Category and Product Manager at Kontak Recruitment

• Our client is a South African direct-selling business operating nationally, with a strong focus on branded, affordable consumer products distributed through an extensive sales force network. The organisation has a long-standing presence in the market and is known for empowering individuals through sustainable income opportunities, while continuously expanding and evolving its product offering.
• An opportunity exists for an experienced Category Manager to join a dynamic health and wellness division. This role will take ownership of key ingestible and topical health and wellness categories, driving category growth through strategic planning, innovation, and cross-functional collaboration.
• The successful candidate will be responsible for shaping category strategy, leading new product development initiatives, and ensuring commercial performance through strong portfolio, pricing, and lifecycle management.

Minimum Requirements:

• Diploma or Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Branding, or a related field
• Minimum of 5 years’ experience in category management within health and wellness or skincare
• Strong expertise in market analysis and product development

Skills and Attributes

• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Solid project management capability
• Ability to analyse and interpret financial and commercial performance indicators
• Strong proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint
• Detailed Orientated
• Understanding of health and wellness ingredients (advantageous)
• Proficiency in English, with isiZulu and/or Sesotho considered advantageous.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and execute strategic category plans, including new product development, lifecycle management, and promotional planning.
• Conduct market, consumer, and trend analysis to identify growth and innovation opportunities.
• Collaborate closely with marketing, design, supply chain, procurement, and sales teams to deliver successful product launches.
• Own category range, architecture, pricing strategy, and product positioning.
• Lead competitor benchmarking and ensure offerings remain differentiated and relevant.
• Partner with procurement and buying teams to align supply, forecasting, and production timelines.
• Lead projects focused on product revamps, relaunches, and cost optimisation.
• Develop detailed NPD briefs, artwork briefs, and design documentation for internal and external stakeholders.

Performance Measures

• Category growth, sales, margin, and profitability
• Innovation success and new product performance
• Portfolio optimisation and SKU performance
• Pricing effectiveness and competitive positioning
• Cross-functional execution quality
• Market insight delivery and post-launch performance