Category Manager/Senior Manager - Buying & Merchandising - Rice Business

CANDIDATE PROFILE - 

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS & BEHAVIOURS - 

Mandatory -

- Negotiation skills

- Quantitative skills

- Sound knowledge of retail business

- Well-versed with Retail-Link

- Good analytical and decision-making skills

- Knowledge of Forecasting techniques

- Computer Skills:-MS Excel, MS Word, MS PowerPoint(Proficient)

Behavioral -

- Adaptable and ability to work in a dynamic environment

- Strong Analytical skills

- Sound interpersonal skills -To build relationship and influence stakeholders

- Sound communication skills-To be able to communicate across all level in organization

- Leadership Skills

- Devise & translates strategy into business plans and tactics

- Demonstrated ability to develop team members through coaching & mentoring

- Team Handling

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE -

- 9-14 years experience

- At least two years (preferably in recent past) should be in buying & Merchandising in Rice business

- Must have handled purchases of the value of Rs. 25-30 Cr. or a volume of 5000 MT annually. Must have handled more than 50 SKUs of food grains & commodities

JOB PROFILE

JOB PURPOSE:

Understand customers need with respect to the specific category, select range of merchandise for the category and strategize product procurement in order to achieve every day sales targets and maximize margin as per category strategy. The role will account for building and sustaining long-term business relationship with suppliers and developing team members

PRINCIPLE ACCOUNTABILITIES - 

EXPECTED END RESULTS MAJOR ACTIVITIES

- Supplier Development

- Product & Category Management

- Inventory Management

- Business Hygiene

- Train and develop Associates

- Ensure achievement of Financial Goals: Sales, Margins, RGM, DOH

- Customer Satisfaction

- Identify and source National/Regional level vendor

- Get fully compliant suppliers on board

- Train Supplier partners on Walmart systems-Retail Link

- Review supplier performance periodically

- Visit market at regular intervals, understand market demand, assortment gap, consumers buying pattern and strategies product assortment accordingly.

- To manage and develop strategy at sub cat / item level. Periodic product rationalisation in order to have right product assortment at any given time

- Forecasting & Planning for seasonal products

- Planogram-Develop for new clubs; Review & update for existing clubs

- Facilitate product training for store associates

- Listing of Items, Proper Signage and Pricing, Promotional and Demo Plan

- To critically appraise changes in market dynamic and work closely with key stake holders to modify strategies

- To continuously upgrade/ improve/ change for better assortment offering to members.

- To plan a scientific and effective Plannogram in each store

- Plan & Execute merchandising / marketing promotion plans for subcategories by working with the vendors; Demo Program, Events for category. Reviewing and approving item-level plans.

- Monitor inventory and ensure regular price markdown action are taken to clear aged Inventory , ensure timely actions are taken in collaboration with replenishment team and suppliers to improve in-stock & fill rate

- Define and monitor Days On Hand(DOH) for category

- Negotiate, finalise and close Terms of Trade(TOT) with suppliers

- Negotiate with suppliers for other income sources such as category branding, banners, aisle boards, demos, end caps etc. in order to meet margins

- Analyse category specific reports and devise action plan accordingly in order to meet sales and margin as per Annual Operating Plan(AOP)

- Preparation of rollback reports for COOPS clearance

- Take actions on pending COOPS & get them cleared within the set timeframe

- Bring into practice Walmart philosophy "Every Day Low Price" (EDLP) while devising pricing strategy

- Regularly analyse Variance & Margin causal report and act accordingly to maximise Rupee Gross Margin(RGM)

- Communicate priority notes time to time as per agreement to central operating team for implementation at clubs

- Ensure all item descriptions and signing descriptions are exhibited in correct manner at clubs

- Define and monitor item budget for every category

 - Conduct weekly meeting with team members for business update, map challenges and provide appropriate solutions

- Provide regular performance feedback and guidance to team members

- Monthly one on ones, provide supervision and development opportunities for Assistant Buyers & Merchandising Assistants by training, mentoring, assigning duties; building a team-based work environment; establishing performance, map challenges faced by them, highlight issues and discuss solutions expectations and conducting regular performance evaluations; providing recognition and rewards, regular performance feedback to associates, recommend associates for corporate training modules

- Coaching for success and improvement; and ensuring diversity awareness

- Ensure that associates are trained on all WM systems and processes

- Budgeting, planning at sub category, Item level for achievement of Targets.

- Coordinate effectively with the team & Sales & Business development Team to achieve targeted Sales, Margin, Shrink and Inventory turns on weekly, Monthly Basis.

- Develop Plans for Demos, Space Selling and other Income

- Regularly monitor Purchase Plans, DOH, Price Gaps, Aged Inventory, Turns, Expiry and RTV issues and ensure that the same is done as per the negotiated terms

- Monitor HoReCa Program, Reseller Program on regular basis and Ensure that key members of HoReCa and caterers are visited by self and team regularly.

- To consistently maintain price advantage for buying members and continuously apprising pricing strategy, analyzing price basket advantage for the business.

- Market working with Sales n BD team to determine Member pain-points and opportunity areas

- Ensure Adherence to Price Comp reports

- Meeting OnI and HoReCa members for feedback on areas for improvement

- Work with Operations on regular Demos

MAJOR CHALLENGES -

- Dealing with vagaries of competition - both modern trade, wholesale markets & Online players;

- Anticipated sell through, of items from stores, not as per expectation, jeopardizing the item plan process;

- Managing inefficiencies of the vendors from time to time;

- Cross - functional productivity, with replenishment, marketing, operations, pricing, e commerce,

- Sub optimal manpower as a resource;

- Balancing selling prices and profitability, with EDLP as the driver;

- Unpredictable shifts in consumer behaviour;

- Maximising deliverables with the limited item count;

- Aligning the store operators on visibility and display of merchandise and events.

5. KEY DECISIONS

Assortment;

- Pricing;

- Communication to members.

- Strategic partnership with the vendors for long term sustainable growth

- Cross functional harmony for smoothing the business operations

- Custodian of regular development and growth of the team members

- Take judicious call on product pricing referring comping inputs

- Negotiate permissible activities like lucky draw, transport subsidy schemes etc. with vendors

- Take key calculated positioning that delivers better value to the company

- Drive differentiation through innovative & exciting merchandise

6. INTERACTIONS -

- Supply Chain

- Operations

- Finance

- Marketing & Membership

- Legal

- Compliance

EXTERNAL (Roles you need to interact with outside the organization on a day to day basis) -

- Vendor/Supplier

7. DIMENSIONS

- Sales Number & Comp Growth

- Margin %

- RGM Delivery

- DOH under control

- Minimal Ageing Inventory

- Financial Hygiene(Coops/Net Payables/Recoveries)

- In Stock

- Team developments

- Fill Rates