Procurement consultant for UK SMEs
Stock you don't need, freight you're overpaying for and supplier terms nobody has looked at in years. I help SMEs and manufacturers cut those costs and put buying processes in place that keep them down.
Book a free intro callIf these sound familiar, there are almost certainly savings to be found.
"Our warehouse is full, but we still run out of the parts we need."
"We've got stock on the shelves that hasn't moved in a year."
"Freight costs keep going up and we just pay the invoices."
"We've used the same suppliers for years and never renegotiated."
"Purchasing depends on one person and their spreadsheet."
"Cash is tight even though sales are good."
In growing businesses, procurement usually happens rather than being managed. Orders are placed when someone notices stock is low, freight is booked with whoever was used last time, and supplier terms are whatever was agreed when the business was half the size.
I look at purchasing, stock, suppliers and logistics together, because a saving in one place often creates a cost in another. The goal is lower costs and more working capital without hurting the service your customers get.
A deep dive into stock holding, purchasing patterns and supplier terms to cut carrying costs and clear dead stock.
A review of logistics spend, carrier agreements and shipping patterns, looking for consolidation, route planning and renegotiation wins.
Supplier scorecards, lead time tracking and qualification, so you know who's performing and who isn't.
Reorder points, approval steps and purchase order processes that don't rely on one person's memory.
Supplier qualification, lead time control and quality assurance for businesses buying or manufacturing abroad.
A look at your supplier base and market to find alternative sources and risks you should plan for.
Large companies have procurement departments. Most SMEs have a busy owner, an operations manager and a spreadsheet. A procurement strategy for a smaller business doesn't need to be a thick document. It needs to answer a few practical questions: what you spend most on, which suppliers you can't afford to lose, where you're paying too much, and who is allowed to buy what.
In manufacturing, procurement is tied to production. A late component stops the line, and over-ordering ties up cash in raw materials. I've worked with family-run manufacturers, OEMs and contract electronics manufacturers, from component sourcing and bills of materials through to supplier qualification, so the purchasing plan works for the shop floor as well as the accounts.
Procurement sets the strategy; purchasing is the day-to-day buying that makes it work. In many SMEs the buying is done by whoever has time, from whichever supplier was used last. I help put a simple, reliable purchasing process in place:
I've also carried sales targets and managed customer relationships. That means I know which costs you can cut safely and which ones your customers will notice, and I can negotiate with suppliers knowing how they think.
A fast-growing business making NFC-enabled products was ordering manually, with almost no stock visibility and no process for supplier lead times. Stockouts were common.
I introduced inventory tracking and reorder processes, set up supplier scorecards and lead time tracking, and onboarded a third-party logistics partner. Within three months the business had full stock visibility and a purchasing process it could scale.
"Nick has a deep understanding of the full sales-to-supply 360 view, which we found unique compared to other consultants. He engaged with our customers' pain points and worked on solutions that actually worked for them."
Clear pricing, agreed up front. If a price is agreed, it won't change.
A free, no-obligation 30-minute call. Tell me how you buy, stock and ship, and I'll tell you honestly where I think the savings are.
Book a free intro callBased in Wokingham and Reading, Berkshire. On-site across the South East, remote UK-wide.
Or call 07872 617 397 · nick@clearrouteconsulting.co.uk