Category Manager-Produce (Hybrid)

Food Lion • Salisbury, NC

92d

About The Position

At Food Lion, Associates are the most important assets to our organization. We want associates to have meaningful careers full of variety and challenges. Each associate contributes to the overall success of Food Lion, and in return, we strive to provide all associates with a fulfilling work experience and reward performance and commitment. We are committed to the professional development of our associates through on-the-job learning opportunities and training. The position is responsible for producing a comprehensive and cohesive category strategy which successfully meets the needs of our customers and achieves category goals while supporting brand integrated business plans. The role drives the day-to-day activities of a selling organization culture with a consumer-centric focus through Category, Merchandising and Pricing (CMP) responsibilities. It also involves thought leadership and category expertise around trends and category innovation.

Requirements

• Extensive knowledge of applicable practice areas, i.e., Fresh categories including Produce, Meat/Seafood, HMS/Deli/Bakery
• Strong financial planning and budgeting experience
• Cross-functional leadership experience with a demonstrated ability to build cross-functional teams
• Demonstrated management expertise
• Demonstrated relationship management experience with vendors, brokers and third party consultants
• Seasoned level of knowledge for company, business and industry practices
• 5 - 8 years in Category Management
• Minimum of 8 years combined experience in retail, merchandising, pricing, logistics, supply chain, procurement, or distribution

Nice To Haves

• Master of Business Administration Degree (MBA)
• Experience leading during organizational change management
• Demonstrated track record of developing others
• Knowledge of merchandising management, retail management, replenishment and item management systems
• Proficiency with Logistics as it plays a critical role with short shelf life products
• Proficiency with commissary operations and processes
• Expert in food preparation practices and overall food safety standards
• Knowledge of local and state governmental impacts to selling fresh product (FDA, USDA, Weights/Measures, etc.)

Responsibilities

• Manages performance for assigned category including margin and shrink
• Responsible for all category financial & customer metrics
• Responsible for procurement and replenishment (Fresh) and in stock position at the shelf
• Responsible for talent planning, team development and performance management
• Develops and executes customer-focused category plans and drives a selling culture
• Manages pricing for assigned categories and influences pricing strategy
• Subject matter expert for assigned categories
• Manages assortment and selection for assigned categories (e.g., final approval for all POG decisions)
• Drives product innovation
• Vendor negotiation and relationships
• Develops and builds strong teams

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Industry: Food and Beverage Retailers
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree