Category Manager, Multicultural Produce

Kroger•Cincinnati, OH

About The Position

Serve as the leader of the Multicultural Produce Category and have the 4Ps accountability across all channels. Responsible for owning end-to-end assortment, financials, and overall category strategy with inputs from support teams to make data-driven decisions that reflect local needs. Demonstrate the company's core values of respect, honesty, integrity, diversity, inclusion, and safety.

Requirements

3+ years of experience in one of the following areas: replenishment buying/procurement, merchandising, store management, operations, or brand management
Proficient in Microsoft Office
Strong organization and multi-tasking skills
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
Demonstrated ability to coach and train
Strong attention to detail
Excellent oral/written communication skills

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's Degree
Any vendor negotiations or promo planning experience
Any division sales manager, store coordinator, or store manager experience

Responsibilities

Develop formalized short and long-term category strategies and tactics that deliver a unified customer experience across all channels (brick & mortar, extended aisle, digital shelf)
Stay ahead of and respond to industry/customer trends; understand market share and competition; escalate communication to relevant parties (i.e., Our Brands or Divisions) with changes and important initiatives
Understand all available levers across 4Ps to drive category forward and achieve KPIs and goals; be proficient across all systems (NEXT, Stratum, etc.); drive and manage full product life-cycle, including add/deletes and relevant cross-functional meetings
Build assortment after reviewing data from vendors, 84.51 and Our Brands; gather division input during feedback window, managing expectations and communication on segmentation and local assortment needs
Oversee plan-o-gram process, including deadlines, placement, and flow, ensuring guidelines are met
Track and monitor SKU performance and adjust assortment, as needed, to meet financial and strategic goals
Maintain category budgets, forecasts, and plans; understand contribution to total enterprise and division goals
Establish price and category architecture and provide input on trends for programs
Review inclusion in pricing programs with an eye to item financial performance and category strategy
Set base prices and use data to evaluate decisions to deviate from pricing algorithm recommendations
Determine response to competitor price moves or cost change based on recommendation from Pricing team
Oversee promotional strategy to engage customers and drive excitement
Review past ad performance and define promo strategies & goals, including A/B strategies for major promos
Select products for promotion, leveraging data on shelf capacity, number of stores selling, display locations
Set starting promotional prices and define guardrails for promo planners as they tailor prices to divisions
Understand timing of Test & Learns and how to properly manage process
Oversee end-to-end product flow and provide direction for stores/replenishment when supply issues occur
Manage strategic vendor relationships, including communicating priorities and assortment opportunities, identifying long-term supply changes, negotiating competitive prices, and staying ahead of industry trends
Engage vendors, source promo offers, decide on awards; provide directional forecast needs
Supervise and coach direct reports in the performance of their duties; complete performance reviews and provide feedback to direct reports
Must be able to perform the essential job functions of this position with or without reasonable accommodation