Category Lead

Hungryroot; United States; Remote; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Hungryroot is looking for a passionate Category Lead to shape its product assortment. This role involves strategic category management, vendor relations, and data-informed decision-making to improve customer satisfaction and business performance. Ideally suited for someone with eCommerce experience, this role offers flexibility and a focus on health and wellness.

Benefits

Remote-first work environment

Equity

Unlimited vacation policy

Universal paid parental leave

Monthly credit for healthy groceries

Comprehensive health benefits

401k plan

Home-office setup stipend

Qualifications

• 5+ years of category management experience, ideally in eCommerce.
• Proven experience in vendor partnerships and private-label products.
• Strong analytical mindset with proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic direction for assigned categories to drive growth and customer satisfaction.
• Manage the entire product lifecycle from planning to performance management.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure product availability and quality.

Skills

Negotiation

Project Management

Analytical Skills

Communication

Collaboration

Education

5+ years in category management or merchandising

Working knowledge of food safety standards

Tools

Excel

Google Sheets

NetSuite

Airtable

Looker

Job description

About Us

At Hungryroot, we understand that food is deeply personal—it fuels our bodies and minds, impacting how we feel and function every day. Yet, the current food system makes it difficult to make healthy, enjoyable choices. With busy lifestyles and traditional grocery experiences that leave us overwhelmed, many struggle to find balance. Hungryroot is changing that through a seamless digital experience designed to make healthy eating effortless. At Hungryroot, we’re building the most consumer-centric food and wellness company to ever exist, empowering people to eat healthier, feel better, and make food choices that truly support their well-being.

We are a distributed team built on top talent from over 28 states across the U.S. While we have a headquarters in New York City, we support employees working from wherever they are based. We believe in fostering team connection and collaboration across all of ourOur cutting-edge AI technology, SmartCart, powers a personalized meal planning and grocery shopping experience that is tailored to each customer’s unique preferences, dietary needs, budget, and goals. By recommending the right groceries and recipes, SmartCart saves hours of meal prep and shopping time, reduces stress, and ensures that customers always have fresh, nutritious options on hand. With an intuitive, easy-to-use digital platform, we bring variety and convenience to the forefront, helping customers discover new foods they love, while minimizing waste and saving money. employees' locations. Expect to attend regular team building events and an annual company retreat. Expect to be treated like an owner who cares about our common goal, not someone who has to clock in and out of work.

About the Role

Hungryroot is seeking a strategic, analytical, and passionate Category Lead to shape and scale our product assortment in alignment with our customers’ needs and preferences. This high-impact role is responsible for defining and executing data-informed category strategies that maximize customer satisfaction, drive sales and profitability, and uphold our mission to make healthy eating easy.

As Category Lead, you will own end-to-end category management for your categories—including assortment architecture, vendor and item selection, packaging, and merchandising—with a clear focus on curating products and brands that meet the Root Standard: our commitment to quality, nutrition, convenience, and great taste. You’ll play a key role in building and managing supplier partnerships, unlocking value through cost optimization, vendor performance management, and innovation.

In this important role, you will report directly to the Director of Category Management and collaborate closely with Culinary, Analytics, Food Safety, Marketing, and Supply Chain teams to onboard and maintain an assortment of best-in-class products.

Responsibilities

• Own and lead the strategic direction of your assigned categories—developing a long-term vision and executing against clear goals to drive customer satisfaction, growth, and profitability.
• Proactively identify and source innovative brands and products that align with Hungryroot’s core values of health, convenience, and taste—ensuring a differentiated, mission-aligned assortment.
• Own the end-to-end product lifecycle, leading cross-functional execution from pipeline planning and vendor negotiations through onboarding, launch, and in-market performance management.
• Leverage data and customer insights to inform category strategy, guiding decisions on product mix, pricing, promotion, and placement to improve business performance and customer value.
• Identify and deliver cost-saving initiatives, renegotiating vendor agreements or exploring alternative sourcing while preserving quality, performance, and margin goals.
• Steer long-term assortment health, identifying assortment gaps, whitespace opportunities, market trends, and rationalization needs to ensure the mix evolves with customer preferences and business priorities.
• Partner with product development, culinary, and leadership teams to conceptualize and launch private-label innovations that meet our high standards and drive business impact.
• Build and manage best-in-class supplier relationships, holding vendors accountable to performance standards across cost, quality, food safety, and service.
• Own category compliance and quality, partnering closely with food safety and regulatory teams to uphold federal, state, and internal standards.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with supply chain and fulfillment teams to ensure product availability, minimize disruptions, and maintain healthy inventory aligned with demand.
• Work with brand partners and our partnerships team to design and activate promotional opportunities that elevate category performance and support revenue goals.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in category management, buying, or merchandising—ideally within eCommerce.
• Proven ability to negotiate, manage projects, and communicate effectively across internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience building vendor partnerships and developing private-label products.
• Working knowledge of retail and eCommerce food safety standards.
• Strong analytical mindset with strong proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets.
• Highly collaborative, with a track record of effective cross-functional partnership.
• Agile and solutions-oriented; thrives in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Self-motivated, positive, and proactive with a transparent communication style.
• Passion for food, health, and wellness, with a pulse on industry trends and consumer behavior.
• Familiarity with tools like NetSuite, Airtable, Looker, or other ERP systems is a plus.

Perks & Benefits

• Remote-first: work from home, work from our NYC office, work from anywhere in the U.S. - you decide!
• Equity
• Unlimited vacation policy
• Universal paid parental leave
• Monthly Hungryroot credit for delicious, healthy groceries
• Comprehensive health, vision, dental, and life insurance
• Wellbeing benefits including One Medical, Spring Health, LiveHealth, Rightway care concierge, and more
• 401k
• A work from home stipend to support your initial home-office setup

Expected Pay Range
$90,000-$130,000

#LI-REMOTE

The employer will not sponsor applicants for work visas.

Our mission to help make healthy eating easy, accessible, and joyful is better served by a diverse workplace. We are a proud Equal Opportunity Employer committed to building an inclusive workplace. We have zero-tolerance for harassment or discrimination. We do not discriminate on the basis of any protected class.