Procurement Manager — Component Sourcing & Domestic Operations
Chefman | Mahwah, NJ
About the Role
Chefman is seeking a hands-on Procurement Manager to own a dual-scope procurement function: strategic sourcing of components from foreign manufacturers, and broader sourcing across logistics, capital expenditures, and domestic vendor relationships supporting our facilities and operations. This is an individual, hands-on role, not a team-management position, built for someone who negotiates directly, wherever the negotiation is happening, and doesn't rely on intermediaries to close a deal.
Operations & Supplier Management
- Serve as the primary point of contact for negotiations with vendors, taking ownership of pricing discussions and challenging existing cost structures to drive continuous savings
- Proactively identify, vet, and onboard new suppliers to diversify and strengthen the vendor base, reducing single-source risk
- Foreign travel (25%) to conduct in-person supplier negotiations, factory audits, and production trials, and to build direct relationships with vendor leadership teams
- Partner closely with local vendor contacts and, where applicable, on-the-ground teams to ensure alignment on quality, cost, and delivery expectations
- Lead pricing renegotiations with existing suppliers on a recurring basis, using market and commodity data to challenge quotes and benchmark against alternative vendors
- Represent Chefman at trade shows such as the Canton Fair and Hong Kong Electronics Fair to scout new suppliers, materials, and manufacturing technologies
Component Sourcing
- Lead end-to-end component sourcing for electrical, mechanical, and electronic parts (motors, heating elements, PCBs, plastics, metals) used in kitchen appliance manufacturing, from initial specification through supplier qualification and production readiness
- Partner with product development and engineering teams to identify component requirements early in the design cycle, ensuring sourcing strategies align with cost targets, quality standards, and launch timelines
- Work hands-on with engineering to build genuine technical fluency in the components you're sourcing, so negotiations are grounded in real product knowledge, not just commercial terms
- Evaluate and qualify component suppliers through technical assessments, factory audits, and production trials, maintaining an approved vendor list and driving continuous supplier performance improvement
- Monitor component supply markets, track commodity pricing trends, and proactively manage supply risk through dual sourcing, safety stock strategies, and alternate vendor development
- Set and enforce quality standards, inspection procedures, and manufacturing SOPs to protect product reliability
Sourcing Strategy, Logistics & Capital Expenditures
- Develop and implement sourcing strategies across logistics, freight, packaging, and distribution to optimize supply, improve quality, and maximize value
- Manage procurement for long-term freight and shipping arrangements, including small parcel carriers, trucking providers, and ocean freight
- Own and execute sourcing strategies for capital expenditures across warehousing facilities, including automation equipment, utilities, engineering services, forklifts, warehouse vehicles, and other site investments
- Negotiate renewals of software and service agreements to ensure competitive pricing and reduce vendor fragmentation
- Anticipate and manage sourcing barriers and supply challenges while proactively identifying spend and savings opportunities
- Develop negotiation strategies, scopes of work, and executive summaries for key procurement initiatives
Qualifications
- Demonstrated experience negotiating supplier contracts and commercial agreements, ideally including direct negotiation with foreign based manufacturers
- Proven ability to independently identify and onboard new suppliers, and to take ownership of pricing negotiations without significant oversight
- Strong knowledge of procurement, logistics, and inventory management
- Experience leading supplier onboarding processes including audits, capability assessments, and production trials
- Familiarity with manufacturing processes related to electrical appliances or consumer products
- Advanced Excel skills with strong cost modeling and financial analysis capabilities
- Strong understanding of P&L impact and year-over-year cost savings metrics
- A genuinely assertive, hardball negotiating style, comfortable pushing back hard, escalating when necessary, walking away from a bad deal, or using leverage decisively when the situation calls for it. This applies wherever the negotiation is happening, not just in one country or context
- Highly organized with strong attention to detail and the ability to drive initiatives independently
- Willingness and ability to travel internationally (approximately 25%)
Preferred
- Hands-on experience sourcing electrical, mechanical, or electronic components within consumer products, kitchen appliances, or a related manufacturing environment
- Extensive experience working directly with Asia-based component suppliers and manufacturers
- Familiarity with commodity markets relevant to appliance manufacturing (motors, heating elements, PCBs, plastics, metals)
- Experience managing domestic capital projects or facility-related vendor contracts in addition to overseas component sourcing
A Note on Fit
We've found that technical sourcing knowledge and an assertive negotiating style are two separate things, both matter here, and one doesn't guarantee the other. If you've built real vendor relationships and you're someone who doesn't back down at the negotiating table, wherever that table is, we want to talk to you.