Junior Category Manager

Citrus Recruit are excited to be recruiting for a Junior Category Manager for a Solihull based company that are leaders in buying, events and trade shows. You will be supporting the team with driving sales and product strategy within the Home furnishing division.
 
This is a fantastic opportunity to join the team in a time of growth. Working closely with the Category Managers and Directors, you'll be tasked with managing the supplier base and managing relationships between suppliers and customers. Regularly attending trade shows and staying abreast of industry trends, you'll ensure product offering remains competitive and on-trend.
 
This is a great opportunity to work as part of a close-knit team in a really varied role, if you have experience in a Junior Category role or managing supplier relationships, then this could be suitable for you.
 
The role is a hybrid role, where you will be working collaboratively with the team on site or visiting suppliers, with two days per week from home. 
 
Responsibilities & day to day duties
As a Junior Buyer you will be responsible for:

• Work closely with the Selector and take ownership of selected product areas.
• Contribute to the overall Furniture & Home Divisional strategy by participating in product, brand and sales reviews with Director. Propose plans to drive sales and revenue.
• Manage the supplier base, negotiating prices and liaising between suppliers and customers.
• Develop strong business relationships with suppliers conducting regular reviews to understand target customer, review turnover, discuss rebate targets.
• Deliver excellent levels of communication to suppliers and customers, visiting on site and ensuring clear objectives are in place
• Attend weekly team meetings to discuss trading performance, store and supplier visits, product range updates, industry news, HUB and newsletter contributions and business updates.
• Ensure overall show revenue achieves company budget plans, identify any sponsorship opportunity with key accounts to drive overall nett show revenue.
• Deliver innovation and newness to drive engagement at shows aiming to exceed visitor expectation. Work with suppliers to execute the best possible show stands. 

 
Skills & experience required.

• Experience in a Junior Category or Supplier manager role or similar role – ideally at least 2 years.
• Experience the buying process with a passion for product
• Strong commercial awareness of the category and the overall market with an exceptional commercial eye for product
• Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate verbally and in writing at all levels.
• Creative thinker, with the ability to think outside the box.
• Fresh thinker and generates ideas with a ‘can do’ attitude.
• Exceptional negotiator and has strong influencing skills.
• A flexible and reliable team player
• Computer literacy including competence in Excel, PowerPoint and Word

 
Benefits

• Salary of up to £35,000
• Hybrid working 3 days in the office (Usually Monday & Tuesday office based)
• 25 days holiday plus bank holiday (Christmas closure)
• Can purchase 5 days holiday.
• Birthday leave
• Pension
• Employee assistance program
• Additional benefits through a salary sacrifice scheme.
• Car parking

 
Citrus Recruit acts as an employment business when introducing candidates for permanent employment with a client. We take pride in being an equal opportunity employer that celebrates diversity. Our commitment to inclusion means that we seek out the best candidates for every role, regardless of their gender, age, race, sexual orientation, disability, religion, or any other protected characteristic.
 
While we make every effort to reach out to all candidates. If you don't receive a response within 10 days of applying, please understand that your application has not progressed on this occasion. Please review our website for further and upcoming opportunities.