Category Manager - PPE (Personal Protective Equipment)
Location: Midlands
Salary: £50,000 - £60,000 (DOE) plus car and package
About the Role:
We are seeking an experienced Category Manager to join an established and rapidly growing business within the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) sector. This is a strategic, hands-on role where you will have ownership of the overall portfolio strategy and performance for assigned product categories.
Key Responsibilities:
1. Category Strategy: Define and execute a category strategy for your assigned PPE product categories, excluding exclusive brand development, driving sales, margin, and profitable growth.
2. Product Assortment: Develop and manage assortment strategies for your product categories, ensuring the right products are selected to meet customer demand.
3. Market Research: Stay ahead of market trends and competitor activity to identify new sourcing opportunities, product ideas, and content strategies.
4. Supplier Management: Select and manage suppliers for existing and new products. Negotiate key terms including pricing, rebates, contributions, marketing and merchandising support, and service level agreements (SLAs).
5. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with key stakeholders, including Sales, Marketing, Product, and Digital teams, to create cohesive, omnichannel strategies that deliver the best customer experience across all platforms.
6. Pricing & Compliance: Work closely with SMEs on competitive pricing strategies and ensure product compliance, certification, and regulatory requirements are met.
7. Product Lifecycle Management: Manage the order cycle, stocking policies, and product life cycle, including excess stock and obsolescence strategies.
8. Category Marketing & Digital Strategy: Collaborate with the marketing team on category marketing plans and leverage digital channels (PPC, Google PLAs) to drive product visibility and sales.
9. Global Engagement: Represent the category team across global regions, engaging with international suppliers and teams to drive category performance.
Role Requirements:
1. Experience: Proven experience in managing PPE or industrial supplies categories. Ideally, you'll have a background in MRO product management, merchandising, or technical sales, and have demonstrated success in product strategy, supplier negotiations, and category growth.
2. Qualifications: MCIPS qualification preferred.
3. Skills:
o Strong project management skills with exceptional attention to detail.
o Proven ability to negotiate with suppliers and manage commercial relationships.
o Experience in driving category performance and execution through a sales organisation.
o Ability to translate complex data into clear insights and actionable strategies.
o Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with experience presenting to senior leadership and external stakeholders.
o Ability to manage multiple projects, priorities, and deadlines effectively.
4. Global Travel: Ability to travel globally for up to 2-4 weeks per year, as required.
Why Join?
Salary of £50,000 - £60,000 (DOE) plus car and package
Hybrid working environment
Dynamic work environment within a fast-paced and growing industry.
Opportunity to make a significant impact within an established business with global reach.
Work alongside experienced teams in a collaborative environment focused on growth and innovation.
If you're a results-driven Category Manager with a passion for PPE and industrial supplies, and you thrive in a fast-paced environment, we'd love to hear from you.
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