Category Development Manager

Mai Dubai™ Bottled Drinking Water; Dubai; On-site; AED 240,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Mai Dubai™ Bottled Drinking Water is seeking a strategic, commercially driven Category Development Manager to identify, develop, and launch new category growth opportunities. You will own the end-to-end journey from market opportunity identification to launch performance, working with R&D, Marketing, Sales, and Supply Chain.

You will lead cross-functional teams, develop business cases, and manage external partners to ensure successful launches and measurable ROI.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Economics, Engineering, Food Science, or a related field.

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.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Commercial acumen

Analytical skills

Stakeholder management

Project leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Economics, Engineering, Food Science, 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.