Strategic Purchasing Manager

Location: Harrisburg, NC
Department: Operations / Procurement
Reports To: General Manager
FLSA Status: Exempt

Position Summary

The Strategic Purchasing Manager is responsible for developing and executing purchasing and sourcing strategies that support both Speedway Motorsports’ retail merchandise business and race car manufacturing operations. This role manages supplier relationships, purchasing strategy, inventory planning, category performance, and procurement analytics to ensure products and components are available at the right cost, quality, and time.

This position serves as the primary purchasing partner for the retail merchandising and manufacturing teams, working across the organization to improve supplier performance, reduce costs, strengthen inventory planning, and support uninterrupted operations. The Strategic Purchasing Manager will have the opportunity to take ownership of purchasing processes, identify opportunities for improvement, and help build a more strategic and data-driven approach to how the organization buys.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Purchasing, Sourcing & Supplier Management

• Develop and execute sourcing strategies for souvenir merchandise, licensed products, apparel, race car components, manufacturing materials, and related products.
• Lead supplier selection, contract negotiations, pricing discussions, and vendor performance management.
• Identify opportunities to consolidate suppliers, improve purchasing leverage, reduce total cost, and mitigate supply chain risk.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with domestic and international suppliers while developing alternate sourcing strategies for critical products.

Category & Inventory Management

• Manage assigned product categories through demand forecasting, inventory planning, lifecycle management, and purchasing execution.
• Analyze sales trends, production schedules, inventory levels, and business forecasts to develop purchasing plans.
• Ensure merchandise availability for Speedway events while maintaining healthy inventory turns and minimizing obsolete inventory.
• Coordinate material purchases to support race car manufacturing schedules and customer demand.

Procurement Analytics & Business Improvement

• Develop reporting and dashboards that measure purchasing performance, supplier effectiveness, inventory health, spending trends, and cost savings.
• Analyze supplier spend, purchase price variance, freight expense, gross margin, inventory turns, and forecast accuracy.
• Recommend process improvements, inventory optimization strategies, sourcing initiatives, and cost-reduction opportunities supported by business data.
• Present recommendations and key performance metrics to leadership.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner with Retail, Manufacturing, Engineering, Finance, Operations, Warehouse, and Sales teams to align purchasing decisions with organizational priorities.
• Support new product introductions, special events, seasonal merchandise planning, and manufacturing initiatives.
• Ensure purchasing activities comply with company policies, financial controls, and procurement best practices.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Finance, Operations, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Five or more years of progressive experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, category management, supply chain, or purchasing.
• Demonstrated success negotiating supplier agreements and managing vendor relationships.
• Strong analytical skills with advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and ERP systems.
• Excellent communication, organizational, negotiation, and project management skills.

Preferred

• Experience in retail merchandising, consumer products, manufacturing, motorsports, automotive, or related industries.
• Experience using Power BI, SQL, Power Query, or other business intelligence tools.
• Knowledge of inventory optimization, demand forecasting, and category management principles.
• Professional certification such as CPSM, CSCP, CPIM, or equivalent.

Core Competencies

• Strategic Sourcing
• Category Management
• Procurement Analytics
• Supplier Relationship Management
• Contract Negotiation
• Inventory Planning & Demand Forecasting
• Cost Reduction & Continuous Improvement
• Financial & Operational Analysis
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Project Leadership

Why Join Speedway Motorsports?

This is an opportunity to take ownership of purchasing strategy across two very different and exciting businesses—motorsports manufacturing and retail merchandising. The Strategic Purchasing Manager will play a key role in how we source products, build supplier partnerships, manage inventory, control costs, and support both race car production and the fan experience.

This role offers the opportunity to make a visible impact, bring new ideas to the table, and help shape how purchasing operates across the organization. You will work closely with teams throughout the business, have direct exposure to leadership, and see the results of your decisions in everything from products sold at major Speedway Motorsports events to the components used to build race cars.