Category Development Manager

Mai Dubai™ Bottled Drinking Water; Dubai; On-site; AED 300,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Mai Dubai™ Bottled Drinking Water is seeking a strategic Category Development Manager to identify and launch growth opportunities across categories. You will lead market analysis, business case development, and end-to-end product development, sourcing, and commercialization, coordinating with R&D, marketing, sales, procurement, finance, quality, operations, and supply chain.

The ideal candidate has a 10+ year FMCG track record in category development or brand management, strong financial

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business, Economics, Engineering, Food Science, or a related field.
• 10+ years of FMCG / Food & Beverage experience in Category Development, Product Development, Innovation, Portfolio, or Brand Management.
• Proven experience launching and commercializing new categories, products, or brands.
• Mandatory experience in Coffee or related beverage categories.
• Strong expertise in market assessment, consumer insights, category strategy, pricing, commercialization, and financial modelling.
• Experience working with co-manufacturers, suppliers, and external strategic partners.
• Strong commercial acumen, analytical skills, stakeholder management, and project leadership.
• Arabic language is an advantage.

Responsibilities

• Identify and evaluate new category and product opportunities aligned with business growth strategy.
• Develop category roadmaps, business cases, P&L models, pricing strategies, and go-to-market plans.
• Lead end-to-end new product development and commercialization through stage-gate processes.
• Drive market, consumer, competitor, and trend analysis to identify high-potential opportunities.
• Partner with R&D, Marketing, Sales, Procurement, Finance, Quality, Operations, and Supply Chain.
• Manage external partners, co-manufacturers, suppliers, research agencies, and strategic partners.
• Track revenue, profitability, market share, launch performance, and ROI.
• Present category strategies, investment proposals, and performance updates to senior management.

Skills

Category development

Product development

Innovation

Portfolio management

Brand management

Market analysis

Financial modelling

Stakeholder management

Project leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business, Economics, Engineering, or related field

Job description

We are looking for a strategic and commercially driven Category Development Manager to identify, develop, and launch new category growth opportunities. The role will lead the end-to-end journey from market opportunity identification and business case development to product development, sourcing, commercialization, and launch performance.

Key Responsibilities :

• Identify and evaluate new category and product opportunities aligned with business growth strategy.
• Develop category roadmaps, business cases, P&L models, pricing strategies, and go-to-market plans.
• Lead end-to-end new product development and commercialization through stage-gate processes.
• Drive market, consumer, competitor, and trend analysis to identify high-potential opportunities.
• Partner with R&D, Marketing, Sales, Procurement, Finance, Quality, Operations, and Supply Chain to deliver successful launches.
• Manage external partners, co-manufacturers, suppliers, research agencies, and strategic partners.
• Track revenue, profitability, market share, launch performance, and ROI and recommend corrective actions.
• Present category strategies, investment proposals, and performance updates to senior management.

Ideal Candidate :

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business, Economics, Engineering, Food Science, or a related field.
• 10+ years of FMCG / Food & Beverage experience in Category Development, Product Development, Innovation, Portfolio, or Brand Management.
• Proven experience launching and commercializing new categories, products, or brands.
• Mandatory experience in Coffee or related beverage categories.
• Strong expertise in market assessment, consumer insights, category strategy, pricing, commercialization, and financial modelling.
• Experience working with co-manufacturers, suppliers, and external strategic partners.
• Strong commercial acumen, analytical skills, stakeholder management, and project leadership.
• Arabic language is an advantage.