Procurement Manager - Beauty/Health - Part-Time
29 days ago
London
About us We're a UK-based Brand and online retailer selling beauty and health products. The business has grown quickly over the past few years and we now need someone to take ownership of our supplier relationships in China and our stock forrecasting/planning. What the job involves: It's a part-time, standalone role with no direct reports. You'll be the main contact between our Chinese suppliers and our UK and International operations. The work splits into two parts: managing the suppliers themselves, and forecasting demand so we hold the right amount of stock. Mandarin is essential. You'll be talking to Chinese factories every day, mostly through WeChat, and we need someone who can deal with them directly rather than going through a translator. Day-to-day responsibilities Supplier work: • Find, vet and onboard new suppliers across our product categories, • Negotiate on price, MOQs, payment terms and lead times, • Build long-term relationships with manufacturers and trading partners on Alibaba, 1688, Made-in-China and through direct contacts, • Run quality checks, factory verifications, sample reviews and product certifications (UKCA, CE, RoHS, cosmetics safety), • Sort out problems when they come up: late shipments, quality issues, commercial disputes Forecasting and stock planning: • Build SKU-level demand forecasts using sales history, seasonality and upcoming promotions, • Place purchase orders to keep stock at healthy levels without overbuying, • Monitor slow-moving and ageing stock, and act on it, • Work with sales, marketing and the warehouse team to keep supply and demand aligned, • Track forecast accuracy, sell-through, stock turn and on-time delivery What we're looking for Essential: • Fluent Mandarin, spoken and written, • At least 3 years in procurement or buying, including hands-on experience sourcing from China, • Practical experience in demand forecasting and inventory planning, • Strong negotiator with a commercial head, • Confident with Excel or Google Sheets (pivots, lookups, basic forecasting models), • Well-organised and comfortable managing several categories at once Useful but not essential: • Background in home beauty/health or electronics., • Familiarity with Shopify, Amazon or eBay, or with inventory tools like Linnworks, Cin7 or NetSuite, • Working knowledge of UK product compliance (UKCA, CE, cosmetics rules), • CIPS qualification, or studying towards one What we offer: • £18,000 per year., • Part-time hours - 9am - 2pm (Mon - Fri)., • Office in Wood Green, 5 minutes from the tube (Piccadilly line), • The chance to shape the function as the business grows Location: London, Wood Green (5 minutes from the tube) Salary: £18,000 per year (part-time) Hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 2pm (25 hours per week) Languages: English and Mandarin, both fluent Reports to: [Head of Operations / Founder] How to apply: Email your CV • Your experience working with Chinese suppliers, • A forecasting or stock problem you've handled and how you handled it We review applications as they come in.
