Category Manager

For over 75 years, BIC has been creating ingeniously simple and joyful products that are a part of every heart and home.

As a member of our team, you'll be a part of reigniting a beloved brand as we continue to reimagine everyday essentials in new, sustainable and responsible ways.

Our "roll up your sleeves and get the job done" approach to work creates an environment where self-starters, problem solvers and innovative thinkers thrive. BIC team members are empowered to take ownership of their careers and bring their unique perspectives to the table to make a meaningful impact on our mission.

It's a colorful world - make your mark by joining the BIC team today.

We strive to provide a comprehensive benefits package that supports the well-being and professional growth of our team members. As a member of Team BIC, you’ll have access to a range of benefits designed to enhance your physical, emotional and financial wellness.  In many of our locations, we offer team members:  

• Competitive compensation and recognition  
• Hybrid work environment and flexible approach to work  
• Retirement and financial savings options  
• Well-being and mental health support 
• Parental leave  
• Physical well-being initiatives and health insurance plans  
• Professional development opportunities 
• Volunteer opportunities  

You’ll join the UK & Ireland Category Management team reporting to the Senior Category Manager. You will be accountable for driving the Flame for Life and Blade Excellence category insights to help optimise the performance of both the total category and BIC’s portfolio of products within this category.

This position is primarily responsible for proactively driving category growth by understanding, tracking, analysing and sharing insights about the performance of our brands and competitors in the market, our consumers and our shoppers - in order to contribute to broader Category strategy (by our retail customers) and BIC Brand strategy (internally).

What You’ll do

• Accountable for Flame for Life (Lighters) and Blade Excellence (Shavers) categories in UK & Ireland, with responsibility for in-depth category and shopper understanding and insights at a micro and macro level

• Lead and build the category relationship with key customers; drive the customer category planning, range review and execution cycles, present to all customers both with the sales team and also building a direct category relationship individually based on data exchange and presentation

• Analyse category/segment performance using customer, consumer, shopper and macro environment data and sources for both internal and external reporting

• Identify appropriate case studies and research studies from other countries to share with and potentially implement in the UK & Ireland sub.

• Be the voice of the shopper and customer in internal meetings with Sales, RGM and Marketing teams to aid the development of channel and brand strategies and improve our product activation.

• Proactively deliver compelling insights, arguments and recommendations to key stakeholders (both internal and external) that help to grow both the broader category but also BIC’s share, sales and profit within the category

• Monitor competitive activity and analyse data, drive ad hoc market research, in order to identify and better serve shoppers’ needs

• Develop and implement tools for sales and marketing support i.e. reports / analysis of data / playbooks / promotional guidelines as required by key stakeholders

• Manage a selection of local agency relationships, driving them to provide value-added account service, accurate data and insightful presentations with regular touchpoints.

• Support category executive in management of internal and external data sources, including sourcing, formatting, mapping and updating various databases / cubes / software systems with latest information (including but not limited to Circana, GFK, SIP, Quantium, Nielsen and Kantar)

• Implement & monitor the CatMan budget for key projects, working closely with the rest of the team to ensure accurate tracking and forecasting. This includes regular spend tracking across the UK and Ireland, setup of new suppliers in the system, and assisting with PO creation requests as needed.

• Ad hoc trips to Ireland and across Europe may be required to fulfil the job responsibilities. 

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years relevant experience (e.g. at manufacturer or data supply agency)

• Higher Education (in Business or Maths disciplines preferred but not required)

• High level fluency of English required - good command of language necessary for writing compelling presentations and communicating with key retailers and internal stakeholders

• Ability to use MS Office applications to intermediate/high level essential (in particular Excel & Powerpoint)

• Ability to use sales or shopper applications e.g. Circana, Dunnhumby, SIP, Quantium will be helpful

• Understanding of the UK & Ireland retail and E-commerce environment is important

#LI-Hybrid

BIC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We strongly commit to hiring people with different backgrounds and experiences to help us build better products, make better decisions, and better serve our customers. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, veteran status, disability status, or similar characteristics. All employment is decided based on qualifications, merit, and business need.

BIC is not seeking assistance or accepting unsolicited resumes from search firms for this employment opportunity. Regardless of past practice, all resumes submitted by search firms to any team member at BIC via email, or directly to a BIC team member in any form without a valid written search agreement in place for that position will be deemed the sole property of BIC, and no fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by BIC as a result of the referral or through other means