Category Manager - Retail

Category Manager - Huddersfield

£55,000-£60,000 salary | Private Medical | Pension | Life Assurance | 30 days' total holiday including bank holidays | Onsite parking

Are you an experienced Category Manager, Buyer or Commercial professional ready to take ownership of a high-growth category and make a real commercial impact?

This is an exciting opportunity to join a large, successful, family-owned multinational business and play a key role in shaping the pet category for retailers across the UK.

The opportunity

As Category Manager, you'll have end-to-end ownership of category strategy and performance, developing plans that maximise sales, margin and profitability while delivering the right range and value for customers.

You'll work closely with major suppliers and internal stakeholders, using market insight and commercial expertise to shape ranging, pricing, promotions and supplier investment.

You'll also mentor and develop Category Assistants, giving you the opportunity to build your leadership experience while making a visible contribution to the wider commercial team.

You'll be responsible for:

Developing and delivering category strategies and plans
Owning ranging, pricing and promotional activity
Maximising sales, margin, retail POR and cash profit
Building strong supplier relationships and Joint Business Plans
Negotiating supplier funding for marketing, media and promotional initiatives
Analysing category, market and promotional performance to identify opportunities
Managing range development, identifying gaps and strengthening the overall customer proposition
Developing the right balance of branded and own-brand products
Planning seasonal promotions and key commercial initiatives
Maximising product availability across your categories
Working closely with internal and external stakeholders
Mentoring and developing Category Assistants
Driving continuous improvement and delivering commercially successful outcomes

What you'll bring

We're looking for a commercially driven professional with significant experience in FMCG wholesale or retail, ideally within buying, sales or category management.

You'll bring:

Proven experience developing and delivering category strategies and promotional plans
Strong commercial judgement and analytical skills
Excellent negotiation and influencing ability
Tenacity, confidence and determination to achieve commercial results
Strong supplier and stakeholder relationship-building skills
Experience analysing market, category and performance data
Excellent problem-solving skills
A genuine commitment to continuous improvement

Why join?

This is an opportunity to move beyond simply managing a category. You'll have genuine ownership, influence and accountability, working with suppliers and internal teams to shape the future of an important and evolving market.

You'll join an established and growing international organisation with a strong family-owned heritage, a diverse portfolio of businesses and operations across the UK and internationally.

In return, you'll have the opportunity to develop your career, influence commercial strategy, build strong supplier partnerships and see the direct impact of your work.

The package

£55,000-£60,000 salary

Plus:

30 days' total holiday including bank holidays
Private Medical
Pension
Life Assurance
Onsite parkingYou don't need to tick every box. If you have most of the relevant experience and are ready for a role where you can genuinely influence category performance and make your mark, we'd love to hear from you.

Location: Huddersfield

Ready for your next commercial challenge? Apply today.

WR Logistics are a leading recruitment partner for the logistics and supply chain industry, recruiting across the UK, Europe, and the USA for permanent opportunities.

WR Logistics is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy
Only candidates based in UK and eligible to work in UK are allowed