Category Manager - Food Lion & Hannaford

Category Manager – Food Lion & Hannaford

Must live within 3 hours of Salisbury, NC

As a strategic partner to top customers, the Category Manager is responsible for providing fact-based, insight-led and actionable category solutions to drive growth for the category, customer, and company. This category thought-leader will translate consumer and data trends into value-creating business solutions regarding category assortment, merchandising, shelving, pricing, and promotion for Everyday candy as well as seasonal. Close collaboration with both internal & external partners will be critical to success within this role.

What are we looking for?

Minimum Qualifications:

• 2 years of business analytics leveraging variety of data resources (i.e. IRI, Nielsen, Stratum, Spectra, etc.)
• 5+ years of CPG Account and/or Category Management
• Bachelor’s degree
• Willingness to travel (up to 10% of time)
• Highly proficient in MS Office applications (i.e. Excel & PowerPoint)

Preferred Qualifications:

• Ahold experience
• Experience managing and visualizing data using cutting edge tools (i.e., MS Power BI, Tableau)

What would be your key responsibilities?

As the Lead Mars Wrigley Confectionary contact for Food Lion and Hannaford, this associate will:

• Lead the development of actionable category presentations utilizing storytelling

• Develop the knowledge and skills to consistently provide quality category support including:

  • Category assortment, merchandising, shelving, pricing, and promotional performance & recommendations

  • Planogram analysis and development

  • Competitive market analysis

  • Ad hoc and ongoing data management, reporting, and the creation of analytical tools

  • Lead the development of actionable category presentations utilizing storytelling

  • Project leadership & support, potentially including test & learn analytics

• Collaborate closely with Mars Wrigley sales and cross-functional stakeholders, ensuring clear communication and alignment on category and customer plans.
• Partner closely with the Mars Wrigley Category Strategy team to leverage and activate agreed upon internal category initiatives, including "Perfect Store" execution and other success measures, with detailed follow-through.
• Competitive market analysis
• Build credibility and develop positive, cross-functional relationships with key customer stakeholders to maintain a high level of partnership with customers on Confectionery strategies.
• Create, plan, and execute category leadership solutions for the Everyday Confectionery Category which will deliver profitable sales growth.
• Ad hoc and ongoing data management, reporting, and the creation of analytical tools
• Project leadership & support, potentially including test & learn analytics
• Category assortment, merchandising, shelving, pricing, and promotional performance & recommendations
• Planogram analysis and development
• Leverage insights and resources through the utilization of a broad range of data sources, market research findings, tools, analyses, and technology; clearly articulating growth strategies and providing guidance to your customers toward quality category decisions.

What can you expect from Mars?

• Join a purpose driven company, where we are striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
• Work with over 130,000 diverse and talented Associates, all guided by The Five Principles.
• This role includes a company vehicle.
• Best-in-class learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
• An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.

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