Category Marketing Manager

To play a key role in the Category Development and wider Commercial team to develop and deliver the Category Strategy with designated customers – Morrisons and Sainsbury to lead the Category agenda with those customers, developing our branded portfolio

• To develop and execute the annual customer category plan, influencing the customer to execute our category vision, category, merchandising and promotional strategies, segmentation, category/consumer/shopper research and category initiatives.
• To identify and manage customer specific category initiatives and projects (demand and supply) to increase sales and profitability in the category
• To lead and deliver the range, seasonal review and gap analysis processes with our customers that deliver the category strategies, using a brand solution wherever possible. Actively manage our range through Portfolio Management and the distribution tracker to facilitate better management of the tail and drive distribution of best sellers to respond to shopper demand.
• To lead and deliver merchandising reviews and category Point of Purchase (POP) tactics as needed with customers, managing store trials and roll out plans as appropriate.
• To lead and deliver promotions tactics with the customer including regular reporting, influencing and evaluating customer promotions.
• To provide regular category performance tracking (monthly and quarterly) to the customer where required (using our information and/or retailer specific data) and to maintain category analytical tools as appropriate.
• To manage the budget allocated to their account and display cost awareness and efficiency with regard to the overall department budget hitting the YE forecast

QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE, TECHNICAL SKILLS / KNOWLEDGE

• Significant category management experience within a FMCG environment, operating at a manager level.
• Knowledge: Full understanding of the Category Management process; Range review process; innovation process and Portfolio management; excellent understanding and knowledge of retailers;
• Experience of developing and coaching others in category management techniques.
• Solid experience of the different software systems and their uses where applicable: Outlook, Microsoft Office, Excel and Powerpoint. Dunnhumby; . Good working knowledge of continuous and ad hoc data sources and applicable suppliers and tools i.e. IRI and Kantar.
• Great commercial skills: good understanding of the industry; analytical.
• Planning skills: experience of creating, implementing and engaging others to achieve customer category plans.
• Analytical: Can present complex information in a clear confident and enthusiastic manner; Effective use of facts and data to support a proposal; Understands the cost base and makes improvements/recommendations based on cost/benefit and/or ROI analysis. Up to date on competition information and identifies potential threats to our business.
• Great communication skills: impactful presentation skills; articulate, influential- demonstrates flexibility; persuasive- can develop persuasive arguments. expresses views clearly and concisely
• Great relationship builder- experience in establishing credibility and rapport with both internal and external contacts at a senior level. Listens and welcomes ideas from others; manages conflict to an acceptable outcome for all.
• Experience of establishing regular and ad-hoc reporting and analysis of customer/product/project performance and developing action plans to rectify performance/profitability issues.
• Project management skills: Ability to plan implementation of short-term work and/or projects.

Location wise- The office is in Northwest Surrey, whilst this isnt necessarily hybrid, you will be working between HQ, Customer and store visits, so need to be georaphically mobile and able to travel