Category Buyer

Job Introduction

Category Buyer

Location: Boston, Lincolnshire (On-site)
40 hours per week, Monday-Friday, Full-time, Permanent

At Pilgrim Foodservice, we are passionate about helping hospitality thrive. As one of the UK's leading independent foodservice wholesalers, we have spent over 40 years building trusted partnerships with customers, suppliers and producers by delivering quality products, exceptional service and lasting relationships.

As our business continues to grow, we are looking for a commercially driven Category Buyer to join our Procurement team. This is an excellent opportunity to take ownership of a product category, influence commercial decisions and build long-term supplier partnerships within a successful, family-owned business.

What you'll do

• Take ownership of a product category, delivering sales, margin and profitability targets.

• Negotiate pricing, contracts and commercial terms with suppliers.

• Develop strong supplier relationships and lead regular performance reviews.

• Identify market trends, inflation risks, cost-saving opportunities and new product opportunities.

• Source and onboard new suppliers to strengthen the category.

• Work closely with Supply Chain to maximise product availability and minimise waste.

• Collaborate with Sales, Technical and Operations teams to support business growth.

• Analyse commercial data to support category performance and decision-making.

• Attend supplier meetings and industry events to stay ahead of market developments.

What we're looking for

We're interested in hearing from candidates with experience in buying, procurement or category management who enjoy building supplier relationships and making commercially driven decisions.

You will also have:

• Strong negotiation and influencing skills.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management abilities.

• A commercial mindset with strong analytical skills.

• The ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

• Good attention to detail and confidence working with data.

• Strong Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Office skills.

• Experience within food, FMCG, wholesale or distribution would be advantageous

Why join Pilgrim Foodservice?

• Competitive salary.

• Monday to Friday working pattern.

• Death in Service benefit (minimum 2x annual salary).

• Employee wellbeing support through GroceryAid.

• Staff discount across the Pilgrim Foodservice product range.

• Christmas loyalty reward – 10% cashback on Christmas shop purchases.

• Above statutory holiday entitlement.

• Refer a Friend bonus scheme.

• Cycle2Work scheme – save up to 47% on bikes and accessories.

• Career development opportunities within a growing, independent business.

If you're looking for a role where you can take ownership, influence commercial decisions and help shape the future of a growing foodservice business, we'd love to hear from you.