UK Sourcing Lead

We are looking for a bright, motivated and experienced sourcing lead to oversee and transform our entire UK sourcing supply chain.

You’ll bring your insight and passion to a group with unrivalled knowledge of fruit, vegetables, and specialist produce – all united by a shared commitment to building a radically better supply chain.

ABOUT THE JOB

We are looking for someone to take our sourcing efforts to the next level - increasing the number of agroecological farms we work with across the UK, as well as transforming the product offering to ensure we are continuing to put flavour at the forefront of what we do.

Reporting directly to the Chief Product Officer, you will have at least 3 years experience doing sourcing work, ideally in the UK, though experience from other regions is also valued. The ideal candidate will bring a background in farming, agronomy, or similar, and carry a deep passion for great tasting produce. You will thrive at working on-the-go, often traveling to farms and spending time pushing the boundaries of flavour and varietal selection.

For over twenty years, we’ve been building a direct, transparent supply chain that connects more than 400 growers and producers across Europe and the UK. In this role, you’ll be instrumental in helping this work and support the business in the next phase of its growth

The annual salary range is competitive depending on experience. Standard working hours are 7:30am until 4:30pm, Monday to Friday

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supply Chain Differentiation - Continue to find and work with new UK farms, producers, and foragers to integrate into our existing supply chain
• Supply Chain Investment - Continue to invest in building and strengthening relationships with existing suppliers. Communicate effectively with suppliers to manage annual crop planning with the demand manager, varietal selection, and consistency in supply throughout the season
• Strategic Vision - Outline and execute annual strategy planning for our UK offering across essentially all major categories (fresh, dry goods, foraged, etc)
• Logistics Planning and Creativity - Work creatively to build supply chains from regions in the UK where Natoora is not currently present
• Drive Innovation - What should Natoora be sourcing that we currently don’t? What is the next great ingredient we should be looking to bring to chefs and home cooks?
• Quality Assurance - How can we guarantee that our premium products are always coming in at the right quality standard? How can we be diligent about maintaining that standard, and troubleshooting when inbound deliveries fall short?
  

ABOUT YOU

• At least 3+ years experience working in sourcing, mainly fresh produce
• Experience working with small and medium sized farms (1-50 acres)
• Deep knowledge of farming methods and practices across a variety of different crops
• Preferred experience working on a farm, or a degree in agronomy or post-harvest practices.
• Comfortable doing hands on work with fresh produce
• Passion for finding the best tasting produce nature has to offer
• Comfortable working on the go, traveling often, and spending time on different farms
• Excellent communication & planning skills
• Detail oriented, skilled at recognising and balancing the conflicting needs of different departments to achieve positive results
• Ability to find good compromise between farming realities and market realities
• Basic level of confidence in the use of Excel, databases and other Tech programmes
• Ability to remain calm under pressure and use reasoned judgement to make quick, solid decisions
• Valid driving licence - comfortable driving small vans.
• Has a car that can be driven across the UK frequently to visit farms widely

PERKS

• Daily lunch made with the same seasonal produce we supply to chefs
• Natoora produce at a significant discount
• Your birthday off (once you’ve hit the 6-month mark )
• Kitchen stocked from our own growers and producers, including Estate Dairy milk and butter, jam from England Preserves, as well as coffee from our Spa Terminus neighbours Monmouth

Our vision for a better food system is built on real human relationships and a diversity of experience, perspective and ideas. We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion and/or belief.

Email will.dorman@natoora.mom with your CV and tell us why you want to join the team.