Purchasing Assistant – Hardlines

Company: Ganahl Lumber
Department: Purchasing / Merchandising – Hardlines
Employment Type: Full-Time
Work Environment: In-Person

Position Summary

Ganahl Lumber is seeking an organized, detail-oriented Purchasing Assistant – Hardlines to support the Hardlines Purchasing team. This position plays an important role in maintaining inventory availability, supporting purchasing activities, communicating with vendors and store locations, maintaining accurate product and pricing information, and helping ensure our locations have the right products at the right time.
The ideal candidate is highly organized, comfortable working with data and spreadsheets, communicates effectively, and enjoys working in a fast-paced environment where priorities can change quickly. Knowledge of hardware, tools, fasteners, building materials, or retail distribution is beneficial but not required.

Key Responsibilities

Purchasing & Inventory Support

• Assist Hardlines Buyers and Product Managers with daily purchasing activities.
• Prepare, enter, review, and track purchase orders.
• Monitor open purchase orders and follow up on late or incomplete shipments.
• Assist with maintaining appropriate inventory levels across multiple Ganahl Lumber locations.
• Review inventory availability, usage, sales trends, and replenishment needs.
• Identify potential stock-outs, overstocks, duplicate inventory, and slow-moving products.
• Assist with inventory transfers between locations when appropriate.
• Help coordinate seasonal, promotional, and new-product inventory requirements.

Vendor Coordination

• Communicate with manufacturers, distributors, and vendor representatives regarding orders, availability, pricing, lead times, and shipping.
• Follow up with vendors regarding backorders and delivery issues.
• Maintain vendor contact information, price lists, catalogs, and purchasing documentation.
• Assist buyers with vendor quotations and product comparisons.
• Help resolve discrepancies involving pricing, quantities, freight, damaged products, and invoices.
• Support vendor meetings, product reviews, and purchasing programs.

Product & Pricing Maintenance

• Assist with new-item setup and maintenance of existing product information.
• Maintain accurate descriptions, costs, retail pricing, vendor information, pack quantities, and purchasing units.
• Review vendor price changes and assist with updating internal pricing.
• Help maintain product category and vendor information within company systems.
• Assist with promotional pricing, rebates, special buys, and vendor programs.
• Review product information for accuracy and communicate corrections when necessary.

Store Support

• Serve as a purchasing resource for Ganahl Lumber locations regarding product availability, purchasing questions, and vendor information.
• Assist locations in resolving inventory and product issues.
• Research product availability and alternative products when requested.
• Coordinate with stores, distribution, receiving, accounting, merchandising, and purchasing personnel.
• Help communicate new products, discontinued items, substitutions, price changes, and vendor programs to locations.

Hardlines Product Categories

The position will support products across Ganahl Lumber’s Hardlines business, including:

• Framing and structural hardware
• Nails and pneumatic fasteners
• Fasteners
• Power tools and accessories
• Hand tools
• Jobsite safety products
• Paint, coatings, adhesives, and sealants
• Plumbing
• Electrical
• General hardware
• Building-material accessories and related products

Reporting & Analysis

• Prepare purchasing, inventory, sales, and vendor reports.
• Assist buyers in reviewing sales, gross margin, inventory turns, and product performance.
• Track open purchase orders and vendor delivery performance.
• Identify unusual inventory conditions and communicate them to the appropriate buyer.
• Assist with analysis of slow-moving and obsolete inventory.
• Support periodic vendor and category performance reviews.
• Maintain spreadsheets and reports used by the purchasing team.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required; college coursework or degree preferred.
• Previous purchasing, inventory, retail, distribution, administrative, or building-materials experience preferred.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Comfortable working with numbers and large amounts of product information.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Strong computer skills, particularly Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and related business applications.
• Ability to learn purchasing, inventory, and ERP systems.
• Hardware, tools, fasteners, building materials, or construction-product knowledge is a plus.
• Ability to work effectively with vendors, store personnel, purchasing staff, and other departments.

Key Performance Expectations

Success in this position will be measured by:

• Purchase-order accuracy
• Timely follow-up on open and overdue orders
• Product and pricing data accuracy
• Responsiveness to store and vendor requests
• Reduction of preventable stock-outs and purchasing errors
• Accurate maintenance of vendor and product information
• Effective support of inventory objectives
• Timely completion of reports and purchasing assignments
• Strong communication and follow-through

Skills & Attributes

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• Attention to detail
• Strong follow-through
• Sense of urgency
• Analytical thinking
• Problem-solving ability
• Clear communication
• Teamwork
• Dependability
• Curiosity and willingness to learn
• Ability to prioritize in a fast-moving environment

Growth Opportunity

The Purchasing Assistant – Hardlines position provides an opportunity to develop extensive knowledge of purchasing, inventory management, vendor relationships, merchandising, pricing, and product management within the building-materials industry.
A successful individual may have opportunities to progress into positions such as Buyer, Product Manager, Category Manager, or other Purchasing and Merchandising leadership roles as experience and responsibilities grow.

About Ganahl Lumber

Ganahl Lumber is committed to providing exceptional products, knowledgeable service, and dependable support to professional contractors, builders, and customers throughout Southern California. The Purchasing team plays a critical role in that commitment by ensuring our locations have the products, inventory, and vendor support necessary to serve our customers effectively.
 

This job description is not an exhaustive list of all functions that the employee may be required to perform, and the employee may be required to perform additional functions. Additionally, Ganahl Lumber Company reserves the right to revise the job description at any time. All active employees must be able to satisfactorily perform the essential functions of the position and that, if requested, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job, absent undue hardship. Your employment with Ganahl Lumber Company is at will. Nothing in this job description shall be interpreted to be in conflict with or to eliminate or modify in any way, the at-will employment status of the Ganahl Lumber Company employees.