• Manage team of 15-20 staff and daily operations in a specialty grocery retail environment.• Purchasing and inventory management across multiple categories including: shelf-stable grocery, dairy, beverage, fresh and frozen meat.• Facilitate communication and decision making with staff and management over multiple locations in a fast paced and rapidly changing environment.• Increased net sales 8.5% and total customers by 20% in first year as manager through implementation of purchasing database, refined product selection, expanded cross-training, and improved customer experience through cultivating a healthy work environment where employees regularly comment that they enjoy coming to work.

• Managed cross-functional product development team, facilitated regular meetings, identified and developed new category opportunities, prepared formal tastings, and saw projects through on time from concept to completion, resulting in growth from new product introductions in soy milk, tomatoes, beans, sauerkraut, pasta, and Japanese specialty.• Collaborated with procurement, operations, quality, marketing, executive leadership, and manufacturing during new product development, ingredient changes, and process improvements, acting as main point of contact while simultaneously fulfilling duties of writing purchase orders, developing specification sheets, collecting supplier documentation and more, effectively multitasking across departments and exhibiting a high level of organization.• Built detailed standard operating procedure for product development and changes, coordinating with management and president to define project scope and timeline, optimize resources, and evaluate business performance on a forecasted versus actual basis. Utilized Merlin and Smartsheet project management software for implementation, acting as primary project manager.• Collaborated with regulatory, marketing, and international suppliers on packaging for imported items, including investigation of packaging materials, nutritional testing, and label reviews to ensure compliance.• Sourced and developed new organic raw materials for use in finished products, working directly with growers, traveling on location to audit, analyzing inventory and forecasting demand using Excel and AcctVantage ERP to determine purchase quantities and optimize inventory.• Oversaw onboarding of domestic and international co-manufacturers, providing initial facility and food safety audit to ensure compliance and mitigate purchasing risks, along with ongoing production visits to promote continuous improvement, strategically building trusted, long-term relationships.

• Designed product information database from scratch, transforming purchasing department data into a quick, consistent, accurate, widely accessible, and user-friendly experience.• Supervised implementation of company-wide supplier management program, selected TraceGains software, assembled team, reported progress to management, and collaborated with regulatory, procurement, quality control, and suppliers in the development of key performance indicators to track supplier performance and inform buying decisions, establishing new process and strategy for supplier selection and management. • Independently initiated new reporting standards for supplier visits and product specification sheets to collect and record information in an organized and consistent manner.• Managed food safety inspection team for production and warehouse facilities, mediating relations between regulatory, production, and warehouse supervisors, using influence to gain consensus on priorities, easing tensions across departments, and maintaining open communication and readiness for inspection.

• Led digital, print, and direct marketing activities, increasing brand awareness and stimulating demand.

Note: Employer went out of business September 2011.• Collaborated with loyalty marketing team in cross-functional efforts with finance, advertising, and multiple vendors yielding a consistent marketing strategy.• Performed direct marketing services for Borders Rewards program through coupons, in‑store events, and other promotional activities raising customer retention rates.• Assembled promotional campaigns around segmentation and control groups through use of Unica software producing 300 MM emails monthly, driving in-store and online sales.

• Developed branding materials and strategy for international excursions including food and cultural tours.• Database and e-mail client integration.