Category Manager

Job description:

 

Job title: Category Manager

 

Location: London office, hybrid

 

Type: Full-time, permanent

 

Our culture and values:

Our values — People First, Ownership, Passion for Excellence, and Consumer and Customer Centricity — shape how we work every day 🤝 We connect with care and respect, take responsibility for our contribution and keep finding better ways to deliver for our consumers and customers.

Bring your ideas and curiosity. You’ll learn through hands-on experience, share knowledge and work with colleagues who support one another. Together, we create an inclusive environment where everyone can contribute and take pride in what we build.

 

Introduction:

 

Your role:

Lead the Tea category agenda at Tesco – Lipton’s biggest UK account – and turn data into stories that shape how millions of shoppers buy tea.

As Category Manager, you’ll lead category strategy for our biggest accounts. Working with Commercial and Marketing, you’ll use shopper and market insight to build compelling recommendations, deliver category reviews and agree joint growth plans with our retail partners. You’ll report to the Head of Category, with strong exposure to senior leadership and the chance to own high-impact projects from idea to delivery.

 

Your key responsibilities:

• Lead category strategy – be the Tea expert, spotting growth opportunities and shaping customer category plans.
• Influence customers – deliver category reviews and range recommendations that drive buying decisions, and build trusted relationships with buying teams.
• Drive performance – analyse shopper, consumer and market data to spot trends and recommend actions.
• Build capability – partner with Commercial and Marketing, and develop reporting and dashboards that make category thinking part of everyday decisions.

 

What we are looking for:

• Category management experience in FMCG, ideally managing accounts with major grocery retailers (Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda).
• Experience presenting insight directly to retail customers and influencing their decisions.
• Hands-on knowledge of Kantar, NielsenIQ, Dunnhumby or Circana.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to turn complex data into a clear 5–10 slide story.
• A confident, curious peer who challenges the status quo and influences without formal authority.
• Advanced Excel and PowerPoint.

 

🌱 What’s in it for you:

Own a flagship account — Lead category work for Tesco, Lipton’s biggest UK account.
Be seen — Present to senior leadership and major external customers, with real scope to shape how we do category management.
Grow with us — Build a path towards Senior Category Manager and future people leadership.
Iconic brands, flexible setup — Work on Lipton, PG Tips and Pukka from our Southwark office near Waterloo, with a hybrid model of 2–3 office days.

 

What to expect from us:

 

We know recruitment can be stressful, so we keep it straightforward: usually 2–3 stages, including an online interview and an on-site conversation in London with a short data case. We aim to review every CV within 2 weeks.

 

We are committed to equity, inclusion and diversity, and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. We want you to bring your whole self to work.