Category Manager

Jeyachandran Textiles; Chennai District; On-site; INR 700,000 - 1,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Jeyachandran Textiles in Chennai seeks an experienced professional for Category P&L Management across Fruits & Vegetables, FMCG Staples, and BCF lines. You will drive sales growth, margins, and profitability while overseeing sourcing and vendor relations.

The role emphasizes local market sourcing, PAN mandi dynamics, and cross-functional collaboration with warehouse, logistics, and store teams. Strong Excel skills and ERP/POS experience are essential.

Qualifications

• Experience in Category Management, Retail Buying, Purchase or Merchandising in supermarkets, hypermarkets, grocery chains, or quick-commerce.
• Prior experience handling Fruits & Vegetables (F&V), FMCG Staples (Grains/Pulses/Oils), or BCF is required.
• Familiarity with local mandi dynamics, farm-gate pricing and regional distributor networks around Chennai/Tamil Nadu.
• Strong proficiency in MS Excel (VLOOKUP, Pivot Tables, margin/wastage reports) and retail ERP/POS software.

Responsibilities

• Own sales growth, gross margin targets, and profitability across F&V, FMCG Staples, and BCF lines.
• Manage farm-gate and local mandi sourcing, pricing, quality checks, and crop planning.
• Onboard suppliers, negotiate Terms of Trade, schemes, margins, and volume rebates.
• Monitor stock turns, control inventory aging, and minimize shrinkage in perishables.
• Set pricing for KVIs, design SKU assortments based on local demand, and track trends.
• Plan seasonal promotions, end-cap displays, and bundled deals to boost basket size.
• Coordinate with warehouse, logistics, and store teams to maintain fill rates and smooth deliveries.

Skills

Category Management

Retail Buying

Merchandising

Vendor Management

Sourcing

Communication

Education

Any Graduate / Bachelor's Degree

Tools

MS Excel

Retail ERP/POS software

Job description

Role & responsibilities:

• Category P&L Management: Own sales growth, gross margin targets, and overall profitability across Fruits & Vegetables (F&V), FMCG Staples, and BCF lines.
• Sourcing & Mandi Management (F&V): Manage farm-gate and local mandi sourcing, daily market pricing, quality checks, and seasonal crop planning to ensure high freshness and low cost.
• Vendor Management & Negotiation: Onboard suppliers, negotiate Terms of Trade (TOT), schemes, margins, and annual volume rebates for FMCG Staples and BCF brands.
• Inventory & Wastage Control: Monitor stock turns, manage inventory aging, maintain optimum stock availability, and implement strict protocols to minimize shrinkage/wastage in perishables.
• Pricing & Assortment Planning: Set competitive pricing for Key Value Items (KVIs), design SKU assortments based on local demand, and track market trends to maximize store sales.
• Promotions & Merchandising: Plan seasonal events, festival offers, end-cap displays, and bundled deals to drive higher basket size and Average Order Value (AOV).
• Supply Chain & Operations Alignment: Coordinate closely with warehouse, logistics, and store teams to maintain high fill rates, prevent stock-outs, and ensure smooth delivery schedules.

Preferred candidate profile:

• Experience: 4 to 7 years of hands-on experience in Category Management, Retail Buying, Purchase, or Merchandising within Supermarkets, Hypermarkets, Grocery Chains, or Quick-Commerce.
• Domain Exposure: Prior experience handling Fruits & Vegetables (F&V), FMCG Staples (Grains/Pulses/Oils), or BCF is required.
• Local Market Sourcing: Familiarity with local mandi dynamics, farm-gate pricing, and regional FMCG distributor networks around Chennai/Tamil Nadu is highly preferred.
• Technical Skills: Strong proficiency in MS Excel (VLOOKUP, Pivot Tables, margin/wastage reports) and retail ERP/POS software.
• Language & Communication: Fluency in Tamil (essential for local vendor and mandi interaction) and functional English for reporting.
• Education: Any Graduate / Bachelor's Degree in any discipline.