Category Development & Perfect Store Analyst

Job description

Location: Bryanston Qualification: Relevant Bachelor’s Degree or BCom Experience: 3-5 years’ experience in Category Management, Insights, Sales Operations, Field Sales or Commercial roles within FMCG manufacturer or retailer. Closing Date: 22 October 2026 Position Summary We are looking for a Category Development & Perfect Store Analyst within our Commercial team. The role serves as a Category, Shopper and Store Excellence analyst, turning shopper, channel, customer and market insights into actionable category growth recommendations, while creating repeatable perfect store execution systems that translate Picture of Success into measurable commercial outcomes. The Analyst supports objective assortment, ranging, shelf and space choices; sets clear in-store execution standards; equips Sales and Field teams; and closes the performance loop through disciplined tracking, learning and optimisation. A day in the life of a Category Development & Perfect Store Analyst 1. Category, shopper and market insight Analyse shopper, category, channel, customer and performance data to identify growth opportunities, unmet needs, missions, occasions and emerging trends. Translate analysis into clear commercial recommendations and category selling stories for internal teams and customers. Support the commissioning and application of research where required. 2. Picture of Success, assortment and ranging excellence Support the development and execution of Picture of Success by category, channel, customer and store format. Develop objective assortment and ranging recommendations, including channel-specific must-stock-lists, priority SKUs and weighted distribution targets. Support category reviews, range reviews and range architecture by identifying distribution gaps, rationalisation opportunities and scalable category growth levers. 3. Space, shelf and planogram optimisation Define category role, optimized floor plan & immediate category adjacencies, macro-space allocation and layout recommendations by channel. Brief optimal planogram production, using shopper decision trees, product flow, forward share, facings and days-of-supply principles. Develop NPD placement recommendations Support and drive shelf excellence through customer collaborations on category-management programmes. Coordinate planogram production by space-planning partners, ensuring clear briefs, quality output, and on-time delivery. 4. Perfect Store standards and field enablement Translate business and category strategies into simple, channel-relevant execution standards to achieve optimal availability, visibility, and accessibility. Develop in-store execution guidelines, merchandising principles, playbooks and field-ready toolkits for Field teams. Support field capability through deployment of trade manuals, clear implementation calendars and practical issue-resolution guidance. 5. Execution measurement, reporting and optimisation Govern the in-store KPI framework and scorecards, including ranging compliance, planogram compliance, on-shelf availability, distribution and forward share versus market share. Be the internal custodian of list of top stores by category across channels, and manage segmentation of ‘maintain’, ‘accelerate’ and ‘fix’ stores. Use field audits, retailer data, digital shelf analytics and retail execution intelligence tools to identify gaps and prioritise corrective actions. Establish baselines, track pilot and rollout performance, evaluate sales impact and ROI, document learnings and recommend what should be refined or scaled. 6. Customer engagement and category partnerships Partner with Category Commercial Development teams and Customer teams in customer category engagements, range reviews, shelf-optimisation discussions and strategic category collaborations. Deliver fact-based, shopper-led recommendations that respect customer strategies and constraints while advancing mutual category growth. Coordinate planogram rollouts and external category-management workstreams from alignment and test-store selection through implementation and performance review. 7. New Product Development and portfolio support Support NPD launches with size-of-prize analysis, ranging recommendations, distribution opportunities and placement strategy. Track post-launch distribution and performance, monitor competitor developments and recommend portfolio or execution actions based on evidence. 8. Governance and cross-functional ways of working Work as an integrator across Category Commercial Development Teams, Customer Teams, Sales Operations, Field Sales agents, and space-planning partners. Maintain clear priorities, ownership, workplans and reporting rhythms across assigned initiatives, escalating execution risks and dependencies early. Share learning across categories and customers, standardise repeatable tools and help simplify recurring operational work. What will make you successful Relevant Bachelor’s degree, preferably BCom. 3-5 years of experience in Category Management, Insights, Sales Operations, Filed Sales or Commercial roles within an FMCG manufacturer or retailer. Strong analytical ability, with experience translating data into clear executional recommendations. Knowledge of category management, shopper behaviour, field operations and in-store execution. Experience with assortment, ranging, distribution, space planning, planograms, performance reporting or category growth initiatives. Confident stakeholder engagement and the ability to collaborate across commercial teams, agency partners, and customers. Strong planning, communication, problem-solving and execution discipline; a proactive self-starter with attention to detail.