Senior Category Manager Jobs

The Senior Category Manager is responsible for planning, executing, and contributing to the company’s retail supply chain strategy and operations for both cannabis and accessories. Reporting to the Chief Merchandising Officer, this position leads a team of analysts and is responsible for the overall strategy for purchasing and pricing of cannabis/accessories for the business.

The successful candidate will be responsible for forecasting, optimizing purchasing and inventory management. In addition, this role iis accountable to identify and solve for process bottlenecks, ensuring stock levels meet demand while reducing overstock, identifying, and seizing on category growth opportunities, and maximizing profitability. The right candidate will demonstrate an enthusiasm for understanding cannabis in all its forms, but existing product expertise is not a requirement.

Essential Functions

• Create, maintain and revise assortment plan on an ongoing basis
• Assess, monitor, and communicate trends involving operating capital, margins, availability, pricing actions, inventory levels, loss or shrink
• Promotional planning, pricing strategy and budgeting for flyers and other initiatives
• Work cross-functionally with Marketing, Finance and Operations
• Create forecasts to inform seasonal business trends, industry trends and order planning
• Track and trigger price changes
• Manage vendor relationships including negotiations; manage shipment logistics including budget management, warehousing and transportation
• Keep track of weekly fill rates
• Recommend adjustments to promotional plans based on results
• Inventory management, including transfer strategy, clearance pricing and maintaining targeted inventory levels
• Other duties as assigned by your supervisor from time to time
• Develop, implement and continuously improve strategy and processes for purchasing and promotion of cannabis and accessories
• Review and review FOUR20 margin targets by category
• Create and manage ROP forecasting tool
• Assist in the cannabis ordering process, coming up with new ways to streamline the process and analyze the business
• Maintain and review differentiated pricing strategies for the business
• Management and analysis of purchasing budget
• Prepare detailed reports on inventory levels, fulfillments and variances
• Analyze core assortment performance, develop strategies to de-list or add in core skus
• Monitor other retailers on pricing and promotions to keep FOUR20 competitive in the marketplace
• Prepare metrics, conduct analytics, and build models that support long-term category planning and provide greater shorter-term business visibility
• Oversee and manage the ordering process, including building optimizations and reporting against fulfillment

Education, Skills, Experience, Knowledge and Supervisory Responsibility

• Experience in a regulated industry (i.e., cannabis, liquor, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, or tobacco) is considered a strong asset
• Outstanding communication skills – both verbal and written. Capable of making presentations to the senior leadership team, key suppliers, staff, and project teams
• Strong leadership skills, with the ability to coach, mentor, and inspire
• Familiarity with inventory management software such as SAP MM, AP Modules, etc
• Proficient with Microsoft Office, Power BI and Smartsheet
• Ability to analyze large data sets (e.g, VLOOKUP, pivot tables) coupled with the ability to “drill down” into the details
• Skilled leading teams, influencing business direction and negotiating more advantageous agreements that create “win-win” conclusions
• Experience in both large, well-run organizations, and startup environments – 5 years
• Experience with brick-and-mortar retail – 2 years
• Experience managing cannabis or other perishable consumer goods is considered an asset
• Progressive responsibility managing areas of strategic sourcing, sales and operations, pricing models, category management and inventory management – 2 years
• Change agent who is open to new ideas, a good listener and comfortable challenging the status quo. Intellectually curious and open to new processes supporting continuous improvement
• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance, Supply Chain Management, or equivalent experience. Certifications involving proficiency in related disciplines is preferred: CPP, CPSM, CPIM
• Enthusiasm for cannabis and comfortable familiarity with the product

Work Environment

• This position operates in an office environment