Sr. Manager, Category & Commercial Strategy

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream•New York, NY

10h•$115,000 - $140,000•Remote

About The Position

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, founded in 2008, is seeking a full-time Senior Manager, Category & Commercial Strategy. The company is experiencing accelerated growth across retail brick and mortar and CPG. This role is ideal for an experienced, data-driven, CPG-savvy individual who thrives in a fast-paced environment. The Senior Manager will bridge strategy and execution across category, pricing, and in-market activation, acting as the commercial architect for winning at the shelf. Responsibilities include developing and executing best-in-class category, pricing, promotion, and merchandising strategies to drive velocity, profitable growth, and retailer alignment across all channels. The role requires cross-functional collaboration with Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Customers to ensure success both at shelf and online. This position is fully remote and can be based anywhere in the United States, with a strong preference for candidates in markets with Van Leeuwen retail outlets (CA, CO, TX, IL, FL, GA, NC, TN, PA, NJ, NYC, CT, or MA).

Requirements

6 to 10+ years in Category management (CPG) and Trade marketing / shopper marketing
Experience with Frozen or perimeter categories, distributor environments (UNFI, KeHE), and high-growth emerging brands
Experience in pricing & promo strategy (NRM-lite capability) and turning data and insights into a selling story
Proven record of crafting comprehensive storytelling to be used in retailer sell-in
Comfortable with imperfect data environments, building resources and tools from scratch and ability to pivot and adjust quickly
Ability to sustain high accuracy and work performance
Technical aptitude and ability to quickly learn new applications
Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively, self-prioritizing work load in a fast paced, team-oriented work environment
Strong comprehension and problem-solving skills
Must be comfortable working in-store scoop shifts as needed, while adhering to DOH guidelines

Responsibilities

Define how Van Leeuwen shows up within frozen dessert, providing a clear POV versus competitors (premium vs ultra-premium vs better for you) and retailer-facing category decks that earn distribution, including defining category roles (Dairy Pints, Non-Dairy Pints, Novelties), assortment architecture by channel (Natural, Food, Mass, Club), shelf strategy (SKU count, segmentation, price tiers), and white space identification (flavor, format, pack size).
Execute repeatable playbooks across channels of trade, establishing consistent pricing ladder across customers, reducing margin leakage, and a clear good/better/best promo strategy, defining how the brand shows up on shelf physically and digitally, including everyday pricing (EDLP guardrails by channel) and promo architecture, depth, frequency & mechanics focused on Trade spend guardrails + ROI expectations, establishing and executing shelving and merchandising standards, and developing and owning innovation launch playbooks and Seasonal/LTO calendars.
Ensure strategy translates into real-world execution and optimize trade investments, including distribution tracking and reset readiness support, new item sell-in tools (data driven decks), trade calendar tracking, and post promotional analyses (Lift, ROI, Incrementality).