Lotus Natural Foods, the healthy snacking division of Lotus Bakeries and a portfolio of 5 incredible brands; BEAR, TREK, nakd. Kiddylicious and Peter’s Yard, all having their own distinct proposition and role within our business.

We have great ambitions for all our brands, ensuring that as a business we deliver sustainable growth over the long-term. We believe that taste and quality are 100% of what underpins us as brand leaders within our categories, and what pulls us apart from our competitors. All of our brands started right here in the UK, as the first market for distribution, but over the years we can now be found across the globe, our ranges have got bigger, along with us as a business.

To date we have achieved so much, but there is still plenty of room to grow further and that means we need more brilliant people, those that share an ambition for making a difference and want to join us in delivering the next chapter of growth. Fancy getting involved, then read on…

The Senior Category Manager is accountable for shaping and delivering high impact category and shopper insight that informs strategic decision making and drives sustainable growth across priority nākd and TREK brands and customers.

Acting as a senior category advisor, the role leads the translation of complex data into clear, commercially actionable insight that influences brand strategy, customer partnerships, and long term category direction. Operating with a high degree of autonomy, the role sets standards for category best practice and plays a critical role in embedding insight at the heart of commercial and marketing strategy, while remaining a hands on, results driven member of the team.

Key focus areas of the role itself and where you will spend the majority of your time: 

Category Leadership

• Partner with the Head of Category and cross functional stakeholders to identify, develop, and deliver high impact insights into UK and Global Brand Marketing leadership, shaping brand and portfolio strategy.
• Provide senior level category leadership, setting clear direction and high standards for category delivery, including coaching and development support for the Category Executive to drive exceptional performance.
• Enable effective use of category and insight reporting across the organisation by supporting functional teams through structured knowledge sharing, including category inductions and learning sessions.

Strategic Customer Collaboration

• Act as a senior, independent category advisor to priority growth customers, including Sainsbury’s, establishing credibility and influence at a senior buying and merchandising level.
• Build and sustain category captaincy-level status with key accounts, ensuring strong alignment to the nākd and TREK category vision and strategic recommendations.
• Apply a deep understanding of retailer strategies, market dynamics, and the evolving shopper landscape to ensure customer and shopper centric decision making.
• Identify and proactively communicate risks and opportunities across distribution, rate of sale, range, and promotions, providing robust, insight led recommendations to Account Managers, including support for NPD activation.
• Translate the overarching category vision into compelling, customer specific category strategies and narratives for top accounts.

Insight Leadership

• Serve as the category and insight authority for priority growth customers and the brands, combining deep historical market knowledge with foresight on broader trends to drive proactive, value creating recommendations.
• Partner with the Head of Category to deliver quarterly Revenue Growth analysis for nākd and TREK, ensuring insight is embedded into commercial evaluation and forward planning.
• Lead category analysis across core growth levers including range, distribution, pricing and promotions, seasonal events, and the NPD/EPD pipeline, supporting both commercial and marketing decision making.
• Partner with the Head of Category to deliver category and brand diagnostics for nākd and TREK within the annual planning process, ensuring brand strategies are consistently insight led and grounded in robust category understanding.

Best Practice, Tools, and External Partnership Management

• Ensure the business has access to accurate, timely, and relevant category data, with reporting that is consistently understood and applied to decision making.
• Lead delivery of bi monthly category performance reviews, developing best in class presentation standards and supporting the Category Executive’s capability growth.
• Maintain full working knowledge of the analytical tools and data frameworks underpinning category reporting, with the ability to adapt and evolve outputs as business needs change.
• Support the wider business in understanding and applying category insight through clear reporting and capability‑building activity.

Reporting into

Category Development Director nākd. & TREK UK

Alongside living our Lotus TOP Values of Team Spirit, Open Dialogue and Passion, the most important things we’re looking for from you are: 

• Significant FMCG category or insights experience, typically operating at Category Development Manager or Senior Category Development Manager level.
• Advanced capability across industry insight tools (e.g. NielsenIQ, Circana, Kantar, Dunnhumby and N360 SIP desirable), with a strong passion for data and analytical rigour.
• Proven ability to translate complex data into clear strategic insight, influencing both short‑ and long‑term commercial and brand decisions.
• Strong commercial acumen, with demonstrable experience evaluating the sales and profitability impact of category strategies.
• Highly effective communicator, with the ability to deliver compelling, senior‑level presentations and build trusted relationships internally and externally.
• Results‑oriented, adaptable, and able to prioritise effectively within a fast‑moving, entrepreneurial environment.
• Hands‑on, accountable approach, operating comfortably across detailed analysis and strategic development within a small, high‑impact team.
• Positive cultural contributor who inspires others, demonstrates alignment to our TOP values, and brings energy and pragmatism to collaboration across the wider Natural Foods business.

Other key requirements:

• Right-To-Work within the UK (without sponsorship)

• Educated to bachelor’s degree level in a relevant field, from a top university.

Masters degree is desirable.

Please note this role is a full-time position at our beautiful offices in St Albans, with four days a week spent on-site. Please only proceed if this works for you.