Associate Category Manager

Trader Joe's is your favorite neighborhood grocery store! With almost 600 stores nationwide (and growing), we are the place to be. Looking for something delicious and a friendly conversation? At Trader Joe's, you can find both. We love being your first and favorite place to shop.

Like shopping at Trader Joe's? Then, maybe you'll love working with us. We are looking for an experienced Associate Category Manager who is searching to do what they'll love! Do you have experience in category curation, vendor negotiation and management, and merchandising? Do you love food? If so, read on! We may have the role of a lifetime for you!

Trader Joe's is unlike any place you've ever worked. Trust us on that. The qualified Associate Category Manager has at least 3 years of experience and is a raving fan of the Trader Joe's concept. A Bachelor's Degree is strongly preferred. This role is based in our office in Monrovia, CA and we have an in office expectation of 5 days a week.

The Associate Category Manager is responsible for:

• Collaborating with Category Managers and Sr. Category Managers to achieve sales, margin, SKU count and sales dollar/unit minimum targets and provides support to Category Management in team in daily tasks and projects.
• Developing category in product assortment, vendor capabilities and category trends and work to curate a diverse range of products that meet the changing needs of Trader Joe's Customers.
• Working with Product Developers to actively diversify Trader Joe's vendor base and develops broker-free relationships while maintaining strong vendor relations to expand product offerings.
• Assisting with Subcategory Reviews and makes recommendations for improvement based on category and sales performance.
• Partnering with departments such as Marketing, Operations, and Finance to ensure seamless execution of category plans and assists with planning and executing marketing features for all products including New and Limited items.
• Supporting the Supply Chain team to achieve fulfillment goals such as fill-rate, TOS and inventory quality goals.
• Working collaboratively with other departments.

• A Bachelor's degree and three years experience working as a Buyer, Category Manager, or Merchandising within a Retail organization with a preference for CPG or Grocery.
• Experience buying and sourcing new products while building relationships with new and existing vendors.
• Strong negotiation skills.
• Experience with perishables is preferred
• Excellent communication skills and demonstrates excellent time management skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office is required as well as comfort with retail-based mathematics.

We get a lot of resumes; so to help us get to know you better, please submit your resume and cover letter. When creating your cover letter, please answer these questions:

• What is your favorite Trader Joe's product and why?
• What makes you uniquely qualified for this position?