Senior Category Development Manager

Job Title: Senior Category Development Manager

Location: Any of our offices - Middlebrook, MIlton Keynes, Cumbernauld, London Hub (Hybrid Office based role)

Are you ready to Be Your Best Barr None? 

Lets Grow!!!

We are all about Being Your Best Barr None and having a career with real Moments that Matter!

Employing around 850 people across the UK, we are proud to be a responsible business that takes care of our people, values diversity, gives something back to our communities and works to minimise our environmental impact.

For 150 years AG Barr has been building great brands and is home to some of the nations favourite flavours.

At our core is  IRN-BRU, launched in 1901 and still going strong today, the vibrant RUBICON fruit based brand, Boost making every moment better with a caffeine kick, hydration hit or tasty treat, and FUNKIN where real fruit means authentic taste.

We also have a number of exciting owned brands within our portfolio including MOMA, which crafts quality oats into great tasting oat drinks and porridges.

There's never been a better time to join us!

What we’re looking for…

 A pivotal, outward facing role dedicated to shaping the future of the category. You will act as a strategic partner to our customers, leveraging deep consumer insights and market trends, whilst executing our category strategy. By delivering data driven range and merchandising recommendations, you will directly influence customer decision making and unlock sustainable growth opportunities for both the retailer and the brand.  

Your responsibilities will include...

Strategic Advisory: Lead the development of multi year category strategies that align brand objectives with retailer growth pillars.

Strategy Deployment: Lead the activation of long-term category strategies (e.g., "Excite Me" or "Make it Special") to drive sustainable growth and influence customer range reviews.

Customer Influence: Build and maintain high-level relationships with retail partners to become a first call advisor for category decisions.

Range & Merchandising: Deliver expert recommendations on assortment and shelf layout, using shopper insights and sales data to maximise conversion.

Insight Synthesis: Translate complex data sets (Nielsen, Kantar, Retailer loyalty data) into compelling growth stories that drive tangible business results.

Future Proofing: Identify emerging market trends and white space opportunities to ensure the category remains relevant in a shifting landscape.

Cross Functional Collaboration: Partner with Sales and Commercial to identify distribution headroom (white-space opportunities) and highlight delisting risks, advising how the business can proactively defend or grow its footprint. 

Range Review Management: Own the Range Review calendar for your accounts, providing early visibility to internal Brand and Commercial teams to ensure innovation launches are perfectly timed for maximum impact.

Internal Insight Hub: Act as the "Voice of the Customer" internally, sharing critical shopper and retailer insights back to the Marketing & Commercial teams to shape future business plans.

What you’ll bring...

• Sector Experience: Substantial experience in Category Management/Trade Marketing or a Business-related degree within a fast-paced FMCG environment
• Strategic Deployment: Proven track record of taking a category strategy and successfully landing it with a major retailer to drive measurable growth.
• Customer Influence: Experience managing the major multiple retailers (Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s) and a deep understanding of their specific category rituals and Advantage Survey metrics.
• Advanced Data : Expertise in distilling complex, multi source data (We use tools like Nielsen and Kantar) but what really matters is your ability to take that data and turn it into a clear, simple story
• Cross Functional Leadership: Ability to collaborate with Sales and Supply Chain teams to map distribution risks and identify "white space" headroom for brand expansion.
• Communication: Exceptional presentation skills, with the ability to turn "data dumps" into clear, persuasive visual narratives.
• Commercial Acumen: Strong understanding of P&L drivers, promotional effectiveness, and the wider FMCG/Retail landscape.

You will also demonstrate our AG Barr behaviours of Being Honest, Accountable, Connected and Brave.

What we offer…

We believe in creating a diverse and inclusive culture where your voice can be heard.  Our skilled, loyal and committed people are critical to the future success of AG Barr which is why we are continually investing in our employees to develop their talent.

We look after our employees by offering a competitive salary and benefits package which includes;

• Annual bonus linked to business performance
• Defined contribution Pension
• Up to 34 days holiday (depending on shift pattern)
• Flexible holiday trading
• Flexible cash pot to spend on benefits
• Healthcare Cash Plan
• Flexible benefits e.g. discounts & cashbacks, gym memberships, technology purchases etc
• Life assurance
• Save as you earn scheme
• Staff sales discount
• Free AG Barr products throughout your working day and staff sales
• Annual salary review 
• Ongoing professional development and access to Learning and Development programmes and content

And much more! 

To find out more about what it is like to work for AG Barr, please visit our careers platform here.

We are an equal opportunities employer and happy to discuss any reasonable adjustments that may be needed for successful candidates with a disability, health or mental health condition.

While we have highlighted our ideal requirements for this role, we are realistic that the successful candidate probably won't meet every single requirement in this advert, but we are big advocates of people growing in role. So even if you don’t meet every single requirement, we encourage you to submit an application - you may be just what we are looking for! Apply now!

Speculative CVs from agencies will not be accepted. External closing date is 8th April

Please note, we may close vacancies early where we receive significant numbers of applications, so apply now!