Head of Supply Chain
Permanent | West Midlands (Hybrid)
Salary: Up to £85,000 + Car Allowance + Bonus + Excellent Benefits
We are recruiting a Head of Supply Chain to lead merchandising, planning, inventory and supply chain operations for a major multi-site retail and services business.
Reporting directly to the Supply Chain Director, this is a succession opportunity created through retirement and offers the chance to step into a highly visible leadership role with responsibility for a critical part of the wider business.
This role sits at the intersection of Merchandising, Commercial and Supply Chain. It is ideally suited to someone who has built their career within a retail, FMCG or branded environment and understands the balance between availability, stock investment, customer demand and commercial performance.
Whilst this is a Head of Supply Chain position, the emphasis is heavily weighted towards merchandise planning, forecasting, inventory optimisation and supplier performance rather than logistics or warehouse operations.
You will lead a team responsible for planning, forecasting, replenishment and inventory management, ensuring the business delivers exceptional availability whilst optimising working capital and stock efficiency.
You will work closely with Buying, Category, Commercial and Finance teams to drive performance across a broad product portfolio.
Alongside operational ownership, you will play a key role in modernising planning processes and helping shape a major ERP-led transformation programme over the coming years.
Key areas of responsibility include:
- Leading merchandising, forecasting, replenishment and inventory planning activities
- Setting and delivering availability, stock and working capital targets
- Managing stock budgets and open-to-buy performance
- Driving improvements in stock turn, forecasting accuracy and inventory productivity
- Influencing category and buying decisions through data, insight and commercial reasoning
- Strengthening supplier performance, governance and planning disciplines
- Improving reporting, analytics and decision-making capability
- Leading supply chain input into a significant ERP and planning transformation programme
- Developing a high-performing team and building future capability across the function
We are particularly interested in candidates from:
- Retail
- FMCG
- Consumer goods
- Branded products
- Multi-channel or omni-channel environments
The successful individual will bring:
- Significant experience leading merchandising, planning, inventory or supply chain functions
- Strong understanding of retail demand planning and stock management principles
- Experience working closely with Buying, Category and Commercial teams
- The ability to influence senior stakeholders and challenge constructively
- Strong analytical capability and a data-led approach to decision making
- Experience improving processes, systems and ways of working within a complex business environment
This is an opportunity to take ownership of a function that sits at the heart of commercial performance. You'll inherit a capable team, gain exposure to senior leadership and play a central role in improving capability, driving efficiency and shaping the future planning and supply chain agenda.
