Bakery Merchandiser - Buyer for Growing Grocery Brand
29 days ago
Glendale Heights
Job Description Bakery Buyer / Merchandiser Drive Freshness. Elevate Presentation. Influence Results. We are partnering with a growing, people-first grocery concept known for fresh quality, clean stores, and strong community connection. This role is ideal for a hands-on bakery leader who thrives in the field—someone who understands product, presentation, and profitability, and can bring consistency and energy across multiple locations. As a Bakery Buyer/Merchandiser, you’ll play a key role in shaping the bakery experience—supporting store teams, driving merchandising excellence, and influencing sales through strong product execution and vendor partnerships. What You’ll Do • Travel between locations to ensure consistent bakery merchandising standards and presentation, • Execute seasonal programs, promotional displays, and company initiatives across all stores, • Audit departments for food safety, rotation, signage accuracy, and overall quality standards, • Train and coach store teams on merchandising techniques, cross-merchandising, and suggestive selling, • Partner with Store Directors to support inventory accuracy, shrink control, and upcoming promotions, • Own bakery inventory levels, par management, and product freshness across locations, • Monitor quality, shrink, labor usage, and overall department performance, • Collaborate with vendors—negotiating pricing, managing purchasing, and planning 30/60/90-day promotional calendars, • Introduce new items and support product innovation aligned with customer demand, • Provide insights and recommendations to leadership around sales, profitability, and operational opportunities, • Support store-level needs including resets, inventories, openings, and special projects What We’re Looking For • 3–5+ years of experience in bakery retail with multi-unit exposure, • Strong understanding of bakery merchandising, inventory control, shrink management, and production flow, • Experience working with vendors, purchasing, and promotional planning, • Ability to train, coach, and influence teams across multiple locations, • Strong communication, organization, and follow-through, • Detail-oriented with a passion for fresh quality and presentation standards, • Comfortable in a fast-paced environment with regular travel between stores, • Flexibility to work occasional weekends and evenings as needed Why This Opportunity • Culture-driven organization that values people, product, and community, • High-impact role with visibility across multiple locations, • Opportunity to shape and elevate a key fresh department, • Growth potential within a scaling, people-first company, • Competitive compensation and support If you’re passionate about bakery, love being in the field, and take pride in building visually compelling, high-performing departments—this is a great opportunity to make a meaningful impact.