Category Manager

Job Description Posted Friday, October 24, 2025 at 4:00 AM Sheridan Nurseries Head Office is actively searching for a: Permanent, Full Time About the Job: Reporting to the Director Home Décor and Garden Supply Merchandising, the Category Manager is responsible for achieving sales and profit objectives for all Garden Supply categories. You’ll take ownership of assortment planning, vendor management, pricing, merchandising, and inventory management including replenishment, while ensuring timely flow of goods through the supply chain. Success in this role requires strong collaboration with our Garden Centre teams and a deep understanding of the nuances of a seasonal retail business. Your Accountabilities: Lead the Garden Supply category from planning through execution, ensuring the right products are in the right place, at the right time, and in the right quantities. Proactively manage inventory levels and replenishment, balancing lead times, availability, and sales trends to maximize profitability and minimize excess. Facilitate, monitor, and streamline the ordering and receiving process from external suppliers based on pre-season and in-season availability. Develop and manage seasonal and core assortments, including identifying new products and rationalizing underperformers. Evaluate and evolve pricing strategies to drive sales and profitability while maintaining market competitiveness. Build and manage strong vendor partnerships, including sourcing, negotiations, delivery schedules, promotional funding, and issue resolution. Analyze category performance and inventory data to identify opportunities and guide data-driven decisions on sales, margin, and turnover improvements. Collaborate with retail and operations teams to ensure seamless product flow, impactful displays, and smooth seasonal transitions. Work cross-functionally with marketing to develop promotions, flyers, and communication plans that drive awareness and sell-through. Design and maintain planograms and merchandising standards to deliver a consistent and inspiring guest experience. Forecast demand and manage category budgets, aligning strategies with sales and margin goals. Stay ahead of trends and emerging opportunities to keep the category relevant, competitive, and growing market share. Act as the category expert—guiding retail teams, mentoring others, and representing Garden Supply across the organization. Other duties as assigned. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Proven experience in category management, merchandising, or buying, preferably in a garden, home improvement, or seasonal retail environment. Strong understanding of replenishment cycles, vendor lead times, and seasonal planning. Exceptional organizational and analytical skills, with the ability to work independently and take full ownership of results. Confidence in decision-making and the ability to anticipate challenges before they arise. Excellent communication and collaboration skills to build strong partnerships with store teams and suppliers. A degree or a college diploma in a field related to Business Administration with a focus on sales and marketing is preferred. Experience in strategic analysis, knowledge of margin planning, open to buy, inventory productivity measures, assortment planning and elements of markup. Hands on experience with analyzing data and making forecasts. Product knowledge an asset. Must be legally eligible to work in Canada. Our Vision, Mission, & Values: At Sheridan Nurseries we aim to delight our associates, guests, and business partners in everything we do. Independently owned and operated for over 100 years, we are committed to growing the highest quality plants at our local farms, curating the best-in-class home, garden, and lifestyle products and services, delivering unrivaled guest service and satisfaction, and providing meaningful and rewarding careers to our employees. We always strive to inspire and share our knowledge, passion, and expertise to build confidence, loyalty, and trust, while protecting our planet with industry leading environmentally sustainable initiatives and giving back to our local communities and charities. Our vision is “To inspire people to never stop growing”. We thank all applicants for their interest however only those selected for an interview will be contacted. If selected, please advise if you require special accommodation to attend the interview. This job posting is for an existing vacancy within our organization. #J-18808-Ljbffr