Purchasing Associate

Do you have a knack with systems and spreadsheets and a passion for renewable
technology? We’re looking for someone with an eye for detail, a nose for a bargain and a head
for numbers.

We pride ourselves on being a distributor that offers a wide range of great products,
but with the support of friendly and helpful service too. We need someone to join the
purchasing team to help stay on top of our stock levels across more than 2,000 product lines.
With the technology moving fast, prices changing constantly, and a supply chain full of
surprises, there’s never a dull day in purchasing!

Who we are

We’re primarily a distributor of components of renewable energy systems – from solar
panels to batteries and heat pumps.

Midsummer is a fast-growing company selling a range of renewable energy products, primarily to
installation companies, from our offices in Cambridge, Glasgow and Dublin. We sell solar PV
systems, battery storage, electric vehicle chargers, heat pumps and a variety of other
associated products, and were recognised as the UK’s best renewables distributor for 2020 and
2022.

Founded in 2005, we’re now on our 7th warehouse, process around 50,000 orders a year and have a
team of over 110 people across our Cambridge, Glasgow and Dublin locations. In addition to our
growing gang of friendly staff and a lean, efficient operation, we have a suite of web tools
that make design and ordering extremely easy, for both solar projects and heat pump
installs. Easy PV and Heatpunk are our cutting edge software offerings!

As an organisation, we have a strong environmental ethos and a passion for promoting the uptake
of renewables, and our team share a belief in an open and honest approach to business. Find out
more about our story, purpose and how we make sustainability, integrity and innovation central
to what we do here.

The role

You’ll gain familiarity with our product range, and work closely with the wider purchasing team
on the various aspects of the purchasing process, including: 

• Creating and amending purchase orders. Making sure they accurately reflect our needs in all
  particulars, and match what arrives too!
• Dealing with logistics companies, routing orders to our various warehouses. Keeping all
  parties informed of the key information – what needs to be where, and when.
• Liaising with the inbound team to ensure orders have arrived as intended and stock levels
  are correct is key. Our sales teams, warehouse teams and customers all rely on stock
  information accuracy.
• Database management. Unusually for a purchasing team, we also set our sales prices! You’ll
  be needed to ensure pricing information is kept accurate and up to date within our internal
  systems.
• Supplier reporting. You’ll have regular reporting to carry out with our suppliers – feeding
  back on sales, rebate performance and promotional activities.

You’ll report to the Purchasing Manager, Alex Harris. 

Who we’re looking for

You enjoy a challenge, and thrive in a fast-paced environment. You’re driven to solve problems,
and able to work closely with a small team to keep things on track.

You have superb numerical skills and an eye for detail, as well as good commercial instincts
for when to query the numbers.

Experience in purchasing, stock management and/or the solar or heating industries would
certainly be an advantage – but they are not essential. As long as you are self-motivated and
highly numerate, with the ability to pick up systems quickly, we’d love to hear from you! 

What it offers

You’ll be joining a young, dynamic company with positive values that is aiming to position
itself as the leading distributor of renewable energy systems in the UK. You will be involved
in purchasing goods across multiple market segments – commercial rooftop and ground mount solar
& battery systems, residential solar & batteries, off-grid solar and also air source
heat pumps.

The position is based in our offices neighbouring Milton Country Park on the outskirts of
Cambridge, but we are willing to consider applicants based at our Glasgow offices. You will
learn a lot on the job, and we’ll bring you up to speed as fast as possible. It’s a fast-moving
industry so new products, customers and technologies come along all the time – there will
always be new things to learn. On top of that, the purchasing and technical department are a
small, but close-knit team with a strong sense of camaraderie.

• Salary of £26,000 – £28,000 depending on experience
• Company profit share scheme
• Cycle to work and EV salary sacrifice schemes
• Free staff veg box scheme

We believe in early responsibility and career progression based on talent and commitment. The
industry is growing fast, and so is Midsummer – there is plenty of scope to grow with us for
the right candidate.

We can be flexible with start dates, but are looking to fill the position quickly.