Woolworths

• Full time permanent opportunity 

• Category manager looking after Smallgoods Meats & Deli salads 

We are now looking for a Category Manager reporting to our Merchandise Manager in our wider team to join our team.  Joining the Buying and Merchandising team is the perfect opportunity to gain additional portfolio experience or to step up in your Category career! We’re a team who thrive on working collaboratively with our suppliers and internal teams to drive strategies and reach our business goals, ensuring we continue to deliver our purpose of making Kiwis lives better everyday.

We are Woolworths Group | Ko Woolworths Tātou

We are Woolworths Group. 200,000+ bright minds, passionate hearts, and unique perspectives across Australia and New Zealand. Connected by a shared Purpose - 'to create better experiences together for a better tomorrow'. That Purpose fuels our ambition to explore new ideas, make brave commitments, and innovate better ways to meet the food and everyday needs of more than 24 million customers every week.

If you're excited to turn today's blue-sky thinking into a better tomorrow for future generations, you'll find yourself supported and enriched in a dynamic, inclusive, and empowering workplace. With a culture of genuine care, a flexible approach to work, and opportunities across the group to grow your career and make a meaningful impact, the possibilities for what we can achieve together are endless.

What you’ll do | Hei mahi

As a Category Manager, you will be looking after the Smallgoods & Deli Salads portfolio. On a daily basis, you will be negotiating with vendors to develop or procure a product and lead the buying and merchandising processes. At the heart of this role we focus on putting our customers, team and suppliers first whilst delivering great solutions around our category strategies through procurement, promotions, price and placement - a challenging but rewarding role and one where you’ll really make a difference in the lives of our customers.

• Maintain awareness of product trends, availability, and customer preferences

• Understand buying and selling patterns and the impact on the category and

provides insight on planning and activities

• Partner cross-functionally to streamline product lifecycles, ensuring efficient delivery, resolving vendor friction, and maintaining optimal stock availability.

• Lead and scale a high-performing team through active coaching and goal setting, while serving as a cultural role model for the company’s leadership profile.

• Develop longer-term plans, including recommendations to changes in strategy for the product/category

What you’ll bring | Hei koha

For success in this role, you must be a commercially driven, natural problem solver with category management experience. You will be highly collaborative, comfortable leveraging your expertise to build strong supplier partnerships, and possess a high level of financial and commercial acumen.

• Previous buying experience in a large supermarket or FMCG environment

• Strong financial and data literacy (including Excel/Google proficiency) to develop market-leading category plans, drive product innovation, and deliver continuous improvement based on commercial insights.

• A demonstrated ability to negotiate and influence stakeholders at all levels, combining excellent interpersonal skills with a collaborative cross-functional approach.

• A reputation as an outstanding leader and team player who can coach a high-performing team, fostering a culture where the customer is at the center of every decision.

• Highly organised, adaptable to change, and resilient, with excellent communication skills and a deep alignment with the Woolworths values and ways of working.

What you’ll experience | Ngā Huanga

• Working closely with the Strategy, WiQ and Transformation Teams along with stakeholders across our business to deliver meaningful change

• Targeted training and development programs

• Career path opportunities for advancement

• Having a career with us means you are joining LinkedIn’s 2nd ranked Top Companies Australia 2022 and we are recognised as a WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality, Work180 Endorsed Employer for all women along with Australian Workplace Equality Index for LGBTQ workplace inclusion

• Working in a team that believes in building partnerships through collaboration, transparency and trust

• Access to team benefits include access to discounts in our supermarkets and liquor partners, novated leases, share purchase plans, reduced insurance products, entertainment, theme parks, cinemas, lifestyle and other attraction discounts

Everyone belongs at Woolworths Group | No Woolworths tātou

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are key to realising our purpose of better together for a better tomorrow. We recognise the value our team’s diversity brings to our business, customers, and communities and that teams with diverse experiences and backgrounds enrich our group and are better able to innovate and solve problems. As one of the largest employers in Australia and New Zealand, we aim to create a truly inclusive workplace where everyone feels that they belong, can be their best selves, and reach their full potential.

We encourage all candidates to apply; please let us know in your application if we can support you with any adjustments in the hiring process.