Macfarlane Packaging
Inventory Controller
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Location: Heywood Distribution Park
Package: Basic salary up to £28,000 (dependent on experience) plus bonus & flexible benefits package including up to 27 days holiday (plus bank holidays & additional annual leave purchasing scheme)
Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Monday-Friday
Sector: Packaging Distribution
Optimise stock, drive efficiency, and support business performance.
At Macfarlane Packaging, we are in the business of protecting what matters – our people, our customers, and the planet. We are equally committed to protecting and developing careers, offering a stable, forward-thinking environment where your contribution is recognised and your progression supported.
With over 75 years of industry expertise, we combine the strength of a market leader with the pace and energy of a commercial, sales-led business. If you enjoy working with data, driving efficiencies, and playing a key role in operational performance, this is an opportunity to make a real impact.
The Role: Inventory Controller
As our Inventory Controller, you will play a key role in optimising stock management across our site, ensuring the right products are available at the right time while balancing working capital, space utilisation, and margin.
Working closely with our procurement, sales, and logistics teams, you will use data and insight to forecast demand, manage stock levels, and identify opportunities to improve performance. This is a varied, fast-paced cross-functional role where strong organisational skills, attention to detail, and commercial awareness will make a real difference to the business.
What You Will Be Doing
- Manage inventory levels across allocated sites ensuring the right stock is available to meet customer demand.
- Use data, trends, and insight to forecast inventory requirements and drive effective inventory planning.
- Identify opportunities to minimise and reduce excess, aged and slow-moving stock, improving profitability and cash flow.
- Manage the purchasing process, raising purchase orders and ensuring timely supply of both standard and bespoke products.
- Proactively manage supplier deliveries, resolving availability, pricing, and lead-time issues to minimise disruption.
- Maintain accurate inventory records, ensuring strong data integrity across various systems.
- Manage supplier deliveries through our IWMS Goods In diary.
- Support customer stock holding agreements, ensuring inventory levels remain aligned with customer requirements.
- Monitor inventory performance against key KPIs and identify opportunities for improvement.
- Work closely with colleagues from sales, procurement, and logistics teams to align inventory planning in line with customer needs.
- Build strong relationships across departments and with suppliers to support effective supply chain performance.
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What We Are Looking For
- Experience working in an inventory control, stock management, or supply chain role.
- Strong analytical and numerical skills, with confidence using Excel to interpret and manage data.
- Excellent attention to detail with a methodical and organised approach.
- The ability to prioritise tasks, manage deadlines, and perform well in a fast-paced environment.
- Great communication skills and confidence collaborating with colleagues across different teams.
- A proactive and focused mindset with the initiative to identify issues and drive solutions.
- Experience managing a large product range across multiple product categories.
- Experience using ERP or stock management systems.
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Desirable
- Previous experience in a distribution or logistics environment
- Understanding of inventory management principles and KPIs
- CIPS qualification (or working towards)
Why Join Macfarlane?
We offer a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package designed to support you both professionally and personally, including:
- 25 days holiday (rising to 27 with service) plus bank holidays.
- Additional holiday purchasing scheme
- Contributory pension scheme
- Flexible benefits package including healthcare options.
- Employee assistance programme to support wellbeing.
- Ongoing training and career development opportunities (including CIPS pathways)
- Employee discounts across major retail and leisure brands
- Annual volunteering day
- Long service awards and recognition schemes
Next Steps/How To Apply
We are working swiftly to find the best applicants and hope to hold local interviews ASAP. Please click ‘apply’ to submit your up-to-date CV. All applications will be acknowledged. If you have not heard from us within two weeks, please assume your application was unsuccessful.
We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds irrespective of your age, gender, disability, race, nationality, ethnicity, gender expression, religion, or sexual orientation. Should you require any specific support or adjustments during the recruitment process, please email our recruitment team directly.
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