Buyer - Health & Wellness

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE:

The Harvest Market is a health and wellness retailer, in store and online. Alongside The Harvest Table own-brand range, we carry a carefully curated selection of third-party wellness brands, and that selection is what makes us a destination rather than just another shelf.

We are looking for a Buyer who is passionate about health and wellness and sharp on the commercials. You will decide what we stock, negotiate the terms, keep it on the shelf and find the next brands and categories our customers will love. It is a hands-on role with real ownership: your range, your numbers and your supplier relationships.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Range Curation & Product Standards

· Own The Harvest Market buying principles: a short, clear statement of what we will and will not stock, and why.

· Assess every new brand and product against a consistent scorecard, so range decisions are clear, fair and defensible.

· Review ingredient lists, sourcing claims, certifications and manufacturing before a product is listed. Look for evidence behind the claims on the pack, rather than taking them at face value.

· Make sure everything we resell meets labelling, claims and regulatory requirements, and decline listings that would put us at risk.

· Decide where the line sits on brands that overlap with our own range: what completes the range, and what competes with it.

· Review the full range every year and delist what no longer fits, including products that sell well but no longer meet our standards.

Buying, Stock & Replenishment

· Own ordering and replenishment for all third-party brands across the store and website: forecast, order, chase, receive and reconcile.

· Set and maintain min/max levels, reorder points and cover targets per SKU, based on rate of sale, supplier lead times and shelf life.

· Balance online and in-store stock so the website never sells what the shelf does not have, and slower store lines get a second chance online.

· Run a monthly stock review covering top sellers, slow movers, weeks of cover, ageing and short-dated stock, and gaps that cost us sales.

· Act on what the review shows: markdowns, supplier returns or swaps, bundling, promotions or delisting.

· Own stock accuracy for your range through receiving discipline, cycle counts and resolving variances with suppliers rather than writing them off.

· Protect availability through peak trading and promotions by agreeing stock cover with suppliers before a campaign goes live.

· Report monthly to leadership on sales, margin, stock value, cover and the actions taken.

Supplier Relationships (Online & Retail)

· Be the main point of contact for every third-party supplier: the commercial conversations, the trading rhythm and the escalations.

· Hold quarterly trading reviews with key suppliers, keep a lighter touch with smaller ones, and keep a written record of what was agreed.

· Brief suppliers on how we trade: order cadence, lead times, delivery windows, packaging, imagery and content requirements.

· Secure the support a good partner should offer: store team training, sampling, launch support, marketing contributions, exclusives where they matter and early access to new lines.

· Make sure every online listing has accurate copy, compliant claims, correct pricing and usable imagery before it goes live.

· Keep in-store execution on track: shelf position, facings, ticketing and the product knowledge our team shares with customers.

· Maintain a live supplier register with contacts, terms, lead times, agreement dates and performance notes.

· Handle the difficult conversations with confidence: short deliveries, quality issues, price increases and exits.

Negotiation & Trading Terms

· Negotiate trading terms with every supplier: cost price, margin, settlement terms, volume and growth rebates, promotional and launch support.

· Maintain a standard Harvest Market supplier agreement so we start from our terms and can compare suppliers fairly.

· Set and hold commercial guardrails: minimum margin by category, minimum order values and the conditions for listing a brand.

· Cover the protections that matter in wellness retail: product liability and insurance, recalls and withdrawals, claim substantiation, batch traceability, expiry and short-dated stock, and returns of unsold stock.

· Agree channel and pricing terms, including direct-to-consumer and marketplace pricing, and any exclusivity arrangements.

· Agree exit terms upfront: notice periods, remaining stock and who carries it.

· Keep an agreement register with renewal and price-review dates diarised, so nothing lapses or auto-renews unnoticed.

· Escalate agreements to leadership or legal review where value or risk warrants it, within agreed authority limits.

Category Development & Trend Scouting

· Identify gaps and new categories in our offering, and build a clear plan for bringing them to market.

· Scout new and emerging brands, including local South African producers, through trade shows, supplier visits and market research.

· Track international health and wellness trends and bring forward opportunities, with evidence, before they land in South Africa.

Competitor & Market Analysis (Using AI)

· Keep a regular watch on competing retailers and online players, covering range, new lines, pricing, promotions and positioning, and share a short, regular summary with leadership.

· Use AI tools to handle the heavy lifting: summarising competitor ranges, comparing price points, grouping products into categories, scanning ingredients and claims, and drafting first-pass assessments.

· Build reusable prompts and simple workflows so this analysis is quick to repeat.

· Combine market insights with our own sales and stock data to answer real commercial questions.

· Verify figures and claims before they inform a listing, a price or a negotiation. AI output is a starting point, not a fact.

· Keep confidential supplier and trading information out of tools that are not approved for it.

KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE

· 3+ years in buying, category management or a supplier-side commercial role, ideally in health, wellness, pharmacy, FMCG or specialty retail.

· A degree or diploma in Retail, Business, Commerce, Marketing or a related field (advantageous).

· A proven negotiation track record.

· Hands-on stock and replenishment experience.

· Commercially numerate and fluent in margin, markup, GP, sell-through and stock turn.

· Strong Excel or Google Sheets skills, with the ability to build and maintain your own analysis.

· Experience with an inventory or ERP system (such as Cin7) is advantageous.

· Own transport and a valid licence, with willingness to travel to suppliers and trade events.

SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES

· A genuine passion for health and wellness, with a sharp eye for product quality and credibility.

· Confident reading ingredient lists and assessing natural, organic and supplement product claims.

· A confident, fair negotiator who builds lasting supplier relationships.

· Strong analytical and reporting skills.

· Comfortable using AI tools in day-to-day commercial work, with the discipline to verify output.

· Excellent written and verbal communication.

· Highly organised, able to juggle many suppliers, orders and deadlines at once.

WHY JOIN US

· Real ownership of a curated health and wellness range, and the results that come with it.

· A purpose-led business that cares about what goes into the products it sells.

· The opportunity to shape the range and grow new categories as the business grows.

Work Location: In person