Category and Insights Controller

Campari Group today is a major player in the global branded spirits industry, with a portfolio of over 50 premium and super premium brands, marketed and distributed in over 190 markets around the world, with leading positions in Europe and the Americas.

Headquartered in Milan, Italy, Campari Group owns 22 plants worldwide and has its own distribution network in 22 countries, and employs approximately 4,000 people.

Shares of the parent company Davide Campari - Milano N.V. are listed on the Italian Stock Exchange since 2001. Campari Group is today the sixth-largest player worldwide in the premium spirits industry.

Role Overview 

Campari Group UK is looking for a Category & Insight Controller based in London, as we continue to put insight at the heart of our future business strategy. The Category & Insight Controller will help to support Campari’s growth ambition in the UK by leading and developing the category & insight team across both the On & Off Trade channels. The role is both internally and externally focused and will approach opportunities through a category-first lens. 

The ideal candidate will have a background in category management in UK FMCG, more than 5 years’ experience working in a category management role with customer facing exposure, strong analytical skills, a strategic mindset and ideally multi-channel experience. We are looking for a dynamic individual with the ability to thrive in an agile and fast-paced environment who is technically sound and extremely curious. You need to be an excellent communicator, have strong analytical and problem-solving skills and the ability to work with and influence key stakeholders across several cross-functional teams, including the CCM, Marketing and Commercial teams. You’ll also be responsible for building relationships with key customers based on insight and trust by engaging buyers with category growth opportunities. 

The successful candidate will report into the Commercial Operations and Capability Manager 

Key Responsibilities and Activities: 

• Campari UK Internal Category Focus: 

• Lead the continous analysis of brand and company performance throughout the year across both the On & Off Trade 

• Utilise category and customer insight to highlight potential future opportunities and issues for the Campari UK, turning insight into action. 

• Assist in measurement and evaluation of major customer initiatives where required  

• Ownership of the continuous internal reporting structure for Campari UK’s market & category data 

• Deliver rapid, accurate and insightful responses to data requests from senior management across a variery of topics: 

• Category Performance, Segmentation & Trends 

• Brand strategy & performance 

• Competitor analysis 

• Channel, consumer & shopper insight reviews 

• Consumer/shopper understanding, P2P and ranging recommendations 

• SKU framework & Serve strategy 

• Line management and development of a Category Manager and an Analyst 

• Efficient management of the continous agencies as a resource in order to generate excellent insight creation 

• Ownership, Evolution and Creation of Campari UK Category Toolkit:   

• Ownership of Campari’s category segmentation, customising and evolving the approach to unlock opportunities and identify ranging opportunities for retailers across both channels 

• Ownership of the category growth drivers to help shape Campari UK’s strategic direction, ensure that the category drivers are supported with key facts and insights to drive engagement linked to relevant category, market, consumer & shopper trends. 

• Develop and build out a Category Strategy linked to key growth drivers and market, shopper and consumer trends that provides strategic direction for the category, customers and Campari UK. 

• Customer: 

• Work with commercial channel leads to develop and implement category recommendations for key On and Off Trade Retailers, linked to core insights and trends 

• Expert in generating comprehensive insights and a category stories using all available continuous data sources 

• Build on-going relationships with key retail partners through range reviews, category reviews and sell-in presentations, based on a category-first approach 

• Ownership of category overviews and range reviews with key retailer (On & Off Trade) partners 

• Create customised retailer specific selling stories, by leveraging all available selling material 

• Deliver merchandising recommendations aligned to shopper, consumer and category insight 

• Exectution of retailer engagement strategy through the category strategy process 

Key Relationships 

Reporting Lines: 

• Reports to Commercial Operations and Capability Manager 

Direct Reports: 

• Category Manager & Category Analyst (both on and off trade) 

Other Internal Relationships: 

• On Trade Commercial Team 

• Off Trade Commercial Team 

• Brand Marketing 

• Customer Marketing Managers (On & Off Trade) 

• Finance Team 

• National Advocacy Team 

• UK Lead Team 

External Relationships: 

• Research & Insight Agencies 

• On & Off Trade Customers 

• Management Consultancies 

• Data, Analytics and Insight Partners (i.e. Kantar, IRI, Nielsen, CGA, Dunhumby, SIP etc.) 

Experience and Skills 

Experience Required: 

• Minimum of five years operating in a category management position, ideally within the UK FMCG industry, BWS highly desireable but not essential. 

• Previous line management experience highly desirable. 

• Expert in category management principles with a proven track record of working within category teams and customer facing roles 

• Ability to analyse complicated information rapidly, identify risks & opportunities and explain complex issues simply. Study the broad picture and pick out key details to be shared – ‘make the complicated simple’ 

• Expert in generating comprehensive insights and a category story using all available continuous data sources 

• Excellent UK Industry knowledge across both the On & Off Trade, experience in both is advantageous 

• The ability to work in cross functional teams on both small & large scale projects 

• Proven problem solving skills, coupled with structural thinking and strong analytical abilities 

• Personal resilience and able to work under pressure with tight deadlines 

• Gravitas, confidence and leadership skills to challenge and influence at all levels of the business 

• Previous line management experience highly desirable. 

Functional Skills: 

• Advanced skills in excel & market data query systems (Dunnhumby, SIP and Discover) 

• Channel and Category Segmentation experience 

• Category, Brand & Portfolio Strategy understanding and experience 

• Strong analytical & reporting skills 

• Excellent communication skills (verbal & written presentation skills) with the ability to distil and bring complex data to life 

• A strong understanding of Category Management principles and strategies 

Our commitment to Diversity & Inclusion:

At Campari Group we believe in building more value together, thus we see diversity in all forms as a source of enrichment. Our employment policies and practices ensure that we are committed to providing equal employment opportunities in all aspects of employment without regard to any individual’s race, religion, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or characteristics or expression, political affiliation or activity, age, veteran status, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Note to applicants:

Your application will be assessed based on your abilities, expertise, general knowledge and experience, not because of any confidential, proprietary or trade secret information you may possess. You must not disclose to Campari Group any such information. In the event that you are asked a question that cannot be answered without disclosure of any confidential, proprietary or trade secret information (including from a current or prior employer or their vendors or customers), you must decline to answer the question.

Notice to third party agencies:

Please refrain from cold-calling or emailing our executive leadership team or the HR community directly. The Talent Acquisition department manages centralized recruiting operations globally, including the selection and management of external suppliers. Currently, our preferred supplier list is at full capacity. To ensure we have your information on file for future consideration, we kindly request that you complete the online form provided here.

Our commitment to Diversity & Inclusion:

At Campari Group we believe in building more value together, thus we see diversity in all forms as a source of enrichment. Our employment policies and practices ensure that we are committed to providing equal employment opportunities in all aspects of employment without regard to any individual’s race, religion, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or characteristics or expression, political affiliation or activity, age, veteran status, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Note to applicants:

Your application will be assessed based on your abilities, expertise, general knowledge and experience, not because of any confidential, proprietary or trade secret information you may possess. You must not disclose to Campari Group any such information. In the event that you are asked a question that cannot be answered without disclosure of any confidential, proprietary or trade secret information (including from a current or prior employer or their vendors or customers), you must decline to answer the question.

Notice to third party agencies:

Please refrain from cold-calling or emailing our executive leadership team or the HR community directly. The Talent Acquisition department manages centralized recruiting operations globally, including the selection and management of external suppliers. Currently, our preferred supplier list is at full capacity. To ensure we have your information on file for future consideration, we kindly request that you complete the online form provided here.