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Merchandising Head

Bangalore Urban Permanent View Job Description
The role leads the company's entire merchandising, pricing, sourcing, and monetization ecosystem spanning national FMCG brands, regional brands, staples, and private labels while enabling region-specific execution with strong central strategic control. It is a high‑influence, high‑responsibility role that drives margin growth, platform monetization, and category leadership across a fast-scaling retail/marketplace environment.
  • Lead nationwide merchandising in a high‑impact retail platform.
  • Build brands and drive margin growth at massive scale.

About Our Client

Rapidly scaling, technology‑driven retail and supply‑chain platform operating across India, transforming traditional food & grocery businesses using a combination of marketplace infrastructure, logistics, fintech, and data‑driven retail solutions.

Job Description

  • Own nationwide merchandising strategy across FMCG, staples, regional brands, and private labels, while enabling region-specific variations within structured frameworks.
  • Lead category roadmaps, assortment optimization, consumer insight translation, and innovation across all product lines.
  • Build and manage C‑level relationships with major national FMCG manufacturers; lead annual business planning, terms of trade, and monetization opportunities.
  • Develop and scale regional brand ecosystems, including GTM services, digital marketing, ads, and brand acceleration models.
  • Drive Own Brands' transformation from trade‑first to consumer‑first brands across multiple categories.
  • Architect a full monetization engine including ads, supplier services, sponsored listings, and revenue‑optimization models.
  • Lead staples sourcing, quality assurance, price‑risk management, and supply chain integration.
  • Oversee dynamic pricing, promotion strategy, GMROI optimization, and demand forecasting.
  • Guide and empower Regional Leaders with insights, playbooks, and decision frameworks while balancing local autonomy and central control.
  • Build and mentor a cross‑functional merchandising organization, including category, pricing, supplier, and monetization teams.
  • Champion technology adoption, analytics, and predictive systems to drive real‑time decision making and cross-regional performance improvement.



The Successful Applicant

  • 15-25 years of experience in merchandising, category management, or commercial leadership across FMCG, grocery retail, wholesale, or modern trade or a combination of consumer tech and FMCG background.
  • Proven ability to deliver significant margin impact through assortment, pricing, and supplier negotiation.
  • Deep understanding of India's FMCG and staples ecosystem, including distributor networks and regional brand dynamics.
  • Strong analytical, BI, and pricing engine expertise; adept at tech‑enabled, data‑driven environments.
  • Experience leading P&L‑linked teams across multiple geographies; excels in matrix leadership.
  • Entrepreneurial, high‑velocity operator with strong stakeholder management and conflict‑resolution capability.
  • Comfortable working at the intersection of suppliers, regional P&Ls, and central strategy.



What's on Offer

  • The opportunity to architect the country's most advanced merchandising and monetization engine in a high‑growth retail-tech environment.
  • Significant influence across national, regional, and brand ecosystems, with the mandate to transform categories, build brands, and drive large-scale impact.
  • Leadership of a multi-functional team, high executive visibility, and the ability to shape long-term strategy for a fast-scaling platform.
  • A mission-driven culture, high ownership, and the chance to build next-generation retail infrastructure that impacts millions of small retailers across India.



Quote job ref
JN-082025-6815150

Job summary

Function
Retail
Sub Sector
Category Manager
What is your area of specialisation?
Retail
Location
Bangalore Urban
Job Type
Permanent
Job Reference
JN-082025-6815150

Diversity & Inclusion at Michael Page

We don't just accept difference - we celebrate it. We encourage applicants from all backgrounds to apply for this role and are committed to building inclusive, diverse workplaces where everyone can thrive. If you require any support or reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know.