(CAN) Merchant

Walmart; Mississauga; On-site; CAD 92,000 - 126,000; Full time

Job summary

Walmart is seeking a Category Manager in Mississauga to design and execute category strategies, ensuring alignment with sales and profitability. You will oversee merchandise P&L, vendor relationships, price optimization, and promotional planning, collaborating with cross-functional teams to drive growth.

Minimum 3–5 years in grocery retail with strong negotiation and analytics is required; a Bachelor’s degree in Business or related field is expected.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business or relevant field.
• 3–5 years of relevant experience.
• Grocery retail experience required; fresh buying experience preferred.
• Strong negotiation, vendor management, and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and organizational abilities.

Responsibilities

• Manage merchandise P&L, forecasts, and sales targets.
• Develop category strategies and optimize assortments.
• Negotiate vendor terms and maintain vendor relationships.
• Lead pricing, markups/markdowns, and private label development.
• Coordinate with cross-functional teams and provide store-ready plans.
• Lead promotional planning and trade show participation.

Skills

Category management

Vendor negotiation

Data analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Forecasting

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business or related field

Tools

Excel

Job description

Position Summary

This role designs, develops, and executes strategies for product categories, ensuring alignment with sales, qualitative, and quantitative criteria.

What you'll do

This role involves managing merchandise profit and loss, including short-term and long-term planning, proactive/reactive management, and achieving targets for forecasts, sales, markdowns, market share growth, gross profit, and inventory. The role may develop category strategies by reviewing data sources, conducting item level assortment analysis, and making assortment decisions, including vendor and SKU optimization, price ladders, and private label/brand development. Regular store visits and proactive communication of strategies to cross-functional teams may be essential for appropriate planning and execution.

Vendor management is a key responsibility, which may include negotiating and managing agreements, costs, allowances, quality, and delivery terms to drive supplier performance. The role requires developing and maintaining vendor relationships, potentially both domestic and international. The role may also be accountable for all marketing aspects of the category, including tab space planning, item level planning, selection, forecasting, and execution for various media. Ensuring the accuracy of final media and developing exit strategies for inventory residue may also be part of the role.

The role oversees new item and promotional forecasts, identifies item deletions, manages markdowns/markups/price adjustments, and develops exit strategies. Leading line reviews, delivering store-ready modulars and seasonal sets on time, and completing promotional planning activities are crucial tasks. Additionally, the role involves attending trade shows and buying trips to identify new vendors and enhance product categories. The role provides coaching and direction to team members and may mentor others as needed. Additional responsibilities may include providing administrative support for supplier negotiations, managing purchase orders, and resolving supplier issues.

The role supports the implementation of business solutions by building relationships with key stakeholders, determining necessary processes and practices, and adapting to organizational changes. Ensuring the execution of customer communication and education programs, collaborating with modular and site merchandising teams, and ensuring product page content accuracy are also key tasks. The role involves understanding customer behavior across channels, guiding suppliers and vendors in developing customer-focused processes and products, and supporting category finances by tracking performance against financial targets. Creating sales reports, supporting forecasting, and providing input on budgeting are essential functions. The role may also support the implementation of modular layout principles, advise on item sharing and replenishment, and support pricing decisions.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required in Business or relevant field

• 3–5 years of relevant experience in a similar role

• Grocery retail experience required; fresh buying experience preferred

• Strong negotiation, vendor management, and analytical skills

• Excellent communication and organizational abilities

Leadership Expectations

Respect the Individual

Demonstrates and encourages respect for all; builds a high-performing team; seeks, and embraces differences in people, cultures, ideas and experiences; creates a workplace and experiences where all associates feel seen, supported and connected through culture of belonging so associates thrive and perform; drives a positive associate and customer experience for all; identifies, attracts, and retains the best team members.

Creates a discipline and focus around developing talent

through feedback, coaching, mentoring, and developmental opportunities; promotes an environment allowing everyone to bring their best selves to work; empowers associates and partners to act in the best interest of the customer and company; and regularly recognizes others’ contributions and accomplishments.

Builds strong and trusting relationships with team members and business partners

works collaboratively and cross-functionally to achieve objectives; and communicates and listens attentively, with energy and positivity to motivate, influence, and inspire commitment and action.

Acts with Integrity

Maintains and promotes the highest standards of integrity, ethics and compliance; models the Walmart values and leads by example to foster our culture;supports Walmart’s goal of becoming a regenerative company by making a positive impact for associates, customers, and the world around us (e.g., creating a sense of belonging, eliminating waste, participating in local giving).

Follows the law, our code of conduct and company policies, and sets expectations for others to do the same; promotes an environment where associates feel comfortable sharing concerns and reinforces our culture of non-retaliation; listens to concerns raised by associates. takes action and encourages others to do the same; holds self and others accountable for achieving results in a way that is consistent with our values.

Acts as an altruistic servant leader and is consistently humble, self-aware, honest, and transparent.

Serve our Customers

Delivers expected business results while putting the customer first and consistently applying an omni-merchant mindset and acts with an Every Day Low Cost mindset to drive value and Every Day Low Prices for customers.

Adopts a holistic perspective that considers data, analytics, customer insights, and different parts of the business when making plans and shaping the team’s strategy.

Strive for Excellence

Consistently raises the bar and seeks to improve; demonstrates curiosity and a growth mindset; seeks feedback, asks thoughtful questions, fosters an environment that supports learning, innovation, and learning from mistakes, and intelligent risk-taking; and exhibits resilience in the face of setbacks.

Seeks and implements continuous improvements and encourages the team to leverage new digital tools and ways of working.

The pay range for this position is $91,900.00 - $126,390.00. Pay will be determined based on relevant experience.

L’échelle salariale pour ce poste est de 91,900.00 à 126,390.00. La rémunération sera déterminée en fonction de l’expérience pertinente.

Minimum Qualifications

Outlined below are the required minimum qualifications for this position. If none are listed, there are no minimum qualifications.

Preferred Qualifications

Outlined below are the optional preferred qualifications for this position. If none are listed, there are no preferred qualifications.

Walmart will accommodate the disability-related needs of applicants and associates as required by law.

Primary Location

1940 Argentia Rd, Mississauga, ON L5N 1P9, Canada

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