CATEGORY BUYER - MEDICAL | RETAIL | DUBLIN HYBRID

The Category Buyer — Ethical owns the day-to-day commercial performance of an assigned product category portfolio within the wider ethical (prescription medicines) category — Generics, Branded medicines, or Unlicensed Medicines (ULMs).

Reporting to the Buying Manager — Ethical, the Category Buyer is the lead commercial point of contact for all suppliers in their portfolio, accountable for delivering portfolio rebate and margin commitments, and responsible for the supplier relationships and operational excellence that underpin commercial performance. The Ethical team comprises the Buying Manager, the Buyer, and the Assistant Buyer — Ethical, with the Assistant Buyer providing support to the wider team.

Key Responsibilities

• Portfolio Ownership & Commercial Performance

• Supplier Relationship Management

• Range Management, Pricing & Product Lifecycle

• Reporting, Insight & Commercial Decision-Making Support

• Cross-Functional Collaboration

Essential Experience & Qualifications

• Minimum 3-5 years of progressive buying, procurement or commercial experience — including direct experience of owning supplier relationships and commercial outcomes for a portfolio

• Proven track record of delivering rebate, margin or commercial income targets in a B2C, retail, wholesale, or pharmacy-services environment

• Demonstrable experience of leading day-to-day supplier negotiations and managing supplier performance — including annual terms reviews

• Strong commercial acumen, with the analytical capability to interpret supplier data, market trends and pricing dynamics, and translate them into commercial decisions

• High level of proficiency with price file management, data processes, and commercial systems

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel for supplier and category analysis, and confident use of PowerPoint for supplier and internal presentations

• Third-level qualification in business, commerce, supply chain, science, pharmacy, or a related discipline

Skills & Competencies

• Strong negotiation skills, with a proven track record of securing favourable commercial outcomes at supplier level

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, able to build strong supplier relationships and work effectively with cross-functional teams

• Results-orientated and motivated by targets, with the resilience to navigate setbacks in supplier negotiations and commercial cycles

• Analytical and detail-oriented, with the ability to interpret complex commercial data and translate it into clear actions

• Strong organisational skills with the ability to prioritise and manage a varied workload across multiple suppliers and parallel commercial activities

• Proven ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment both independently and within a team, and to meet deadlines consistently

• Sound judgement and the ability to proactively and independently solve problems within the parameters of the annual buying plan — knowing when to escalate

• AI-first mindset and demonstrable use of AI tools in daily work, with the ability to identify and act on opportunities to augment buying and supplier activities with AI

• Genuine growth mindset — actively seeks feedback, role-models learning, and welcomes constructive challenge

For further information please contact Orla Brennan 086 1720090 / orla.brennan@prismexecutive.ie