Hudson’s Bay Company Looking for Senior Category Manager, Zellers – Home at Toronto, Ontario Full Time

About The Bay:

As North America’s oldest startup and Canada’s purpose-driven digital marketplace, The Bay is on a high-growth mission to rewrite the rules of retail to help Canadians live a colourful life. If you believe in the power of our iconic brand and thrive on problem solving at scale, we want you to join our team.

At The Bay, smart, high-performing team members will challenge you to learn and grow every day. We value ambitious work and great ideas grounded in data and insights. We are looking for talented people who love a fast-paced environment, embrace change and are looking to make an impact with groundbreaking ideas.

We are building a digital-first company and brand for a diverse world and we need a diverse team to reach our potential. We strongly encourage applications from everyone to come and join a winning team that supports diverse thinking and demonstrates innovation, energy, creativity and vision every day.

Day in the Life:

The Senior Category Manager, Zellers maximizes sales and profitability for the Digital Zellers business through the development and implementation of assortment and merchandising strategy for their Category. This position ensures merchandise is purchased to maximize results while enhancing the overall department and company strategy. This role will actively support our DE&I framework by identifying opportunities to increase the diversity of our products and brands.  They will lead with inclusion to nurture our OneTeam culture by removing barriers for our Associates and communities.

What You Will Do:
 

• Oversee the Category strategy and direct and implement improvements to drive growth in sales and profit, grow market share, and increase customer engagement
• Manage existing and new vendor relationships; Lead negotiations to secure effective costing and direct the building out of optimized assortment strategies
• Monitor industry trends, evaluate competition, and ensure a current and competitive product offering
• Complete top level seasonal buys to ensure optimal productivity by style, adjust and reacts to trends in-season
• Execute the demand plan based on business trends and patterns. Identify risks to demand forecast and implement effective mitigation strategies
• Conduct in depth analysis of sales and customer behavior, using data to drive business recommendations
• Manages on going Open To Buy process forecasting sales, markdowns, profit and inventory to plan
• Develop and execute digital editorial content for the Category, utilizing UX best practices and bringing the business strategies to life online
• Create merchandising strategies for all sequencing and boosting based on analytics of key trends, KPI’s and business priorities  
• Oversees and partners with the Planning Manager to develop the assortment matrix, topside financial plans, and merchandise plan mix for pre-season and in season management for Category
• Liaise with logistics and manage the timely delivery of inventory, and ensure strong in stock for new and replenishment products
• Manage the business in-season by recommending markdowns, transfers and revisions to site navigation and experience as well as site content
• Thoroughly understand competitive landscape primarily focused on navigation and customer experience and make recommendations to incorporate into business
• Understand customer diversity; create strategies that support our DE&I initiatives and reflect the nuances of buying for various geographic cultures.

What You Will Need:

• Post-secondary degree in Business or related field
• 5+ years’ experience understanding the category management process, buying and developing action plans to grow sales and Profitability 
• Working knowledge in site analytics tools (Google Analytics or Adobe Omniture) 
• Strong knowledge of G-Suite and Microsoft Office Suite (especially Excel and PowerPoint) and the ability to  quickly learn internal systems, processes and additional software/web-based applications
• Have an understanding of and passion for digital retail landscape
• Proven ability to create and execute a sound business strategy.
• Ability to build / maintain strong Vendor partnerships.
• Demonstrate effective negotiation skills and actively control the negotiation process that results in mutually beneficial outcomes and build the vendor relationship.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent writing, speaking, and presentation skills
• Strong leadership skills
• Comfortable with change and able to make quick decisions
• Strong aptitude to work within deadlines, both independently and as part of a team
• Overseas travel potentially required

Your Life and Career at THE BAY: 

• Be part of a world-class team; work with an adventurous spirit; think and act like an owner- operator!
• Play a key leadership role in building a new business within The Bay platform
• Exposure to rewarding career advancement opportunities. 
• A culture that promotes wellness through a healthy, fulfilling work/life balance 
• Benefits package for all eligible full-time employees (including medical, vision and dental). 
• An amazing employee discount 

Thank you for your interest In The Bay. We look forward to reviewing your application.

HBC provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, HBC complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

HBC welcomes all applicants for this position. Should you be individually selected to participate in an assessment or selection process, accommodations are available upon request in relation to the materials or processes to be used.