VP - Meat/Seafood

Brookshire's•Tyler, TX

10d

About The Position

Provides strategic leadership for the Meat and Seafood categories across all Company banners and leads the professional development of Category Management partners, ensuring delivery of planned results for sales, gross profit, and shrink. Builds and maintains effective vendor relationships to negotiate, procure, and coordinate efficient distribution of quality meat and seafood products to each Company banner. Directs category strategies and tactics for competitive pricing, promotions, store layouts, and assortment, aligned with Company initiatives. The role supervises category managers, inventory control analysts, zone specialists, and administrative support staff. It oversees merchandising strategies tailored to each banner, develops category and financial plans, sets and monitors sales, margin, and shrink goals, and prepares the Meat and Seafood Category Management budget for senior leadership approval. The position monitors category performance, store operating results, consumer behavior, competitive conditions, and commodity markets to guide buying, pricing, and promotional decisions. The VP builds senior-level supplier relationships and directs strategies for SKU productivity, channel segmentation, margins, pricing, sell-through, and supply availability. The role ensures product quality, inbound accountability, food safety, and compliance with governmental labeling requirements; guides seafood sourcing, traceability, and responsible sourcing practices; and partners with retail operations and logistics to improve procurement, local market relevance, and cold-chain transportation, delivery, and receipt procedures. The role may require travel and flexible schedules, including nights, weekends, and holidays.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in business, agriculture, food science, or a related field and ten or more years of related experience in meat and/or seafood merchandising, procurement, or category management, including significant leadership experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Advanced knowledge of retail meat and seafood departments, commodity markets, sourcing, and food safety requirements.
Advanced knowledge of software systems used for planning, forecasting, and budgeting.
Intermediate knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Access, Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint.
Intermediate knowledge of SAP reporting and transactional applications.
Strong financial acumen, including P&L management, margin analysis, and forecasting.
Ability to lead, develop, and motivate a team of category professionals.
Strong negotiation skills with senior-level supplier partners.
Ability to work creatively and in a driven manner, including in a hands-on management capacity.
Ability to adapt to new work structures, environments, and processes.
Effective written and verbal communication, comprehension, and interpretation skills.
Ability to prepare reports and business correspondence; research information, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions; learn new technology systems, methods, and processes; reason, form concepts, recognize and solve problems; analyze information; and present information in presentation or diagram form.
Ability to maintain confidentiality regarding sensitive information.
Ability to work flexible schedules, including nights, weekends, and holidays, and occasionally travel to off-site and out-of-town locations with possible overnight stays.
Must be 21 years of age or older to drive for Company business under the BGC Business Driver Policy.
Must be attentive to potential hazards, remedy them or place appropriate warnings as soon as reasonably possible, and report hazards that cannot be immediately remedied to a supervisor.

Nice To Haves

Multi-banner experience.
Retail meat department operations or meat cutting experience.

Responsibilities

Interview, hire, train, develop, schedule, and manage partners; assign and direct work; appraise performance; reward and discipline partners; and address complaints and resolve problems.
Work with senior leadership to determine pay and the department budget.
Supervise category managers, inventory control analysts, zone specialists, and administrative support staff.
Oversee development of meat and seafood merchandising strategies tailored to each banner, including seasonal adaptations.
Work with category personnel to translate financial goals into strategic plans and programs.
Review category and financial results to ensure sales growth targets are met or exceeded.
Set sales, margin, and shrink goals and ensure inventory control analysts execute them properly.
Develop the Meat and Seafood Category Management budget and present it to senior leadership for approval.
Monitor category performance, store operating results, consumer behavior, and the competitive environment, and determine appropriate actions.
Build collaborative senior-level relationships with strategic suppliers, including packers, processors, and seafood suppliers.
Monitor beef, pork, poultry, and seafood commodity markets and anticipate cost and supply trends to inform buying, pricing, and promotional decisions.
Direct meat and seafood strategies to drive SKU productivity, channel segmentation, margins, pricing, sell-through, and supply availability planning.
Improve in-store performance, with significant focus on product and department flow.
Ensure the quality integrity of inbound and outbound fresh meat and seafood products.
Establish inbound product accountability through thorough inspections and ensure field-level inspections meet quality control and food safety standards and governmental labeling requirements.
Guide seafood sourcing strategy, including supplier standards, product traceability, and responsible sourcing practices.
Work with retail operations to enhance procurement programs and ensure local market relevance.
Communicate with zone specialists about market conditions, product quality, availability, and new items.
Support vendor business reviews, joint business planning, and customer insights to grow meat and seafood departments.
Partner with logistics to develop standard operating procedures for transportation, delivery, and receipt of meat and seafood products, including cold-chain integrity.
Occasionally travel to off-site and out-of-town locations, possibly with overnight stays.
Work flexible schedules, including nights, weekends, and holidays.
Attend work as required and promptly address or report potential hazards.