Dry Goods & Pantry Merchant

Description

• Responsible for category sales & contribution margin for the Pantry business with a clear goal to grow the category and achieve or exceed the business plan
• Develop and own strategic vision for Pantry expansion at Wild Fork
• Directly work with internal and vendor partners to manage products within your categories with a hands-on approach
• Lead department level category management using analytical tools such as QlikView & Excel to find opportunities to optimize margins, reduce costs & improve ROI on new products
• Work with distributors & key National Brands to bring top volume brands to the assortment
• Develop long-term relationships that allow Wild Fork to develop its own private label brand and products in the category
• Maintain brand and business guardrails throughout product development process
• Own the movement of the products through the product development lifecycle
• Manage large-scale implementation of products across various channels of the business through close collaboration with functional areas: Marketing, Finance, Operations, Supply Chain & Digital
• Formulate purchasing strategies for the business through the analysis of market & trends
• Collaborate across the established retail partnerships in Canada, Mexico & Brazil to find synergies in product development, and develop a global platform for sharing best business and product development practices. Strong cross-cultural competence and communication skills is ideal to carry out such initiatives
• Monitor operational statistics, reports trends, variances and issues, and takes appropriate action.
• Coordinate and disseminate product information to Marketing through product review process and to Retail through appropriate communication processes.

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in Retail Center of Store Category Management. Grocery/Pantry experience preferred. Experience in other categories is a plus.  
• Prior start up experiences an asset, in Tech or Food-Tech environments 
• Deep understanding of trends in retail & food service environments 
• Passion for Food & obsession for quality  
• Strong focus for continuous improvement within category and throughout the business  
• Strong command of various analytical tools in MS Office (Excel/ Smart Sheets as example)   
• Establishes trust and inspires others 
• Command of negotiation and relationship building skills 
• Makes effective organization and people decisions in a manner consistent with Wild Fork Foods values and ethics. 
• Champions the organization and advocates solutions in the overall Company's best interest. 
• Uses business knowledge, innovative thinking, and sound judgment in the solution of problems or the pursuit of business opportunities. 
• Exceptional written, verbal communication & systems skills (including MS Office)