Trading Controller - Trading

Trading Controller

Attractive Salary, Benefits, Company Car, Bonus

36.5 Hour week (Hybrid)

Newtownabbey

Who are we?

Henderson Group are proud to be one of Northern Ireland’s leading employers. Our group encompasses Henderson Wholesale, Henderson Retail, Henderson Foodservice and Henderson Group Property. We employ over 5,000 colleagues and have been placed 3rd in Ulster Business Top 100 Companies 2025.

Henderson Wholesale is a major Wholesaler in Northern Ireland and supplies goods to stores across various brands such as SPAR, EUROSPAR and VIVO. We source from local farmers, growers and producers and are proud to contribute to our local economy and environment.

We're an Investors in People accredited, family-owned group, and our culture is lived out through our four core values- Ambition, Customer First, Teamwork and Integrity.

A look into the role…

To support our continued growth and future strategic objectives, we are investing in developing our innovative senior leadership team within the Henderson Wholesale Trading function. 

We are therefore excited to be recruiting for 3 newly created and hugely rewarding Trading Controller positions.

The Trading Controller is a Senior level position within our Trading team and will lead the trading and product proposition strategy across their categories, driving profitable sales growth, and optimising product performance within the wholesale division. The role requires a strategic, commercially focused leader with deep market knowledge and exceptional negotiation skills to deliver sustainable revenue and margin improvements.

Reporting directly to our Head of Trading, these roles will have direct accountability for category-level commercial performance by leading a team of Trading Managers to achieve agreed commercial targets.  The Trading Controllers will also play an active part in wider trading and business transformation initiatives. 

These roles will be very well suited to candidates with experience of senior trading, commercial, or buying leadership roles within a wholesale, retail, or FMCG environment.    Successful candidates will also bring strong leadership, team-building, and people management capabilities.

Working as Trading Controller you will:

• Lead, inspire, and develop the trading team to achieve individual and collective goals, fostering a high-performance culture with clear objectives, accountability, and recognition.
• Lead the formulation and delivery of the trading strategy for your product areas, aligned to the company’s growth objectives.
• Set category plans, pricing architecture, promotional calendars, and stock management policies, proactively adapting trading tactics based on market conditions, customer trends, and performance data.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with key suppliers to secure best-in-market pricing, terms, and product availability.
• Build relationships with SPAR Central Office to facilitate supplier partnerships with key FMCG supplier partners, where applicable, to support our overall product proposition.
• Drive sales growth and gross margin improvement across all of your product categories.
• Lead the delivery of cross-functional and group-wide trading initiatives for your product categories, partnering with Replenishment, Sales, Marketing, Operations and Retail to deliver integrated trading campaigns and seamless customer experiences. 
• Work closely with Finance on budgeting, forecasting, and commercial reporting.
• Oversee the selection, introduction, and lifecycle management of products to ensure a competitive and profitable range
• Implement range reviews and rationalisation strategies to optimise category sales performance and profitability.
• Continuously monitor market trends, competitor activity, pricing, and consumer behaviour to inform trading decisions, identifying emerging opportunities and threats in the wholesale landscape and adjust plans accordingly.
• Provide regular and insightful trading reports to senior leadership, highlighting performance, risks, and opportunities, ensuring that data-driven decisions underpin all trading activity and continuous improvement
• Support and champion change within the trading function, ensuring successful implementation of new systems, processes, and ways of working.
• Maximise profitability through stock appreciation and ensure the clearance of short-dated products and overstocks with company guidelines.

Skills for Success

Joining us as Trading Controller, the minimum criteria you’ll need is:

• Significant experience within a trading, commercial, buying or category management role within a wholesale, retail, or FMCG environment. 
• Demonstrated success in delivering profitable sales growth, margin improvement, and category performance.
• Strong track record of supplier negotiation and management, securing favourable commercial terms.
• Experience managing complex trading activities including pricing, promotions, stock management, and forecasting.
• Full and valid driving licence.
• A strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office Applications.

The Skills you’ll need include:

• Strong commercial acumen with in-depth knowledge of trading principles, supplier management, and category optimization.
• Excellent negotiation, influencing, and relationship management skills, both internally and externally.
• Advanced analytical and financial skills, with the ability to interpret data, build forecasts, and make data-driven decisions.
• Deep understanding of market dynamics, customer behaviour, and competitive landscapes within a wholesale environment.
• Strong leadership with the ability to motivate, coach, and develop direct reports.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder engagement skills at all levels.
• Proficient in using trading systems, ERP platforms, and business intelligence tools to support commercial decisions.
• Ability to lead through change and effectively manage multiple projects and priorities in a fast-paced environment.

It is desirable if you have:

• Degree or higher-level qualification in a relevant subject or relevant experience.
• Experience in leading and developing high-performing trading or commercial teams.
• Direct involvement in business change, transformation programmes, or cross-functional project delivery.
• Experience working within a wholesale or symbol group structure.

Are we right for you?

As part of this role, it will be important that you feel aligned with the values that we live and work by.

Ambition – We always strive to be better. We seek new challenges and look for ways to do things better.

Customer First – We provide exceptional service. We put customers at the heart of everything and support our communities.

Teamwork – We succeed together. We help colleagues to succeed, and we share our knowledge and skills.

Integrity – We are fair, honest and ethical. We treat everyone with dignity and respect. We are inclusive and champion diversity.

The Reward

Our business has been recognised externally for delivering excellence in employment- we value employee development and heavily invest in our people.

Benefits include market competitive salary, company vehicle or car allowance, bonus, contributory pension scheme, private healthcare, life assurance, employee assistance programme, social club, discount scheme throughout UK/Ireland, staff discount (grocery/fuel) at SPAR/EUROSPAR Henderson Group company-owned stores and many more.

This is a full-time position working 36.5 hours per week. Working hours will be 8:45am-4:45pm Monday to Thursday and 8:45am-3:45pm Friday. Hybrid and flexible working arrangement available.

If you'd like to speak with us before making your application, our Talent Acquisition Specialist - Joanne McClelland would be happy to have a confidential chat with you about the role on offer - email joanne.mcclelland@henderson-group.com to get in touch.

Completed applications must be submitted online by midnight on 30th March 2026.

We are an equal opportunities employer.