Senior Floral Buyer / Floral Purchasing Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Position Summary

Las Vegas Floral & Plant Wholesale is looking for an experienced Senior Floral Buyer / Floral Purchasing Manager to own the sourcing and procurement function for our fresh-cut flowers, greens, foliage, and plant products. This is a role for someone who genuinely knows flowers — varieties, grades, seasonality, growing regions, vase life, and the realities of a perishable supply chain — and who can turn that knowledge into consistent product availability, strong vendor relationships, and healthy margins.

You'll manage relationships with domestic and international growers, farms, importers, and wholesalers; negotiate pricing, freight, and payment terms; and make daily purchasing decisions that balance customer demand against the realities of a perishable, seasonal product. This is not an entry-level purchasing role, and it's not a clerical order-entry position — it's a role with real ownership over what we buy, from whom, and at what cost, working in close coordination with ownership, sales, and warehouse operations.

About the Company

Las Vegas Floral & Plant Wholesale is a wholesale floral and plant distributor based in Las Vegas, Nevada, supplying flowers, greens, and plants to florists, event companies, hotels, casinos, designers, and other commercial customers throughout the region. We source from both domestic and international vendors and are investing in stronger systems, purchasing discipline, and vendor development as we grow.

What the Buyer Will Be Responsible ForProduct Sourcing and Purchasing

• Source fresh-cut flowers, greens, foliage, plants, and related products from domestic and international vendors based on customer demand, sales history, seasonality, standing orders, special events, and holiday requirements

• Maintain the right balance between product availability and overbuying

• Identify alternate sources when preferred varieties, colors, grades, or vendors are unavailable

• Develop new grower, farm, importer, and wholesaler relationships to reduce dependence on any single vendor

• Apply working knowledge of varieties, grades, stem lengths, colors, growing regions, seasons, pack sizes, and vase life to every purchasing decision

Vendor Management and Negotiation

• Build and maintain professional relationships with growers, farms, importers, wholesalers, and freight providers

• Negotiate pricing, volume commitments, standing orders, seasonal programs, payment terms, freight terms, and service expectations

• Evaluate vendors on more than unit price — quality, consistency, fill rate, freight, claims support, and total landed cost

• Hold vendors accountable for quality problems, shortages, substitutions, and missed deliveries

• Maintain backup vendors for critical, high-volume products

Cost and Margin Management

• Secure the best reasonable quality at the most favorable total landed cost, not just the lowest unit price

• Track freight, fuel surcharges, handling fees, import charges, and other costs affecting profitability

• Monitor purchasing against sales pricing and margin expectations

• Flag significant cost changes to management and sales, and recommend pricing or sourcing adjustments when market conditions shift

Demand Planning and Inventory

• Build purchasing plans from sales history, current inventory, standing orders, and upcoming events and holidays

• Monitor fast- and slow-moving products to minimize spoilage, shrink, and unnecessary aging

• Maintain FIFO product rotation where appropriate

• Adjust purchasing quickly in response to shifts in demand, availability, or weather

• Support purchasing for major floral holidays and events — Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, weddings, conventions, and hotel events

Market Monitoring

• Track floral market conditions, growing seasons, crop availability, weather events, and transportation disruptions

• Monitor pricing, quality, and availability trends

• Identify emerging varieties, colors, and design trends worth sourcing

• Communicate market changes before they affect inventory, customers, or margins

Quality Control and Claims

• Set and enforce quality expectations with vendors

• Review quality issues — freshness, hydration, disease, damage, incorrect variety or color, poor grading, short stems, temperature exposure

• Work with receiving and warehouse staff to catch problems immediately upon arrival

• Document and submit vendor claims accurately and within required timeframes, and negotiate fair resolutions

• Track repeated quality problems and determine when a vendor should be reconsidered

Logistics and Freight

• Coordinate domestic and international transportation with vendors, importers, and freight providers

• Understand how freight, airport recovery, trucking, box dimensions, and surcharges affect landed cost

• Monitor inbound shipments and respond quickly to delays, shortages, or customs issues

• Negotiate favorable freight terms and consolidate shipments when it improves cost or freshness

Purchase Orders and Recordkeeping

• Create and maintain accurate purchase orders, confirming variety, grade, quantity, pack size, price, and expected arrival

• Review vendor confirmations and resolve discrepancies before shipment

• Maintain accurate vendor pricing and purchasing records

• Assist with invoice discrepancies, credits, and receiving variances

• Use ERP, inventory, and spreadsheet systems effectively (experience with Odoo is a plus, not a requirement)

Internal Communication and Collaboration

• Work closely with ownership, sales, receiving, warehouse, and accounting

• Provide clear, timely updates on availability, substitutions, shortages, and price changes

• Support special orders and major customer requests

• Take ownership of purchasing issues from identification through resolution

How Success Will Be Measured

Performance will be evaluated on practical, purchasing-specific outcomes, including product availability and fill rate, product quality and freshness, purchasing accuracy, inventory turnover, and reduction of spoilage and shrink. Vendor reliability, claim recovery and resolution, purchase-price and landed-cost management, and support of gross margin targets will also matter, along with forecast accuracy, on-time deliveries, and a reduction in emergency or last-minute purchasing over time. We'll also look at the development of dependable alternative vendors, communication with sales and operations, and accuracy of purchase orders and vendor records. Specific performance goals will be established based on company data, seasonality, historical results, and the seniority of the person in the role — this is a working framework, not a fixed scorecard on day one.

Required Qualifications

• Several years of professional experience in floral purchasing, floral procurement, floral wholesale, flower-farm sales, floral importing, or closely related perishable-goods buying

• Strong working knowledge of fresh-cut flowers, greens, foliage, and plants, including seasonality, quality standards, grading, care, pack sizes, and substitutions

• Demonstrated experience sourcing from both domestic and international suppliers

• Proven ability to negotiate product pricing, freight, payment terms, contracts, and vendor claims

• Experience with forecasting, purchasing, inventory planning, and perishable product rotation

• Ability to evaluate total landed cost rather than focusing on product price alone

• Strong vendor-management and relationship-building skills

• Ability to assess quality problems and manage vendor claims effectively

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail

• Ability to manage shifting priorities in a fast-moving, time-sensitive environment

• Strong written and verbal communication

• Working knowledge of spreadsheets, purchasing systems, inventory platforms, and general business technology

• Ability to work independently while staying highly responsive to the internal team

• A degree in supply chain, business, horticulture, agriculture, logistics, or a related field is preferred but may be substituted with substantial relevant industry experience

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience purchasing for a floral wholesaler, large florist, supermarket floral operation, importer, grower, event-floral company, or hospitality supplier

• Existing relationships with domestic farms, South American farms, importers, freight providers, and floral wholesalers

• Knowledge of major flower-producing regions and international floral supply chains

• Experience purchasing for high-volume holidays and large events

• Experience serving hotels, casinos, event companies, wedding professionals, and retail florists

• Spanish-language ability, particularly for communicating with growers and international vendors

• Experience with Odoo or another ERP platform

• Experience using sales history, inventory reports, and purchasing data to drive buying decisions

• Experience managing standing orders, prebooks, holiday programs, and contracted product

• Knowledge of airport freight, refrigerated transport, cold-chain handling, and temperature-sensitive product

• Experience mentoring or supervising a purchasing assistant (not required, but a plus)

Work Schedule and Travel Expectations

This is a full-time position, ideally based in Las Vegas or available to work locally. We will consider remote candidates located who bring strong floral-industry experience, dependable communication, and a demonstrated ability to manage the full purchasing function — vendors, orders, inventory, quality, and freight — from a distance. Remote eligibility is at the company's discretion and will be evaluated on a candidate-by-candidate basis.

Some travel may be required for farm visits, vendor meetings, trade shows, or industry events. Work hours may occasionally need to flex around early-morning markets, international vendor schedules, shipment issues, major holidays, or urgent product needs.

Benefits

• Health insurance

• 401(k)

• Paid time off

Equal Employment Opportunity

Las Vegas Floral & Plant Wholesale is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law.

Apply Now

If you have floral-industry purchasing experience and want real ownership over a company's sourcing and vendor relationships, we'd like to hear from you. Apply today with your resume and a brief summary of your floral purchasing background, including the types of vendors, product categories, and volume you've managed.