About us: We are one of the top three automotive retailers in the UK, proudly representing 32 manufacturer brands, selling a huge range of new and used vehicles from over 150 dealerships across the UK and Ireland.

We believe our people are our greatest asset, and we’re committed to recognising the valuable contribution each person makes. That’s why we continue to invest in a leading rewards and benefits package designed to support your career, wellbeing, and life outside of work.

Commercial Manager
Hybrid - with travel as required
Salary - Competitive (plus bonus and benefits - Including a company car)
Contract: Permanent, Full-Time

About the role!

This is a newly created role at the heart of our commercial transformation. We are implementing a group-wide spend control and procure-to-pay platform across all 150+ sites, and this role is central to making it land well, ensuring the right suppliers, commercial terms, and category strategies are in place to realise significant savings and drive lasting procurement discipline across the network.

The role has two clear phases. In the near term, you will focus on preparing our supply base for go-live: rationalising suppliers, developing category strategies, and leading commercial negotiations with key partners. Once live, you will step into a permanent BAU remit as our group Category Manager, owning strategic sourcing and supplier performance across our key spend categories.

It is a broad and high-profile role, with direct exposure to the CFO and senior operational leadership across the group. If you are an experienced procurement professional looking for a role where you can make a tangible commercial difference at scale, this is it.

What You'll Do - Phase 1: Platform Deployment

During the deployment phase, your focus will be on getting the commercial foundations right ahead of go-live:

Supply Base Readiness

Analyse group-wide spend data to identify trends, leakage, consolidation opportunities, and quick wins
Categorise and tier suppliers to support supplier enablement across the platform
Identify and prioritise suppliers for rationalisation and consolidation
Work with operations to understand site-level demand and flag legacy or duplicate supplier relationships

Commercial Foundations

Develop high-level category strategies across key spend areas ahead of go-live
Identify and agree preferred suppliers; propose appropriate buying channels for each category
Lead commercial negotiations with priority suppliers to secure improved terms, pricing, and rebate structures
Agree heads of terms with suppliers and work closely with our Commercial Contracts Manager to progress formal contract execution

Stakeholder Engagement

Communicate category proposals and buying channel recommendations to operational stakeholders
Work with dealership general managers, service managers, and parts managers to validate requirements and build buy-in
Support the change programme by helping operational leaders understand procurement policy and preferred supplier rationale

What You'll Do - Phase 2: BAU Category Management

Following go-live, you will take on full ownership of category management for the group across five areas:

Category Planning & Strategy

Develop and implement category strategies across key spend areas, including aftersales (parts, tyres, lubricants), facilities management, marketing and digital services, and fleet and vehicle logistics
Conduct market analysis, supplier benchmarking, and industry trend assessments
Define category objectives, KPIs, and risk management plans
Identify opportunities for cost savings, rebates, and value-added services
Standardise products and services across dealership sites where appropriate
Collaborate with operations to forecast demand and align procurement strategy

Category Performance & Review

Lead regular category reviews (monthly/quarterly) across the dealership network
Track and report KPIs including cost savings, rebate income, supplier service levels, and spend compliance
Analyse spend data to identify ongoing leakage, consolidation opportunities, and performance gaps
Present category insights and recommendations to the CFO and VP Corporate Services
Continuously refine strategies based on operational feedback and market conditions

Strategic Sourcing

Lead sourcing activity for dealership goods and services; run tenders (RFPs/RFQs) as required
Negotiate commercial terms including pricing, discounts, and rebate structures
Establish framework agreements and preferred supplier lists across the network
Agree heads of terms and commercial outcomes with suppliers; work with the Commercial Contracts Manager for formal contract drafting and execution
Drive spend compliance against preferred suppliers and minimise off-contract purchasing

Commercial Supplier Engagement

Develop and maintain strong working relationships with key suppliers across priority categories
Monitor supplier performance against commercial commitments — pricing, rebates, availability, service levels — and drive improvements where needed
Manage supply continuity risk for critical categories; maintain visibility of alternatives
Collaborate with suppliers to improve margins and enhance the Lookers customer offering

Stakeholder Engagement

Work with general managers, service managers, and parts managers across 150+ sites to understand local requirements
Influence buying behaviours and promote use of the procurement platform and preferred suppliers
Provide guidance on cost control and commercial best practice
Balance central procurement strategy with appropriate local flexibility
Support demand management and specification optimisation across the network

What We're Looking For!

Essential

5+ years in strategic procurement or category management
Proven track record of delivering cost savings through sourcing and supplier negotiation
Experience managing procurement across multiple sites or entities
Strong commercial negotiation skills
Ability to engage and influence operational stakeholders at all levels
Comfortable working with spend data to identify and size opportunities
Able to operate in a fast-paced environment with competing priorities

Desirable

Experience in automotive retail, dealership networks, or aftersales procurement
Familiarity with P2P or e-procurement platforms
Understanding of buying channel design and supplier enablement
CIPS qualified or working towards qualification

Who You'll Work With!

You will work across the business at all levels, from dealership managers on the ground to the CFO and executive team. Key working relationships include:

Who	Why
Chief Finance Officer	Your line manager, category strategy sign-off and savings delivery.
VP Corporate Services	Programme governance and commercial priorities
Commercial Contracts Manager	Handoff of agreed commercial terms for contract drafting and execution
Operations and Franchise directors	Requirements gathering, preferred supplier buy-in, adoption
Dealership General Managers / Service Managers / Parts Managers	Site-level demand, operational requirements, and compliance
Key Suppliers	Negotiations and ongoing commercial performance management

Core Benefits:

Competitive salaries with structured pay scales and progression as you grow within the business
Generous annual leave that increases with your length of service
Enhanced family leave, including 6 months’ full pay for maternity and adoption leave, and 2 weeks’ full pay for paternity leave
Access to Techscheme for discounted technology purchases with flexible payments

Health & Wellbeing:

Eyecare vouchers to help cover vision care needs
Smart Health – 24/7 access to GP services to support your mental and physical wellbeing
Dental insurance for everyday dental care and unexpected treatments
Optional critical illness cover for peace of mind during life's most challenging moments

Financial Wellbeing:

MyView PayNow – access a portion of your pay as you earn, with features to stream, save, and track your money through a user-friendly app
Free will writing services to help plan for the future
Flexible life assurance options and partner life assurance for added protection

Leisure & Lifestyle:

Discounted gym memberships to support an active lifestyle
Travel insurance to help you explore with confidence
Access to home and technology vouchers
bYond card and a wide range of exclusive retail and lifestyle discounts

We strongly believe in nurturing and providing our people with specific manufacturer brand and management training to enhance career development opportunities. We have a great bunch of people, and we like to celebrate and encourage success at all levels.

Lookers and Charles Hurst are an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to a working environment that is free from discrimination, is inclusive, and empowers our people to bring their whole self to work and reach their full potential.

If your application is successful, we will conduct relevant employment checks prior to you commencing employment with us. These will include verifying your recent employment, address, credit history and a standard criminal record check. For roles that require you to drive, a driving licence check will also be carried out. Please note, all offers of employment are made subject to a 6 month probation period commencing from your start date.

We take our data protection responsibilities very seriously and are committed to upholding and respecting your privacy rights. Information about how we will process your data including the types of data we collect, the purposes for which we use it, who we may share it with and how long we keep it are set out in our privacy notice. It also includes information about your individual privacy rights. Please make sure you read our Privacy Notice so that you understand how we may collect and use your data.

Commercial Manager

What We're Looking For!

Job details

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