Sr. Vendor Manager, Worldwide Grocery Stores, Japan Private Brands APAC

About Worldwide Grocery Stores

Worldwide Grocery Stores (WWGS) is a global retail organization dedicated to revolutionizing the grocery shopping experience through enhanced efficiency quality and affordability. At its core WWGS Private Brands (PB) serves as a crucial strategic division that develops sources and manages proprietary food products for both Whole Foods Market (WFM) and Amazon-branded lines across all geographic regions.

Operating as a unified force Private Brands supports both North American and International operations by leveraging cross-functional expertise in product development sourcing sensory evaluation commercialization and quality assurance to bring products to market end-to-end across all WFM and Amazon channels. This collaborative structure enables WWGS to deliver high-quality innovative products while maintaining operational excellence across diverse global marketsrapidly scaling its food portfolio without compromising on quality standards or process efficiency.

The team manages the following brands: Amazon Saver Amazon Grocery byAmazon Aplenty Amazon Kitchen 365 by WFM (including organic products) and Whole Foods Market.

About WWGS Japan & APAC

WWGS Japan & APAC owns the development and growth of our Food PB portfolio including Whole Foods Market. We develop and execute the food PB expansion and growth strategy to support broader Grocery efforts across Core Consumables Amazon Fresh Express Mart Quick Commerce and Sub-Same Day Groceryworking across multiple channels and partner teams. Our team is responsible for several key functions including Sourcing Product Development Quality and Commercialization.

About the Role

The Sr. Vendor Manager Worldwide Grocery Stores Japan Private Brands is an entrepreneurial creative and data-driven role within our Food PB business in Japan and APAC. The ideal candidate will be customer-focused a proven self-starter and have a demonstrated ability to innovate. We are looking for someone who combines a passion for consumers and food with a willingness to move fast and experiment often.

This role will be instrumental in sourcing vendors cultivating strong relationships and establishing Amazon as a credible partner in the Grocery private brands space. The successful candidate must be at the forefront of vendor negotiations with a proven track record in negotiation relationship-building critical thinking business management and strategic planning for JP WWGS.

Additionally this role requires the ability to influence multiple organizations including WWGS Core Consumables Amazon Fresh Express Mart Quick Commerce Food Safety Legal Operations and Marketing. A strong financial acumen and a history of delivering results are essential. The Sr. Vendor Manager will establish drive and strengthen relationships with both key private brand suppliers and internal stakeholders.

Is This You

Do you have a passion for consumers brands and foodand the desire to build something customers love Do you see a clear path where others see roadblocks Would you rather break the mold to do something right than settle for the status quo If so we want your enthusiasm and expertise as part of a team that develops food private brands.

Key job responsibilities
Vendor Management & Channel Management
Manage relationships and negotiations with key vendors/suppliers for the companys private label/own brand products
Develop sourcing strategies to identify new vendor partners and manage the onboarding process
Drive cost efficiencies and improve profit margins through vendor contract negotiations
Collaborate cross-functionally with procurement product development marketing etc. to ensure timely delivery of products
Monitor vendor performance and quality metrics and escalate issues as needed
Provide strategic recommendations to leadership on vendor management best practices and long-term sourcing roadmap
Manage relationships and negotiations with key selling channels for the companys private label/own brand products
Develop channel selling strategies to drive topline growth and optimize productivity
Drive cost efficiencies and improve profit margins through cost to serve
Monitor channel performance and quality metrics and escalate issues as needed
Provide strategic recommendations to leadership on channel management best practices and long-term selling channel roadmap

Program Management & Cross-Functional Leadership
Drive management and support of cross-functional projects across WWGS JP/SG stores Fresh and other teams to drive CX enhancement and fundamental value development
Own the development planning and cross-functional communication of business development schedules
Collaborate with and influence cross-functional teams and leaders across multiple stakeholders
Partner closely with various teams to deliver on customer expectations operating profit and channel requirements while meeting tight deadlines
Communicate represent and uphold WWGS core values and leadership principles
Demonstrate bias for action ownership mentality and customer obsession in all activities
Create and maintain PRFAQs and six-pagers to articulate product vision and strategy
Drive the Product Innovation pipeline with the commercialization team
Identify opportunities to fill the innovation pipeline through customer insights market research vendor communication and cross-functional collaboration
Partner with Product Commercialization R&D Legal and Quality Assurance to bring products to market efficiently while managing risk
Establish and track meaningful metrics to measure product performance and customer satisfaction

Business Ownership & Analytics
Partner with channels to implement marketing and merchandising tactics
Establish and develop relationships with key strategic suppliers to deliver growth innovations
Conduct weekly monthly and quarterly business reviews with data-driven insights and root cause analysis
Develop and maintain product dashboards with key performance indicators to track progress against goals
Dive deep into business performance and underlying reasons to inform business decisions
Understand the critical 4Ps (Product Price Placement Promotion) and work with partner teams to bring products to life effectively for customers
Make data-informed decisions by leveraging both qualitative and quantitative customer insights
Collaborate with NA EU JP Category Merchant stakeholders across multiple teams on achieving financial plans and category objectives
Develop risk mitigation strategies including contingency plans lead-time reductions and supply chain efficiency

Leadership & Team Development
Collaboration and influencing cross-functional team and leaders.
Communicate represent and uphold WWGS core values and leadership principles
Demonstrate bias for action ownership mentality and customer obsession in all activities


A day in the life
Whats a day in the Amazon office like Benefits Bachelors degree or equivalent experience
- 5 years of vendor management experience in a dynamic environment
- Strong data analysis business metrics and P&L management skills
- Proven ability to deliver project milestones through cross-functional collaboration
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills (English & Japanese) with experience negotiating and engaging stakeholders across multiple business units and senior management

- MBA or advanced degree
- Experience in foods industry or retail grocery
- Proficiency with data analysis tools and visualization software

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