Category Manager Operations

STUART HIMMEL

** ******** ******,

Toronto, Ontario M3H 1J9

416-***-**** 416-***-**** (cell)

email:********@******.***

CAREER PROFILE

A results driven category manager with experience in the food and drug retail sector.

Strategic planner with exceptional time management, interpersonal skills, and relationship building to manage categories with over 10,000 sku’s.

Comprehensive and diverse understanding of retail categories including: grocery, frozen food, dairy, confectionary and pet food.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Aug 2009 – Present Retail Merchants Association / Sales Coordinator, Membership

Managed and developed new and existing Corporate & National client relationships

Support new and ongoing business/program development and sales initiatives to meet agreed upon sales targets.

Support President in day to day operations.

Identify trends in the marketplace.

Developing a consistent product role out to all corporate customers

Communicate our services to all individual clients.

Participated in program knowledge training.

Aug 2008 – July 2009 The E-Zone / Operations Manager

Planned and monitored daily staffing schedules and adjusted accordingly to ensure adequate staffing levels.

Managed revenue and expenses to reflect budget constraints.

Managed and oversaw administrative functions to ensure all paperwork was processed efficiently and in a timely manner and met all compliance requirements.

Hired, trained and certified new employees on all performance standards.

2006 – Dec. 2007 Hy & Zel’s Drug Warehouse/Pharmacy Won / Acting Director of Category Management

Responsibilities: Reported directly to the CEO, responsible for procurement, advertising, merchandising and operations excellence within a 17 store chain with sales of $150 million.

Developed comprehensive financial business model for negotiating multi million dollar annual vendor advertising rebate agreements that generated incremental funds of 3 to 5% annually.

Established a strategic planning policy and process for procurement for vendor negotiations of long term agreements cost effectively and efficiently.

Championed the development and implementation of inventory management control system for replenishment that maximize the inventory return rates and generated a gross margin of 18%.

1993 – 2006 / Sr. Category Manager - Grocery, Dairy, Frozen, Pet Food and Confectionary

Reported directly to the Director of Category Management.

Identified, analyzed and recommended key categories, product lines and sku’s for flyer advertising and merchandising planning that generated incremental sales lift and maximized gross profit dollars.

Executed budget plans including sales and profits for categories.

Championed the category management business review to identify gaps and recommend new products to maximize quality, costs and margin.

Monitored flyer program performance by reviewing and analyzing data; used analysis as the basis of recommendations for future ads and programs.

Directed the development of private label products from concept through to implementation.

Liaised with marketing and advertising to build a merchandising plan for the categories.

Portfolio included HABA replenishment for specific vendors.

1992 - 1993 / Category Manager - Grocery, Dairy and Frozen

Maintained and developed relationships with vendor partners.

Communicated with stores on merchandise execution plans and supported them with any inventory or customer needs.

Sourced new items to improve costs and sales.

Worked with advertising personnel to promote products.

EDUCATION

1985 – York University – Bachelor of Arts in Sociology

INTERESTS

Actively involved in sports – hockey and golf

Coach of rep hockey and school hockey teams

Involved father of four boys ranging in age from 17-23

REFERENCES: Professional and personal references available upon request.

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