Assistant Category Merchant , Dairy Specialty, Specialty Cheese

Amazon • Austin, TX

1d • $53,700 - $94,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Assistant Category Merchant supports Whole Foods Market's Specialty Dairy category merchandising workstreams, contributing to the development and execution of strategies that deliver a differentiated assortment aligned with customer demand, quality standards, and financial goals.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in supply chain, business, engineering, finance or related technical or quantitative field, or 2+ years of industry work experience
• 1+ years of experience in buying, category management, account management, or program management within a retail environment.
• Intermediate proficiency in Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP, data analysis) and experience with business intelligence or analytics tools.
• Demonstrated ability to manage vendor relationships, analyze sales data, and support assortment or promotional planning.

Nice To Haves

• 1+ years of experience in specialty food, cheese, or perishable category management within a retail or grocery environment.
• Knowledge of artisan and specialty cheese.
• Experience managing supplier and distributor relationships.
• Proficiency in analyzing sales, margin, and assortment data.
• Experience with retail analytics tools (e.g. Nielsen or internal WFM/Amazon reporting systems) to evaluate item performance, promotional lift, and regional trends.
• Familiarity with food safety and compliance requirements for perishable/dairy categories.
• Understanding of seasonal merchandising and promotional planning — including experience supporting destination programs, cut-to-order, or demo/sampling initiatives.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills — ability to partner with various support teams, operations, and marketing on assortment and merchandising decisions.
• Passion for food, cheese culture, and customer experience — demonstrated through industry involvement (e.g., ACS certification, cheese education, food industry events).

Responsibilities

• Supports program execution in partnership with Compliance, Marketing, E-Commerce, Operations, Finance, and Technology teams to ensure initiatives are delivered on time and aligned with category objectives.
• Reviews and analyzes category performance metrics, sales trends, and financial health to identify growth opportunities, inform assortment decisions, and support margin optimization.
• Maintains and updates the Specialty Dairy assortment, ensuring product mix reflects market trends, seasonal opportunities, supplier capabilities, and regional customer preferences.
• Supports vendor communication, pricing negotiations, and delivery timelines to ensure product availability and alignment with merchandising plans.
• Leverages sales data, inventory reports, and market insights to forecast demand and make recommendations for future product assortment and promotional strategies.
• Assists in maintaining visual merchandising standards and promotional execution that elevate the Specialty Dairy category in-store and online.

Benefits

• health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage)
• 401(k) matching
• paid time off
• parental leave
• sign-on payments
• restricted stock units (RSUs)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level