Head of Merchandise (Category Leadership)

• Own the strategy and performance of a major merchandise portfolio

• Lead and develop an experienced team of category and technical specialists

• Lead the experts. Rural product knowledge is not required

Shape the future of a portfolio that matters

Few merchandise leadership opportunities in Christchurch offer this level of scale, influence and strategic ownership.

At Farmlands, you'll lead one of our most commercially important merchandise portfolios, shaping strategy, influencing business performance and developing a high-performing team. This is a rare opportunity to bring fresh thinking, lead experienced specialists and make a lasting impact on a business that supports farmers and growers across New Zealand.

Reporting to the Chief Merchandising Officer, you'll join a high-performing leadership team and play a key role in shaping the future direction of Merchandise at Farmlands.

You do not need expertise in agronomy, fertiliser or horticulture. This is a role for a leader who enjoys leading experts. Your team already brings deep technical knowledge and specialist capability, and success comes from your ability to develop people, shape strategy, build strong supplier partnerships and deliver commercial outcomes rather than being the technical expert yourself.

This Christchurch-based role is open to applications from across New Zealand, and we welcome candidates who are open to relocating.

Mō te whai waahi | About the opportunity

You'll have the opportunity to:

• Define and execute the strategy for a nationally significant merchandise portfolio

• Lead, coach and develop an experienced team

• Drive commercial performance across pricing, margin, supplier strategy and portfolio growth

• Lead major supplier relationships and complex commercial negotiations

• Identify opportunities through customer, market and performance insights

• Influence decision-making across sales, supply chain, operations, finance and marketing

• Lead change, simplify complexity and create alignment across diverse stakeholder groups

• Partner closely with senior leaders to shape the future direction of the business

This role offers genuine leadership breadth, strategic ownership and the opportunity to bring fresh thinking from outside the rural sector while making a lasting impact on an important part of the Farmlands business.

Mōhou ake | About you

You may currently be leading a category, merchandise or portfolio function within a complex product-led business. What matters most is your ability to develop people, shape strategy, build supplier partnerships and deliver commercial results.

You'll bring:

• Significant recent experience leading category, merchandise or portfolio functions

• A proven track record of building and developing high-performing teams

• Strong commercial capability across pricing, margin, growth and performance

• Experience developing and executing strategic plans

• Well-developed supplier negotiation and relationship management skills

• The ability to influence across executive, operational and external stakeholder groups

• A customer-focused and commercially-driven mindset

• Confidence leading specialist subject matter experts without needing to be the technical expert yourself

We welcome applications from leaders across FMCG, retail, grocery, wholesale, distribution, manufacturing, building products and other complex product-led businesses.

You do not need an agronomy, fertiliser, horticulture or rural background.

If you've built successful teams, led category strategy and delivered commercial performance, we want to hear from you.

Mō ngā painga | Why this role stands out

• Lead one of Farmlands' most significant merchandise portfolios

• Join the merchandise leadership team and work closely with the Chief Merchandising Officer

• Lead an experienced team of category and technical specialists

• Shape strategy, supplier partnerships and commercial performance at a national level

• Apply your leadership experience in a business that directly supports New Zealand farmers and growers

• Influence the future direction of a key part of the Farmlands business

Ready for your next leadership challenge?

This is an opportunity to bring your category leadership experience into a role with genuine scale, influence and visibility.

If you're ready to lead an experienced team, shape strategy at a national level and make a meaningful contribution to the future of Farmlands, we'd love to hear from you.

Applications close 4 September 2026. We will be reviewing applications and progressing suitable candidates as they are received, so we encourage early applications.

Applicants must have the legal right to work in New Zealand and will be required to complete relevant pre-employment checks.