Location: Southern Ontario - Hybrid
Vacancy: This posting is for a currently open position.
Compensation: $120,000 to $140,000 + annual performance incentive
COMPANY PROFILE
Our client is a national leader in the distribution of essential operating supplies, serving industries such as foodservice and hospitality, manufacturing, retail and grocery, healthcare, and janitorial and sanitation. With a strong Canadian presence and the support of a global organization, the company combines local responsiveness with international scale.
Focused on innovation and sustainability, the organization provides critical products and solutions that help customers improve efficiency, control costs, and adapt to evolving market needs. Operating with a customer-first mindset and strong ethical standards, it is committed to long-term, responsible growth across North America and beyond. As part of its continued growth and investment in category management, the company is seeking a Category Management Leader to strengthen and elevate the strategic impact of this function within the business.
POSITION OVERVIEW
We are seeking a senior Category Management Leader with a proven track record of delivering profitable growth across complex product portfolios, specifically within the safety products category. The core target market comprises B2B customers in food processing, manufacturing, construction, and retail.
This role is responsible for end-to-end category performance, combining data-centric strategic planning with tactical execution. The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in sourcing, product development, and supplier management, with the ability to translate data and market insights into actionable, profitable growth opportunities. To achieve this, the successful candidate has demonstrated the ability to collaborate and influence cross-functional business partners without authority to drive results. With one analyst as a direct report, partnerships with sales, marketing, finance, product management, procurement, senior leadership personnel are key to driving on-target performance of the safety category.
Core product categories include PPE, facility and workplace safety, confined space, fall protection, respiratory protection, and material handling safety products.
The role also manages key supplier relationships and commercial negotiations to support sustained profitability and long-term competitive advantage.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Own category performance, driving growth, profitability, and market competitiveness.
- Develop and execute category strategies and balanced assortment plans (private label, branded, innovation, sustainability).
- Identify market trends in industrial safety and turn insights into growth opportunities.
- Align category direction with senior leadership and business priorities.
- Lead product lifecycle from development through commercialization.
- Build and execute sourcing strategies that improve supplier performance and financial outcomes.
- Manage supplier relationships, negotiations, and commercial agreements.
- Use data and market insights to guide sourcing and category decisions.
- Lead and develop a high-performing category team.
- Strengthen collaboration across internal teams and external partners.
- Ensure alignment between stakeholders, suppliers, and category strategy execution.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Senior-level experience in category management, ideally within distribution, wholesale, or industrial environments.
- Strong background in sourcing, procurement, vendor management, product development, and contract negotiation.
- Solid understanding of market dynamics with the ability to build and execute strategic, customer-focused decisions.
- Proven track record of driving performance, competitiveness, and meaningful organizational change.
- Strong leadership approach that promotes accountability, collaboration, and high performance.
- Highly analytical with strong relationship-building and influencing skills.
- Comfortable operating in fast-paced environments with shifting priorities and tight deadlines.
If you thrive on challenges and are driven to play a role in transformative change at a national scale, we’d love to hear from you. Please send your resume to lead executive search consultant, Charles Warren, by selecting the “Submit Your Resume” option and following the required steps.
The employer may use AI-assisted tools during the screening of applicants.
Thank you in advance for your interest, only individuals deemed to have the skill set and experience to fit the role will be contacted. Applicants must be legally entitled to work in Canada without sponsorship.
Lock Search Group is a National Executive Recruitment firm with 11 offices in Canada and one in the United States, a staff of more than 30 Consultants and Associates, and expertise in 11 major disciplines. Our mission is to provide exceptional Recruitment and Consulting Services to clients and candidates. We apply our experience and expertise to deliver solutions with a personalized approach that focuses on clients’ needs and candidates’ goals.
Follow us on LinkedIn!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/lock-search-group