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Category Development Manager - Premium Drinks
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An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Category Development Manager
to join a high-profile branded FMCG business and play a pivotal role in shaping category strategy across major UK grocery customers.
This is a highly customer-facing category role for someone who loves turning complex shopper and retailer data into clear commercial stories. You'll become a trusted category partner to your customers, using insight to influence decisions across range, distribution, merchandising, pricing and promotions.
Working closely with Sales, Marketing, Shopper Marketing and Revenue Growth Management, you'll help identify where the biggest opportunities lie and turn insight into tangible commercial results.
The Role
You'll take ownership of category relationships across a portfolio of major grocery customers, leading regular category reviews and developing retailer-specific growth plans.
A major focus will be understanding what's happening within the category, identifying the commercial "size of prize" and building compelling, evidence-led recommendations that influence customer decision-making.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Own and develop category relationships with major UK grocery customers
- Become a trusted category advisor to retailer buying and category teams
- Lead monthly customer category reviews, providing insight and strategic recommendations
- Develop retailer-specific category growth plans
- Analyse Circana/IRI, NIQ, EPOS, loyalty and shopper data
- Turn complex datasets into clear, commercially compelling customer stories
- Identify opportunities across distribution, ranging, Rate of Sale (ROS), merchandising and promotions
- Quantify growth opportunities and build robust commercial business cases
- Monitor category performance, market share, range productivity and shopper penetration
- Partner with Sales to improve distribution and accelerate ROS
- Support Joint Business Planning and annual customer planning
- Provide category input into innovation, assortment reviews and customer presentations
- Work cross-functionally with Sales, Marketing, Shopper Marketing, Finance and Revenue Growth Management
- Support category opportunities across Impulse and On Trade channels where required
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About You
We're looking for an established category professional who combines excellent analytical capability with the confidence to influence major retail customers.
You'll ideally bring:
- Experience in Category Management, Category Development or Commercial Insight within UK FMCG
- Proven experience leading category relationships with major UK grocery retailers
- A track record of using data and insight to influence retailer decisions
- Strong understanding of category reviews, assortment optimisation, distribution and ROS
- Experience supporting Joint Business Planning
- Expert knowledge of Circana (IRI) and/or NIQ
- Experience with retailer EPOS and loyalty data such as dunnhumby, Circana or similar platforms
- Advanced Excel and PowerPoint capability
- Strong commercial storytelling and presentation skills
- Confidence presenting to and influencing senior customer stakeholders
- The ability to turn detailed analysis into simple, actionable recommendations
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Experience within alcohol or premium FMCG would be advantageous but isn't essential. Exposure to Convenience, Wholesale or On Trade would also be beneficial.
What We're Looking For
You'll be commercially curious, highly analytical and action-oriented. You'll enjoy getting underneath the numbers, but importantly, you'll know how to translate those numbers into a story that gets customers to act.
You'll be a confident relationship builder, comfortable challenging established thinking with evidence and capable of managing multiple customer priorities in a fast-moving environment.
What's on Offer?
- £60,000 salary
- Hybrid working - 2 days per week in Central London
- Strong benefits package
- High-profile exposure to major UK grocery retailers
- Opportunity to directly influence category and commercial strategy
- Broad cross-functional exposure across Sales, Marketing and RGM
- Excellent opportunity to build your career within a leading branded FMCG environment
If you're a category professional who loves combining data, commercial thinking and customer influence to unlock growth, we'd love to hear from you.
Desired Skills and Experience
Category, Insights
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