Category Manager, Bath & Body

Innovative Beauty Group • Mississauga, ON

6d • CA$70,000 - CA$90,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

IBG (Innovative Beauty Group) is a global one-stop beauty shop that partners with clients to bring beauty visions to life. IBG North America specializes in turnkey solutions, private label and packaging in the beauty industry. We are seeking a Category Manager to join our Product Development and Innovation team. This role will oversee the full product life cycle from concept through commercialization within the Bath and Body category, and will lead and mentor Product Innovation Specialists and Product Developers. This is for an existing vacancy.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Product Development, Business, Marketing, or a related field
• 5+ years of experience in product development, category management, global sourcing, or merchandising
• At least 2 years in a leadership or category ownership role
• Strong understanding of global sourcing, cost management, and category innovation processes — particularly in China and Korea supplier markets.
• Experience collaborating with Sales teams and clients to develop tailored beauty and personal care product solutions.
• Proven ability to lead and mentor cross-functional teams to deliver business objectives.
• Proficiency in data analysis and ERP/PLM systems (e.g., PMOne).
• Strong organizational and analytical skills — able to manage category performance data, cost structures, and development timelines.
• Effective communicator capable of influencing across teams, functions, and regions.
• Collaborative and decisive, with a results-oriented leadership style.
• Creative eye for market trends, design, and consumer behaviour in beauty and personal care.
• Ability and willingness to travel regionally and internationally for supplier visits and product development reviews.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced degree preferred

Responsibilities

• Own and manage the strategic direction, development, and performance of the assigned beauty and personal care product category — defining the category roadmap and ensuring IBG remains competitive, innovative, and commercially excellent.
• Analyze market trends, competitor activity, and cost structures to inform decision-making and maintain category competitiveness.
• Analyze category performance to assess product viability, pricing strategy, and lifecycle management.
• Own NPD stage-gate governance, compliance, and decision-making processes across the assigned category portfolio.
• Lead category reviews evaluating portfolio performance, innovation opportunities, competitive activity, and market trends.
• Develop annual category growth strategies and category roadmaps aligned with business objectives and customer opportunities.
• Own category-level KPI performance, including innovation conversion, development cycle time, stage-gate compliance, margin improvement, and revenue from new product launches.
• Present regular category business reviews and KPI dashboards to leadership, highlighting performance trends, risks, and improvement actions.
• Coordinate with IBG's global sourcing teams in China and Korea to secure best pricing, materials, and manufacturing solutions for the category.
• Collaborate, build, and maintain IBG's global supplier network — supporting innovation speed-to-market and supplier competitiveness for the category.
• Work with the AI Beauty Intelligence team (where applicable) to integrate data-driven insights into the category's product and innovation strategies.
• Serve as a backup to the product development team — directly managing active development programs when team capacity requires senior coverage.

Benefits

• Competitive total rewards package with a salary range of $70,000-$90,000 depending on experience
• Comprehensive health/dental and retirement savings plan with employer match
• Hybrid environment with the opportunity to work 2 days remotely
• International working environment full of energy, beauty and growth
• Opportunities to grow, both personally and professionally
• A great bunch of colleagues

What This Job Offers

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