricing - Liaise with other departments to ensure continuity of supply and successful execution of new product launches - Ad hoc. procurement issues - eg. problematic deliveries, out of stocks, product availability, damages etc. - Sourcing products and/or new suppliers as a result of customer requests, gap analysis or company requirements which deliver competitive advantage but don’t compromise quality - Ensuring product changes are managed in line with company policy and communicated accordingly to all relevant stakeholders - Liaising with stock control and operations teams on forecasting, stock holdings and availability issues - Supplier/Customer/Exhibition visits in order to maintain and improve product knowledge as well as identifying new product opportunities and ensuring customers’ needs are met - Liaising with Sysco companies and personnel accordingly in order to meet group requirements and targets as part of the world’s global foodservice leader **Accountabilities**: - Manage supply base in line with agreed strategy for category and business, and in compliance with company policy and procedures - Negotiate contract terms (e.g. pricing, rebates, promotional support etc.) with suppliers to achieve optimum commercial benefit - Conduct regular review meetings with suppliers to monitor product/supplier performance, identify potential new listings and ensure commercial targets are being hit - Provide relevant and timely market and product information for internal customers and colleagues - Use product, industry and market information to identify and implement cost savings and improved supply opportunities for designated supply base - Build and maintain relationships both internally and with designated suppliers ??????? We are looking for a complete **"foodie" - you will live, breath and well, eat food** You are a **natural with numbers**, and a **strong wordsmith - communication at all levels is key.** Alongside problem solving, teamwork and excellent organisational and prioritisation skills. Impeccable IT skills to boot. Youmight be already in a Junior Buyer role and fancy a switch of product category. Or perhaps you are looking to progress upwards from an Assistant Buyer position. Either way, in return, we offer a competitive salary and a generous holiday allowance with the option to purchase additional days. Also an array of flexible lifestyle benefits and discounts across a range of products.???????