Ambient And Non-Food Buyer

Location: London/Hybrid (minimum 2 days per week on an Oddbox site, including our office in Vauxhall, supplier sites or our co-packing facility in Birmingham)

Working Pattern: Full-time – 5 days per week

Starting Salary: c.£40k-£50k

We're Oddbox. Currently, we're a fruit and veg subscription company but we have big plans to change how people cook and eat, starting with incredible fresh produce. We've been rescuing fruit and veg at risk of going to waste for over 8 years (49M kilograms to date), but we know that there is more we can do to create tasty veg-centred meals.

Role Overview

As our Ambient Buyer, you’ll support our goals to retain more customers and increase our average order value as we adapt our proposition to work better for our customers.

You’ll be responsible for sourcing and procuring an ambient product range for our customers to purchase, enhancing their fruit and veg box experience. by enabling a produce-first approach to shopping.

You’ll delight our customers with an exciting range of sustainable products that align with the values we share with them, and support brands to avoid unnecessary waste of at-risk products.

Key Responsibilities

Ensure there is a consistent stock of SKUs within the identified product range, and within the parameters of our sourcing guidelines
Develop and execute procurement strategies for non-food and ambient categories, ensuring alignment with Oddbox's mission and customer values.
Build and maintain strong partnerships with our supplier network, making Oddbox the number one destination for products in need of rescuing.
Ensure the product mix is procured at a competitive cost price in order to achieve margin expectations
Conduct product evaluations and quality assessments to ensure alignment with Oddbox standards.
Support the setup and refinement of the assortment strategy to maximise sales performance and achieve AOV and revenue targets
Manage and analyse buying performance metrics, providing insights to aid decision making.
Innovate and implement new initiatives to expand and improve our non-food product range.

Our Ideal Candidate

Proven experience in procurement or buying, specifically within the ambient food sector.
Strong negotiation skills with a track record of achieving cost-effective results.
Excellent analytical skills with the ability to interpret market data and sales trends.
Great communication and interpersonal skills, fostering effective collaboration with suppliers and internal teams.
Detail-oriented with a proactive approach to sourcing and supplier management.
Passionate about food, sustainability and innovation within the buying process.
Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, managing multiple priorities efficiently.

This Role May Not Be for You If:

You prefer working in a role that lacks direct supplier interaction and negotiation challenges.
You are comfortable with static procurement processes rather than adapting to dynamic market conditions.
You've never worked within the food industry
You favour roles focusing solely on routine administrative tasks without strategic implications.

Interview Process Focused on Procurement Excellence

Introductory call with the People & Culture team – 30 minutes.
Procurement task to evaluate buying strategies and market understanding – preparation time c. 90 minutes.
In-depth interview with our Head of Sourcing.
Meet and greet with the broader team.
Offer.

Looking after you: We won't waste your time telling you annual leave is a benefit—it's your right. But we'll give you five extra days of annual leave (33 days including bank holidays), four "not-sick" days, and two volunteering days each year. We provide a £300 self-service L&D budget, alongside generous peer-to-peer learning opportunities. You'll have access to well-being support through YuLife and receive discounts on Oddbox products.

Are you the Buyer we're searching for? Apply now to join our forward-thinking team!