Category Manager – Field (Waters & Premium Beverages)

About the role

The Category Manager drives Nestlé sales, shopper centricity, and category growth by serving as a strategic partner to retailers. This role collaborates with Shopper Insights, Category Strategy, Customer Account Managers and retail partners to influence adoption of growth drivers and optimize merchandising, assortment, pricing, and shelving strategies.

Key responsibilities

• Build strategic customer relationships through category thought leadership and become the “Voice of Choice” for retailer insight needs.
• Implement Nestlé’s category vision with customers, focusing on merchandising, assortment, pricing, and shelving.
• Influence customer strategic direction using analytical tools, syndicated and customer‑specific data, and shopper insights.
• Lead knowledge sharing and respond to inquiries about competitive data, customers, categories, or channels.
• Proactively identify and sell insight‑based category growth opportunities to customers.
• Develop and maintain consistent category summaries to establish Nestlé’s category centricity and expertise.
• Translate insights into actionable growth plans and activations tailored to retailer needs across the 4Ps.
• Spearhead merchandising and assortment strategies to grow the category and optimize shopability both in‑store and online.
• Partner with Sales and Category Strategy teams to drive category‑centric retailer engagements and solutions.

Required profile

• Proven ability to build strategic customer relationships and act as a thought leader.
• Strong analytical mindset with experience using data and shopper insights to influence strategy.
• Excellent communication skills to convey strategic narratives and influence retailer actions.
• Collaborative approach to work with internal sales, strategy, and insight teams.

Required skills