Senior Category Buyer - Meat

Senior Category Buyer – Meat

Senior Meat Buyer | Bilingual Preferred

Location: Norcross, GA
Position Type: Full-Time, Exempt
Salary: Exempt
Additional Compensation: Eligible for an annual performance incentive
Benefits: Talpa’s standard full-time benefits package
Travel: Periodic travel to Talpa stores, distribution facilities, and suppliers

About the Position

Talpa Supermercados is seeking an experienced Senior Category Buyer – Meat to manage the sourcing, purchasing, assortment, pricing, and category performance of fresh and frozen meat products across our growing store network.

This position will purchase beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and related protein products; negotiate with suppliers; monitor commodity markets; and use sales and inventory data to improve product availability, gross margin, inventory turnover, and shrink.

The ideal candidate has strong meat-product knowledge, proven supplier-negotiation experience, and an understanding of customer preferences within Hispanic and multicultural grocery markets.

Primary Responsibilities

• Purchase fresh and frozen beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and related meat products.
• Negotiate supplier pricing, terms, allowances, rebates, promotional support, and delivery schedules.
• Monitor commodity markets, industry pricing, product availability, and supply-chain risks.
• Develop meat assortments based on customer demand, cultural preferences, seasonality, store needs, and profitability.
• Evaluate suppliers based on cost, quality, fill rate, delivery performance, and reliability.
• Align purchasing quantities with forecasts, promotions, inventory levels, and store requirements.
• Analyze cost per pound, sales, gross margin, inventory turnover, shrink, spoilage, and product availability.
• Identify cost-saving and margin-improvement opportunities without compromising quality or customer value.
• Maintain accurate product specifications, grades, cuts, pack sizes, costs, and supplier records.
• Partner with Store Operations, Finance, Distribution, Logistics, Marketing, and Food Safety.
• Address product-quality issues and coordinate corrective actions with suppliers and internal teams.
• Support new-store openings, promotional programs, and meat-category expansion.

Required Qualifications

• Three or more years of experience in meat purchasing, protein purchasing, grocery category management, or a closely related area.
• Strong knowledge of meat cuts, grades, specifications, yields, quality standards, and pricing dynamics.
• Experience negotiating with suppliers and managing commercial terms.
• Ability to analyze purchasing costs, margins, inventory, shrink, forecasts, and market data.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and experience with purchasing, inventory, reporting, or ERP systems.
• Working knowledge of USDA, FDA, cold-chain, labeling, traceability, and food-safety requirements.
• Strong analytical, organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to travel periodically to Talpa locations and supplier facilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Five to seven or more years of directly relevant meat-purchasing experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain Management, Merchandising, Finance, Food Science, Animal Science, or a related field. Equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
• Experience in supermarket retail, food distribution, or multi-unit grocery operations.
• Experience serving Hispanic, ethnic, or multicultural grocery markets.
• Bilingual proficiency in English and Spanish.
• Experience in a high-volume meat-purchasing environment.

Compensation and Incentive

The compensation for this position will be competitive and determined based on relevant experience, meat-category expertise, bilingual capabilities, internal equity, and the approved budget.

The position is also eligible for an annual performance incentive based on Company and individual performance, including margin results, cost management, product availability, inventory turnover, shrink reduction, forecasting accuracy, and supplier performance. Incentive payments are not guaranteed and are governed by the applicable Company incentive plan.

Why Join Talpa?

Talpa Supermercados is a growing, multicultural grocery organization committed to quality, value, excellent service, and strong community relationships. This position offers the opportunity to influence a critical category and make a measurable impact across our expanding store network.

Talpa Supermercados is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified individuals with disabilities may request a reasonable accommodation during the application or employment process.