Head of Buying - Grocery; FTC)

We’d all like amazing work to do, and real work-life balance. That’s waiting for you at Sainsbury’s. Here, everything in our stores starts in Sainsbury’s Commercial. From product, proposition, packaging and price, to whether it meets our sustainability commitments or simply tastes great, our team is responsible for, all food, non- food and Clothing items available in Sainsbury’s stores, online and on demand.

It’s an incredibly fast-paced environment. People here are in it together and aren’t afraid to take risks. The knowledge and experience you gain here could set you up for career moves anywhere else in the business. So, if you’re passionate about your products and just as hungry to learn, you’ll fit in perfectly.

Our Commercial Trading team brings together buying expertise and cross-functional category partners to create a compelling offer for Sainsbury's customers. This is a senior leadership role within the category, working with the Director of Category and leading a team of Buyers to turn customer insight, market dynamics and commercial opportunities into clear plans and measurable results.

As Head of Buying, you will own the performance of a substantial part of the category P&L. You will set the buying and selling plan, shape range, pricing and promotional decisions, and lead complex supplier negotiations. You will balance long-term category strategy with detailed commercial delivery, responding quickly as customer needs, trends and market conditions change.

Day to day, you will create and execute the annual customer plan, build productive and mutually beneficial supplier relationships, maintain appropriate contractual governance and allocate resources across your team. You will also increase the profile of the category across Sainsbury's, bring colleagues together around a compelling proposition and support wider category leadership. Your impact will be seen in customer value, availability, profitability, sustainable outcomes and the capability of the team you lead.

You will bring current experience of delivering significant commercial outcomes in a buying or trading environment, including ownership of P&L performance and complex supplier negotiations. You can move confidently between strategic thinking and practical execution, using analysis, customer understanding and commercial judgement to make timely decisions across competing priorities.

You will be an inclusive and visible leader who can coach Buyers, set clear direction and create the conditions for people to perform and develop. You will be comfortable influencing senior and executive stakeholders, working through ambiguity and leading cross-category activity. Experience across different categories, using data or automation to improve outcomes, and managing budgets would be valuable, but the essential requirements are set out below.

• Strong P&L ownership and a measurable record of commercial delivery
• Strong end-to-end buying and trading experience
• Leadership of complex, high-value supplier negotiations, ideally with experience of working with large branded suppliers
• Capability to lead and develop of a high-performing team
• Ability to translate customer insight into a commercially compelling proposition
• Strategic thinking combined with strong attention to executional detail
• Advanced analytical capability and sound commercial judgement
• Senior-level influencing, communication and cross-functional leadership

We are committed to being a truly inclusive retailer so you’ll be welcomed whoever you are and wherever you work. Around here, there’s always the chance to try something new — whether that’s as part of an evolving team or somewhere else across the business - and…