Category Buying Manager

**About us**:
Harding is leading the way in innovative onboard cruise retailing, adopting a Trinity Partnership approach with our cruise line partners and brand partners to excite and entice customers with unique shopping experiences.We stay at the cutting edge of retailing;consistently providing outstanding customer service and winning awards for the quality of our retail developments and execution.

**About the opportunity**:
Are you a proven Senior Buyer, Buying Manager or **Category Manager** working within Retail (ideally with **Liquor** or **Duty Free**category experience - or similar)?Do you want to join a dynamic and unique business in this newly created role?If so, this could be the perfect role for you.

Reporting to the Head of Buying, the Category Manager is responsible for the **commercial performance** of a large product category across the global business.Working closely with a Senior Merchandiser and their team, you will **manage a team** (including Senior Buyer, Buyer, Assistant Buyer and Buying Assistant) to deliver the business key performance indicators set for the category.

Harding offer a **flexible / hybrid**working policy for this role.

**About the role**:
You will **develop and deliver the category strategy**, whilst leading a team of buyers to achieve category commercial KPIs.Responsible for end to end management of the category execution from research to customer experience, you will cultivateand maintain strong vendor relationships to maximise commercial opportunities.The role will require you to work closely with Head of Buying and key stakeholders to **deliver new projects commercially**, and on time.Key responsibilities include:

- Market research and attending tradeshows and centres of excellence to develop and maintain market awareness and identify new opportunities
- Ships visits to ensure full understanding of cruise line customer demographic and product preference
- Management of the buying process, with regular reviews; ensuring the team are buying the right product, at the right price for the target demographic of each cruise line
- Identifying solutions and opportunities to guide the team to success
- Management of the seasonal promotional calendar for the category
- Regular sales data analysis with timely commercial action in response
- Vendor relationship management, negotiating trading terms and developing joint strategic plans
- Attracting existing and new brands to new ship projects, negotiating terms and capex contributions
- Working with key stakeholders in operations, marketing and finance to maximise commercial opportunity and deliver new projects
- Train and mentor the Buyers and Buying Assistants to maximise their development potential

**About you**:

- Proven track record of success in category management or a senior buying role for a medium to large retail organisation
- Extensive experience of team management, mentoring and development
- Liquor category experience (or similar) and multiple product category experience
- Strong leader, with proven team building, motivation and management skills
- Excellent stakeholder relationship management ability, utilising highly effective interpersonal skills
- Clear and focused strategy development and implementation
- Flexible and resilient with an ability to adopt and implement change
- Outstanding commercial awareness coupled with strong negotiation and influencing skills
- Numerical, analytical and problem solving skills
- Must have an existing right of eligibility to work in the UK

Harding is an equal opportunities employer.We believe passionately that employing a diverse workforce is central to our success.We make recruiting decisions based on your experience and skills.We value your passion to discover, invent, simplify andbuild.Protecting your privacy and the security of your data is a longstanding top priority for Harding.