Procurement Specialist

Location: Markham, Ontario

Job Description:

Position: Procurement Specialist

Type: Full-Time | Hybrid

Location: Markham, ON

Reports to: Product Manager, Goods Not For Resale  

About Us

Pet Valu is Canada’s leading pet specialty retailer, dedicated to strengthening the bond between dedicated pet lovers and their pets. With 50 years of animal care expertise, we operate over 800 stores across Canada under several banners, including Pet Valu, Bosley’s, Total Pet, Paulmac's Pet, Tisol & Chico. Guided by our mission to deliver products, care, expertise, and memorable moments, Pet Valu is a place where people build meaningful careers while making a positive impact on pets and communities.

What will you do?

The Procurement Specialist supports strategic sourcing, supplier management, procurement analytics, and process improvement across assigned categories. This role partners with Merchandising, Marketing, Finance, Legal, and other business stakeholders to support sourcing initiatives, supplier negotiations, cost management, and value creation opportunities while ensuring compliance with procurement policies and standards.

Responsibilities

Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Management

• Support strategic sourcing initiatives, including supplier research, market analysis, RFx (RFI/RFP/RFQ) development, bid evaluation, and supplier recommendations.
• Partner with stakeholders to define business requirements, establish sourcing priorities, and support procurement projects.
• Support supplier onboarding, performance management, issue resolution, and ongoing supplier relationship management.
• Monitor supplier performance and identify opportunities to improve service, quality, cost, and compliance.
• Maintain a sourcing calendar and support regular reviews of active vendors, sourcing priorities, and upcoming category opportunities.
• Support supplier continuity, performance follow-up, and issue escalation to help ensure service, quality, cost, and compliance expectations are met.

Commercial Analysis & Cost Management

• Analyze spend, supplier, commodity, and market data to identify savings opportunities, risks, and procurement insights.
• Assess vendor cost increase requests through commodity and market analysis, providing fact-based recommendations to support stakeholder negotiations.
• Develop reporting and presentations that communicate sourcing activity, cost impacts, supplier performance, risks, and opportunities.
• Support cost optimization, supplier consolidation, and continuous value improvement initiatives.
• Support Procurement leadership by tracking savings opportunities, cost impacts, risks, and priority initiatives across assigned categories.

Contract & Procurement Governance

• Support the review of supplier proposals, contracts, and commercial terms in partnership with Legal and business stakeholders.
• Maintain procurement templates, documentation, and governance processes to ensure consistency, compliance, and audit readiness.
• Ensure supplier engagements align with company policies, procurement standards, and code of conduct requirements.
• Provide guidance to stakeholders on procurement intake, sourcing, approval, contract, and documentation requirements.

Stakeholder Support & Special Projects

• Act as a key liaison between Procurement, Merchandising, Marketing, Finance, Legal, and external suppliers.
• Support cross-functional initiatives by providing procurement expertise, analysis, and project coordination.
• Support exception-based event or project purchasing by calculating one-time order requirements based on stakeholder forecasts and approved business needs.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives that enhance procurement processes, reporting, and operational efficiency.
• Provide regular status updates on sourcing initiatives, category activity, supplier issues, risks, and open actions to Procurement leadership and business stakeholders.

Qualifications & Experience

Education & Experience

• 2–4 years of experience in procurement, sourcing, supplier management, procurement analytics, merchandising, finance, or a related field.
• Post-secondary education in Business, Supply Chain, Finance, or a related discipline.

Knowledge & Skills

• Working knowledge of strategic sourcing, supplier evaluation, RFx processes, negotiation support, and contract review.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret spend, cost, commodity, supplier, and market data.
• Advanced Excel and PowerPoint skills; experience with Power BI, ERP systems, procurement tools, contract management tools, or reporting platforms is an asset.
• Strong communication, stakeholder management, organization, and problem-solving skills.
• High attention to detail, professionalism, integrity, and ability to work effectively with internal and external stakeholders.

Compensation:

The targeted salary range for this position is $57,000.00 - $75,000.00 annually. The final offer will be based on factors such as market location, relevant skills, experience and internal equity.

Ready to join the team?

We’re looking for passionate people who bring strong skills and live our core values of safety, compassion, expertise, and efficiency every day. If you’re energized by doing meaningful work, taking pride in what you deliver, and making a real impact for pets, people, and communities, you’ll feel right at home here. Join us and build a career where purpose, care, and excellence come together - because love lives here™.

Why work for us?

 At Pet Valu, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We’re passionate about creating an environment where you feel supported, included, and empowered to grow - both personally and professionally. Some of the perks of working with us include:

• Hybrid, Flexible Work Options
• Comprehensive health and dental benefits
• Employee Share Purchase Plan with company matching
• Learning and Development support tailored to you
• An inclusive, collaborative culture where your voice matters
• Fun company events that keep us connected
• Preferred rates for car rentals, hotels, phone plans and gym discounts
• Generous employee discounts on our products

Pet Valu is an equal opportunity employer committed to inclusion and accessibility. Accommodations are available upon request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the recruitment and selection process, in accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

At Pet Valu, we are committed to transparency and fairness in our hiring practices. This posting is for an existing vacancy. Pet Valu may use AI enabled technology to assist in the recruitment process for positions. The use of AI helps us ensure we are providing an equitable and streamlined recruitment experience for all applicants. While AI tools support our recruitment process, all decisions throughout the process are made exclusively by Pet Valu’s hiring team. At no stage does AI determine recruitment outcomes.