Regional Category Manager

Regional Category Manager Vendor Partnerships - Savomart
Location: Kerala, Delhi, Kolkata
Reports to: Category Head

About the Role Savomart is looking for a seasoned commercial leader who has sat on the other side of the table and now wants to build category and vendor strength from within a retailer. You will own the FMCG category P&L (foods, home care, personal care), negotiate and run joint business plans with large suppliers, and use your field-level understanding of trade, distributors and in-store execution to lift sales, margin and availability across Savomart stores. This role suits someone with 15–20+ years in FMCG sales, modern trade and category management who knows how brands plan, price, promote and distribute, and can convert that knowledge into a sharper buying and merchandising engine for a regional retailer.

What You Will Own
1. Category P&L and growth own sales, gross margin and inventory health for FMCG categories (detergents, personal care, packaged foods and beverages). Build annual and quarterly category plans with SKU store-cluster level action plans. Drive growth of high-potential and future core segments and rationalize slow-moving SKUs.
2. Vendor and key account partnerships Lead annual trade terms, joint business plans, scheme negotiations and listing/delisting decisions with national and regional FMCG suppliers. Manage relationships at senior level with sales heads, key account managers and distributors of leading FMCG companies. Ensure timely claims, scheme settlement and funding of promotions.
3. Promotions, visibility and in-store execution Plan the promotional calendar with suppliers, including launches, displays, endcaps, POSM and store activations. Track planogram compliance, share of shelf, on-shelf availability and visibility scores across stores. Run supplier-funded launches of new brand innovations through the store network.
4. Supply chain and availability work with supply chain and warehouse teams on demand forecasts, stock plans, fill rates and replenishment cycles. Reduce out-of-stocks and ageing inventory using sell-out and market data.
5. Insights and analytics Use sales data, panel data (Nielsen/IMRB-type market insights) and competitor tracking to set pricing, assortment and promotion decisions. Produce weekly and monthly category dashboards for leadership.
6. Team leadership Lead and develop category managers, buyers and merchandising executives. Upskill store and field teams on product knowledge, selling points and competitor offerings through sessions and store immersions.
7. Growth initiatives Support expansion into new stores and clusters, private label opportunities and supplier-backed exclusives. Where relevant, evaluate and onboard digital and AI-enabled tools for forecasting, pricing and promotion analytics.