Associate Category Manager - CHEF'STORE
Listed on 2026-03-02
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Retail
Retail & Store Manager, Merchandising
Hybrid: 2 days remote (Monday and Friday), 3 days onsite (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) in either Rosemont IL or West Linn Or.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Work closely with Category Manager to develop the end-to-end category strategy for assigned categories, including assortment, pricing, promotion, planogram placement, and vendor management to deliver the annual financial plan.
Drive the strategic direction of assigned categories by focusing on product selection, promotion planning, pricing strategy, and in-store presentation.
Partner with Category manager to lead the category review process to develop, communicate, and implement category strategies aligned with CHEF’STORE objectives.
Utilize internal and external market data, competitive intelligence, and customer insights to anticipate trends and future customer needs.
Define assortment strategies and execute tactics to capture sales, margin, and profit targets while ensuring the optimal product mix for each CHEF’STORE location.
Collaborate with Category Manager in partnership with Pricing team to review analytics and optimize pricing decisions.
Create promotional strategies and calendars that support category objectives and financial targets.
Evaluate promotional effectiveness and implement improvements to drive year-over-year volume and profitability growth performance.
Collaborate with Inventory Analysts to align inventory levels with promotional and assortment strategies.
Build and maintain strong vendor relationships that drive both short- and long-term growth.
Collaborate with Category Manager to negotiate product costs, net landed cost, vendor funding, markdown support, and returns to optimize category profitability.
Deliver profitable sales by actively managing category mix, vendor costs, pricing, promotions, and assortment.
Work closely with Finance to develop annual financial plans, forecasts, and ongoing performance reviews.
Monitor daily and weekly category performance to ensure margin and sales targets are met.
Conduct action-oriented analysis to identify underperforming SKUs, growth opportunities, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Partner with Space Planning to develop, approve, and maintain planograms, store layouts, and adjacency plans.
Regularly visit CHEF’STORE locations and competitive stores to assess assortments, pricing, merchandising execution, and store presentation.
Collaborate with Store Operations to ensure effective execution and the right local product mix.
Mentor, train, and develop cross-functional partners as needed.
Lead or participate in special projects as assigned.
SUPERVISION
:
N/A
RELATIONSHIPS
Internal: The incumbent is required to interact with all employees at all levels of responsibility throughout the company and must be adept at working cross-functionally with multiple departments including Category Management, Replenishment, Marketing, Pricing, etc.
External: The incumbent is required to interact with customers, vendors, and other service providers.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
Primarily work indoors in a climate-controlled office environment. Operate Office equipment, including computer and phone.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
3+ years of experience in retail, food service, wholesale, or merchandising-related roles
Knowledge of merchandising principles, pricing, and product lifecycle management.
Computer skills required:
Proficient in Microsoft Office - Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Office 365, and Teams.Ability to travel: 10%.
Certifications/Training
N/A
Licenses
N/A
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Experience in buying, category management, inventory planning, or business analysis strongly.
Prior Experience with Dynamics and RELEX Planogram Optimization is a plus.
Category management/merchandising experience.
Prior experience with Microsoft Access a plus.
Understanding of food retail or food service customers and category dynamics.
Knowledge of core merchandising drivers: pricing, promotion, assortment, and space.
Strong analytical, planning, and organizational skills.
Effective communication and negotiation skills.
Demonstrated negotiation skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with vendors and internal partners to support pricing, promotions,…
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