Tim Hales
Category Manager · Norfolk & Cambridge
Profile
Procurement and category management professional with 20+ years' experience in strategic sourcing, supplier management and cost reduction — including co-founding Naked Wines and building its UK freight category from zero. Managed £2–2.5M annual spend across global logistics categories as sole practitioner for nine years, delivering commercial impact through competitive tendering, supplier segmentation and contract performance. Completed Level 5 Leadership & Management in the AI Era (Tech Educators, 2026) — covering Design Thinking, AI-enhanced problem-solving and critical analysis, applied to procurement and supply chain challenges.
Key Achievements
- Secured freight rates 15% below market benchmarks at half the industry volume (800 vs ~1,600 annual loads), resulting in ~£1M savings through post-acquisition benchmarking and renegotiation
- Reduced unit cost ~40% by establishing direct manufacturer supply, bypassing the established UK importer
- Designed a bespoke Google Sheets tender model replicating formal eSourcing platform functionality
- Built and ran Naked Wines' UK freight procurement function from co-founder stage — sole practitioner for nine years
- Led bottling partner strategic review — developed evaluation framework, conducted site visits and structured interviews, collated scoring analysis and presented recommendations to MD
Career Summary
Supply Chain & Procurement Consultant · G-Force
Jul 2023 – May 2025
- Established direct manufacturer relationship, bypassing the UK importer — secured MD meeting within weeks and built a direct supply route
- Attended Interclean Amsterdam to identify and evaluate suppliers across the product range; conducted supplier site visit in Italy to finalise direct manufacturer contract
- Disaggregated bundled product costs; sourced carbon poles direct from China — reducing component cost ~50%
- Ran courier and parcel carrier tender end-to-end (specification to contract award)
- Audited supplier contracts across IT, telephony and web services — recovering retrospective rebates and £3k in future credits
Bulk Wine Manager / Logistics Manager · Co-Founder · Naked Wines
2011 – Sep 2022
Procurement Category Manager: Freight & Bulk Wine Bottling
- Managed £2–2.5M annual freight spend across global categories — sole practitioner for nine years; contributed to post-acquisition benchmarking confirming 15% rate advantage and delivering ~£1M in savings
- Designed Google Sheets tender model covering full cost modelling, carrier scoring and volume forecasting — used across deep-sea and European freight categories
- Performance managed strategic bottling partnership with Pieroth (Germany) — 18-month capacity horizon, quality oversight including sign-off of complex wine analysis at key production stages, and quarterly reviews
- Led bottling partner strategic review — developed evaluation framework, conducted site visits and structured interviews, collated scoring analysis and presented recommendations to MD
- Led freight and bottling workstreams in Brexit Working Group — modelled total landed cost across EUR1 allowances and evolving reciprocal trade agreements; analysed forex rate scenarios to quantify cost swing range and inform forward currency purchasing decisions
- Maintained a proactive, disclosure-led relationship with the UK Wine Standards Board over 14 years — near-zero adverse findings across 800+ annual movements
Planning & Logistics Manager · Co-Founder · Naked Wines
2008 – 2011
- Established the UK inbound logistics function from launch — ordering, freight booking and goods-in
- Onboarded the initial winemaker portfolio — cost-plus allocations, in-country benchmarking and economies of scale
- Built procurement model in Google Sheets (PO logic, demand planning, cost validation); contributed to subsequent system formalisation
- Managed label compliance from design through to ongoing regulatory management with the UK Wine Standards Board
Planning & Logistics / Sales Operations Manager · Virgin Wines
Jul 2006 – Sep 2008
- Managed logistics and sales operations planning across the Virgin Wines business
Earlier Career
Your Loan Limited · Team Manager 2002 – 2004
Virgin One Account · Business Expert – Launch Team & Complex Account Management 1997 – 2000
Virgin Direct · PEP Admin / Windfall Shares Team Manager 1995 – 1996
Professional Development
Level 5: Leadership & Management in the AI Era · Tech Educators
Jan 2025 – Apr 2026
- Design Thinking, AI-enhanced problem-solving, critical analysis, live panel presentation
- Final project: AI-augmented procurement tool for SMEs — 40:1 ROI business case with governance framework