Category Development Manager

C&S Wholesale Grocers•Miami, FL

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Keep our communities fed. Our focus is simple but meaningful — from our distribution centers to our offices, every employee of C&S and our family of companies works to help feed local families, neighbors, and communities. As a Category Development Manager, you will develop the overall shelf assortment strategy for one or more product categories. This position requires an understanding of consumer and shopper needs, purchase behavior, new product vitality, and the importance of private-label, specialty, and regionally relevant product options that drive sales and achieve performance targets. You will be responsible for providing product category insights and proposals by analyzing marketing and customer data and monitoring relevant market conditions. Success in this role demands a strong strategic and analytical orientation, exceptional communication skills, and a highly collaborative nature, with a clear focus on driving sustainable category sales and profitability.

Requirements

Working knowledge of current technologies and products used in the industry; strong commercial acumen.
Strong strategic and analytical orientation.
Proven leadership, team-building, and problem-solving abilities.
Strong organizational, project management, and stakeholder service skills.
Exceptional presentation, communication, and storytelling skills.
Self-motivated, action-focused mindset.
2-5 years of experience and knowledge in category management, marketing, and sales principles.

Responsibilities

Category Strategy & Assortment: Developing, managing, and delivering warehouse-specific category planograms, including mix options, variety, shopper selection, and output quality.
Integrating key corporate growth objectives into assortment planning imperatives, clear retail guidance, and in-store activation priorities.
Establishing assortment growth goals aligned with the C&S growth plan.
Monitoring, tracking, and communicating assortment and execution KPIs against timelines and results.
Analytics: Analyzing data to identify growth and operational opportunities across all product categories.
Incorporating key insights to determine industry and consumer trends, product market performance, and space-to-sales allocation.
Leveraging shopper insights to make macro-planning decisions regarding category placement, adjacencies, and store flow.
Applying shopper insights for micro-planning decisions, including product placement, visibility, and adjacencies.
Internal and External Connectivity: Leading manufacturer relationships focused on category mix, assortment, and best practices, and incorporating key learnings into planning and activation plans.
Communicating internally and externally regarding cycle guidance and execution.
Developing business cases and recommendations for new products.
Collaborating with internal supply chain partners to recommend exit strategies for underperforming products.
Partnering with systems, product, and sales management teams to ensure realization of growth objectives.
Planning and Process: Leading assortment planning SOPs and ensuring process adherence and proper outputs.
Maintaining engagement and accuracy of key information and asset management resources.