Category Director, Wellness

Come make your difference in communities across Canada, where authenticity, trust and making connections is valued – as we shape the future of Canadian retail, together. Our unique position as one of the country’s largest employers, coupled with our commitment to positively impact the lives of all Canadians, provides our colleagues a range of opportunities and experiences to help Canadians Live Life Well.
At Loblaw Companies Limited, we succeed through collaboration and commitment and set a high bar for ourselves and those around us. Whether you are just starting your career, re-entering the workforce, or looking for a new job, this is where you belong.

The Category Director is responsible for meeting the financial targets of a category(ies) across all formats and is responsible for working in partnership with the Format Category Teams to build category programs, understand and drive the business end-to-end from strategy to tactics. The Category Director will coach, mentor and develop their team and provide them direction in planning, vendor management, product assortment, space allocations, pricing and promotion in support of overall group objectives and all functions that impact financial objectives. The incumbent will liaise with various internal and external stakeholders and teams in order to achieve category objectives, including but not limited to Marketing, Finance, Promotions & Allocations, Brands, Operations & Vendors.

Accountabilities:

• Work closely with the Format Category Teams to build category programs and ensure that targets for sales, market share, shrink and EBIT of a category(ies) are met.
• Responsible for weekly Category reports and LE’s by category including Other Vendor Income.
• Implement product assortment, sales and buying plans, while advocating for their customers’ needs, in order to achieve category targets and review implementation throughout the year, adjusting as required to meet targets.
• Work with control label brand team to develop innovative and differentiated products that grow the brand and help to achieve overall strategy, sales and market share.
• Deliver against control label objectives in order to achieve annual sales, market share and profit objectives.
• Develop and communicate merchandising direction for each retail format for assigned category(ies).
• Develop and implement promotions and programs for the assigned category(ies).
• Lead weekly store tours.
• Coach, develop and mentor direct reports. This includes explicit consideration of on-the-job training needs for each colleague, arranging appropriate training, providing timely feedback and overseeing colleague development.
• Collaboratively plan activities and develop strong relationships with the vendor community in order to maximize sales & profit.
• Build strong, collaborative relationships and leverage all key stakeholders to invest in their business for growth ahead of market.
• Take full ownership of all key decisions and results, has a passion for their business and a desire to develop their team to similar vision.
• Attend and participate in other meetings as required (JBP, Merch Readiness, Vendor meetings, Blueprint to Sell, IR etc.)
• Other duties as assigned.

Role Requirements:

• 5-7 years of business experience in marketing, merchandising or pricing role.
• Excellent communicator up, down and across the enterprise.
• Strong Financial Acumen and experience managing P&L statements.
• A strong understanding of the market and competitive landscape in order to recognize and capitalize on opportunities.
• Proven strength in having a ‘customer lens’ in all decision making process.
• Proven ability to develop short and long term plans in line with corporate strategies.
• Progressive and innovative: aggressively seeks out opportunities to improve competitiveness and demonstrates an innovative spirit.
• Ability to gather and synthesize customer, competitor and market insight and information.
• Strong data management and analytical skills with strict attention to detail and the ability to develop business insights and effectively communicate them to the business.
• Creative problem solver and strategic thinker with a strong work ethic.
• Proven ability to deliver results in a high-pressure environment with the ability to set priorities and meet challenging deadlines.
• An effective change agent who possesses the influencing skills needed to help the organization adopt new ways of thinking and to embrace more sophisticated business tools.
• Ability to coach and mentor direct reports and team with a focus on Colleague Development.
• Post-secondary education (university or professionally accredited college) or equivalent experience.

Our commitment to Sustainability and Social Impact is an essential part of the way we do business, and we focus our attention on areas where we can have the greatest impact. Our approach to sustainability and social impact is based on three pillars – Environment, Sourcing and Community – and we are constantly looking for ways to demonstrate leadership in these important areas. Our CORE Values – Care, Ownership, Respect and Excellence – guide all our decision-making and come to life through our Blue Culture. We offer our colleagues progressive careers, comprehensive training, flexibility, and other competitive benefits – these are some of the many reasons why we are one of Canada’s Top Employers, Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, Canada’s Greenest Employers & Canada’s Top Employers for Young People.

If you are unsure whether your experience matches every requirement above, we encourage you to apply anyway. We are looking for varied perspectives which include diverse experiences that we can add to our team. We have a long-standing focus on diversity, equity and inclusion because we know it will make our company a better place to work and shop. We are committed to creating accessible environments for our colleagues, candidates and customers. Requests for accommodation due to a disability (which may be visible or invisible, temporary or permanent) can be made at any stage of application and employment. We encourage candidates to make their accommodation needs known so that we can provide equitable opportunities.

Please Note: Candidates who are 18 years or older are required to complete a criminal background check. Details will be provided through the application process.