Senior Category Buyer- Pet Food and Supplies

Senior Category Buyer- Pet Food and Supplies

Position Directly Reports to: Director of Purchasing and Product Strategy

Position Type: Full time, On-site

Position Summary:

The Pet Food and Supplies Buyer will be responsible for managing the largest single category at CountryMax- pet food- as well as two significant additional categories in dog and cat supplies. Combined, these categories equate to 25M annual sales and are a major driver of CountryMax core business. The PFS buyer position will take an immediate senior role in the Buying Department at CountryMax and the Purchasing Department as a whole. This position is responsible for all aspects of bringing pet food and dog/cat supplies to market in both the brick and mortar and e-commerce channels for CountryMax. This includes overseeing and developing the product mix and entire product lifecycle within the associated department(s). This role will be heavily involved with vendors as well as store personnel to ensure efficient and successful growth of the PFS categories.

This position requires a forward-thinking professional who understands the importance of continuous improvement—CountryMax is both large enough to command a market presence for vendors and customers alike, but also nimble enough to pivot and change as needed in a continuously changing world. The PFS buyer will collaborate with leadership, store teams, and buyers to develop cohesive plans that maximize sales, elevate product visibility, and align with CountryMax’s unique brand identity both in store and online.

CountryMax Background specific to position:

CountryMax is a family-owned business in Western and Central New York State operating for over 41 years. At a time when brick-and-mortar retail is often viewed as being in decline, CountryMax continues to grow by offering customers something different: authenticity, uniqueness, and a hands-on shopping experience in our stores and a significant commitment to e-commerce channels out of the public eye.

Pet food is at the heart of this strategy. CountryMax stores are defined by their ability to present a wide variety of product categories—including pet, wild bird, lawn and garden, barn and stable, and more—in a way that feels both approachable and inspiring. Much of the product mix at CountryMax is heavily seasonal, and that makes the categories such as pet food and dog/cat supplies that are year-round traffic drivers essential to our success.

Position Outline:

Typical responsibilities will include (but are not limited to):

· Oversee and develop the entire product offering in the pet food, dog/cat supplies categories across all channels at CountryMax

- Continuously evolve product mix to stay relevant, competitive, and fresh.

- Assess current offering to both reduce non-moving SKUs and introduce new product lines that improve customer experience while preserving CountryMax’s unique product offering.

· Work within the Purchasing and Marketing group plans to implement and develop initiatives designed to grow the pet food and dog/cat supplies departments

· Cross-Functional Collaboration

- Work closely with purchasing, marketing, leadership, store managers, and operations teams to align category strategies with overall business goals.

- Support seasonal resets, promotional events, and new store openings with timely merchandising plans.

· Identify trends, react to changes, and maintain the strong brand voice that CountryMax has both with customers and vendors

Work location:

This position is based daily on-site at the CountryMax Support Center in Victor, NY. This is an office-based role that will include limited travel. CountryMax strongly believes that a physical presence is a must for all key positions and a hybrid/work from home model is not conducive to key communication and collaboration benefits.

Experience and Education:

· 3 years of experience in purchasing, relevant category sales, or retail operations preferred.

· Strong understanding of retail inventory planning, product lifecycle, and category management principles.

· Experience with overseeing significant annual sales volume

· Ability to analyze sales data and translate insights into actionable merchandising strategies.

· Bachelor’s degree is preferred, but relevant experience is highly valued.

Candidate Expectation Summary:

The Pet Food and Supplies Buyers is an essential part of CountryMax’s success currently as well and in the future. Retail of all kinds- be it brick and mortar or e-commerce- is changing rapidly every day and this position needs to be filled by a dynamic, agile thinker who understands the need for an aggressive outlook on growth. We are confident that with the right person, this role can truly bring our organization to a new level. There has never been a more dynamic- and challenging- time to be a retailer and we look forward to bringing in the right person to help navigate these times.

Interested candidates- in addition to your resume, please attach a cover letter describing why YOU are the best candidate for this role and what your unique skillset would bring to the CPFS position.

Applicants without an attached cover letter will not be considered for this position.