Category Manager - Grocery

FreshDirect; New York (NY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Onsite parking

Employee discount 20% on FreshDirect/酒

401(k) with employer match

Job summary

FreshDirect is reinventing the grocery experience from its NYC‑centric roots. The Category Manager for Grocery will build comprehensive category strategies, manage pricing, assortment, and vendor negotiations, and provide thought leadership on trends and innovation.

You’ll join a team of passionate food experts dedicated to growth, excellence, and customer obsession. The role emphasizes data‑driven merchandising, site planning, and pricing alignment with business goals, while delivering a

Qualifications

• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Analytically‑minded with strong organizational skills.
• Excellent attention to detail and exceptional follow‑through.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, particularly Excel.
• Some project management experience, and an ability to manage mid‑sized projects.
• Strong follow‑up skills in managing requests and projects that span several weeks.
• An action‑oriented mentality that takes ownership for all aspects of their work.
• 3–5 years’ experience in Grocery Retail, eCommerce, or related industry.

Responsibilities

• Produce a comprehensive category strategy meeting customer needs and business goals.
• Manage pricing for the assigned category.
• Oversee assortment and selection for the category with final approval.
• Conduct periodic category reviews aligning strategy with trends.
• Lead vendor negotiations and build collaborative relationships.
• Drive day-to-day selling organization culture with consumer focus through assortment, site planning, and pricing.
• Set base and promotional pricing delivering FreshDirect strategy and targets.
• Monitor performance metrics like Units per Order, Sales, Gross Margin, and AOV.
• Own category financial and customer metrics.

Skills

Communication skills

Excel

Project management

Attention to detail

Organizational skills

Grocery Retail experience

eCommerce experience

Ownership mindset

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Brief Description

About Us

At FreshDirect, we are reinventing the grocery experience.

Since day one, our mission has been simple: bring the best, freshest food directly from the farm to people’s homes — faster, fresher, and smarter than anyone else.

We’re not just a food company. We’re a technology-powered, customer-obsessed team building one of the most innovative end-to-end food supply chains in the industry. From proprietary routing systems to our state-of-the‑art fulfillment center, every part of our business is designed to deliver unmatched quality, convenience, and care.

We partner directly with farmers, fishermen, and artisans to source the highest quality ingredients — then use smart data, automation, and logistics to deliver them at peak freshness.

It’s grocery shopping reimagined — and we’re just getting started.

If you’re passionate about innovation, care deeply about what people eat, and want to help build the future of food, we’d love to meet you.

The Role

The Category Manager for Grocery creates comprehensive category strategies to meet customer needs and organizational goals. Responsibilities include managing pricing, assortment, and selection for assigned categories, leading vendor negotiations, and providing thought leadership on trends and innovation. The ideal candidate has demonstrated success within a merchandising function, including product sourcing and selection, eCommerce site selling strategies, and the grocery supply chain, and is interested in joining a team of passionate food experts at FreshDirect.

What You’ll Do

• Responsible for producing a comprehensive and cohesive category strategy which successfully meets the needs of our customers and achieves category goals while supporting organizational business plans
• Manages pricing for assigned category
• Manages assortment and selection for assigned category (i.e. final approval for all assortment decisions)
• Conducts periodic category reviews in order to align category strategy with current customer and market trends
• Leads vendor negotiation and develops effective, collaborative relationships
• Drive the day-to-day activities of a selling organization culture with a consumer‑centric focus through Assortment, Site Planning, and Pricing responsibilities.
• Establish base and promotional pricing for assigned categories that deliver on the FreshDirect strategy on‑site and achieve targets for sales, gross margin and units
• Manages performance for assigned category including Units per Order, Sales, Gross Margin, Average Order Size, and Shopper Marketing revenue
• Responsible for all category financial & customer metrics

What You’ll Bring

• Excellent oral and written communication skills including presentation skills
• Analytically‑minded with strong organizational skills
• Excellent attention to detail and exceptional follow‑through
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, particularly in Excel
• Some project management experience, and an ability to manage mid‑sized projects
• Strong follow‑up skills in managing requests and projects that span several weeks
• An action‑oriented mentality that takes ownership for all aspects of their work
• 3‑5 years’ experience in Grocery Retail, eCommerce, or related industry
• A true passion for food is a must!

Our Values at FreshDirect

We live these values every day:

A Passion for our customers

Our customers are at the heart of everything we do. We listen, innovate, and act quickly to exceed expectations with every order and interaction.

One team, one mission

Everyone contributes & every role matters. We break silos, lift each other up, and share a relentless focus on delivering results. That way, we win together.

Delivering excellence, every time

We take pride in the quality of our food, service, and the experience we create. Our team goes above and beyond to earn trust and guarantee 100% freshness.

Act with integrity

We operate with honesty, respect, and accountability in how we treat our customers, teammates, and partners. We own our outcomes and always do what’s right, even when no one is watching.

Make fast, bold decisions

We challenge the status quo, embrace technology, and take smart risks to build a better future. At the same time, we stay true to our NYC roots and care for our community.

We love food. Yes, literally all of us.

What You’ll Love About Working Here

• A fast‑paced, innovative environment where ideas turn into action
• Opportunities for growth — many of our leaders have risen through the ranks
• Direct impact on how thousands of customers experience food every day

Salary

$90,000 – $100,000

Total Rewards & Benefits

• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits
• PTO, Safe & Sick Time, and Paid Holidays
• Medical, Vision, Dental, and Voluntary Disability coverage
• 401(k) with employer match and Life Insurance
• State‑of‑the‑art Bronx campus with on‑site basketball court, cafeteria, and employee market
• Onsite FREE parking
• FREE employee shuttle bus service from nearby Subway station
• Training, leadership development, and tuition discount at local colleges
• 20% employee discount on FreshDirect online orders and Brooklyn wine store
• Minimum 50% employee discount at our onsite employee market
• Mobile phone discounts through partnerships with T‑Mobile and Verizon
• Gym membership discounts through NYSC

Our Culture

We embrace an in‑office culture, composed of individuals who thrive on the collaboration and energy that comes from working together in a shared space. We are looking for people who excel in this environment, where physical presence enhances connections and engagement. At FreshDirect, we’ve created an environment that thrives on teamwork, where associates can innovate, grow, and have successful careers. Many of our leaders have successfully come up through our ranks. Because of our team’s extraordinary efforts, we are a leading innovator in the e‑commerce and grocery industries.

Equal Opportunity

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Fresh Direct, LLC and its affiliates do not discriminate against applicants or employees because of their race, color, citizenship status, national origin, ancestry, gender, disability, sexual orientation, age, religion, creed, marital status, veteran status, domestic violence victim status, political affiliation, or any other factor protected by federal, state, or local law.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by the Team member(s) assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of individuals in this position. Position expectations may be subject to change as the needs of the organization changes.