Category Manager
West Midlands (Hybrid)
£50,000 + car allowance and bonus
Our client is a market and category leading B2B furnishings business with an impressive history of growth delivered through a commitment to innovation and investing in brands. They are looking to further accelerate their performance with the appointment of a best in class Category Manager.
Reporting to the Strategy and Insights Director, the successful candidate will play a key role in the development and delivery of the category strategy for a major division within the group, a new role in the business.
The successful candidate will be the no 2 hire for the team and ultimately be responsible for the internal and external delivery of category support and the overall "shape of service", including insight generation & reporting, management of customer range review cycles and relationships across a division of key retail and B2B customers.
In this new and expansive role, your responsibilities will include but not be limited to the following:
- Analyse data and insights to determine industry trends, consumer preferences, and regulatory changes; presenting the insights to the relevant departments to assist the growth strategy.
- Help carve out the category management function in a business that is investing heavily in this area.
- Take ownership over the category function and help drive it alongside the director
- Develop category strategies with the director e.g., space planning, range reviews, pricing strategies, strategic development, NPI implementation.
- Collaborate with the buying team to expand and remove product categories.
- Work with Marketing, Buying, and Merchandising to develop NPD and ensure category focus is at the core of product development.
- In conjunction with the Buying Team, Sales Leaders, and Marketing Team, manage the agreed Promotional Plan from development stage to analysis stage.
- Establish relevant weekly/monthly reports to monitor and enhance performance against core KPIs and objectives and present back to relevant stakeholders
- Identify and maximise opportunities in the current customer base.
- Provide guidance and support to cross-functional teams, including sales representatives and marketing managers, to ensure the successful execution of category strategies.
The ideal candidate will want to carve out a role in a growing category team that is receiving significant investment and attention from the wider business. This is a solid mid-level role where you'll work directly with a very experienced director.
You might have 2-4 years' experience under your belt and want to take that next step in category management (or similar) role. A background in FMCG, consumer goods or retail business with some ecomm on top would be ideal.
If this is something that you would like to know more about, apply with an up to date CV or drop me a message on LinkedIn.