Category Manager - Garden Supply

Employment Opportunity

Sheridan Nurseries Head Office is actively searching for a:

Category Manager, Garden Supply

Permanent, Full Time

About the Job:

Reporting to the Vice President, Merchandising, the Category Manager is responsible for achieving sales and profit objectives for all Garden Supply categories. This responsibility includes vendor management, product selection, product mix, product pricing, display, marketing, planning and inventory control.  The Category Manager will guide retail sales and operations staff by planning, organizing, directing, and controlling external purchases of all products within the Garden Supply category. The Category Manager plays a leadership role in driving sales performance through the development and implementation of assortment, allocation, and marketing strategies.

Your Accountabilities:

• Manage product categories to ensure proper product selection, including the identification and introduction of new products; efficient & cost-effective delivery, proper product allocations; competitive costing, fair market pricing and effective promotional strategies.
• Facilitate, monitor, and streamline the ordering and receiving process of Garden Supply category products from our external suppliers based on pre-season and in-season availabilities.
• Work collaboratively and cross-functionally to maximize sell-through & profitability on all owned products.
• Search for insights into consumer needs and wants through evaluation of industry wide trends and the competitive landscape.
• Plan and implement strategies for product categories and identify new market segments, trends, and product line to ensure relevancy in the guest’s mind and increase market share.
• Manage vendor relationships including selecting and negotiating with vendors to provide products and services sought by guests, optimizing volume rebates and promotional funding support, and resolving vendor issues.
• Analyze category performance.
• Analyze inventory to determine product performance for sales, gross margin, turnover, new/aged inventory, and ROI at store level.
• Design exit strategies for unsuccessful products.
• Collaborate with marketing team on flyers, promotional signage, and communication plans.
• Plan and implement planograms.
• Evaluate current pricing strategies and recommend new, creative pricing strategies to increase sales and profits while remaining competitive in the market.
• Work with customers and merchandisers to find new ways of expanding product categories.
• Calculate forecasts for product demand trends & manage and track the budget.
• Oversee the timely completion and fulfillment of product requests from Garden Centres, Commercial Solutions and Landscape Supply Centre business areas.
• Communicate and support Retail Operations team.
• Other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• A degree or a college diploma in a field related to Business Administration with a focus on sales and marketing is preferred.
• Minimum 3 years of experience as a Category Manager or Assistant Category Manager
• Expertise in category management and implementing planograms
• Experience in strategic analysis, knowledge of margin planning, open to buy, inventory productivity measures, assortment planning and elements of markup
• Ability to build a strong team through leading by example. coaching and developing
• In-depth knowledge of marketing and sales operations and processes
• Hands on experience with analyzing data and making forecasts
• Analytical and critical thinker
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills
• Possess great negotiation skills
• Product knowledge an asset
• Must be legally eligible to work in Canada

Our Vision, Mission, & Values:

At Sheridan Nurseries we aim to delight our associates, guests, and business partners in everything we do.  Independently owned and operated for over 100 years, we are committed to growing the highest quality plants at our local farms, curating the best-in-class home, garden, and lifestyle products and services, delivering unrivaled guest service and satisfaction, and providing meaningful and rewarding careers to our employees. We always strive to inspire and share our knowledge, passion, and expertise to build confidence, loyalty, and trust, while protecting our planet with industry leading environmentally sustainable initiatives and giving back to our local communities and charities.

Our vision is “To inspire people to never stop growing”. 

At Sheridan we seek people who will continually strengthen our culture.  We work hard to ensure our culture is something we feel proud of and allows us to bring our best selves to work every day.  And a great culture starts with values.  We have clearly defined values which are embedded in everything that we do so that they are lived and breathed daily. 

If you share our values of:

1. Doing What’s Right
2. Being Performance Driven
3. Learning and Growing Together
4. Being Externally Focused
5. Having Bias for Action

Then this is the position for you!

We thank all applicants for their interest however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
If selected, please advise if you require special accommodation to attend the interview.