Senior Category Insights Manager

About Us

Empire Marketing Strategies has been a leader in delivering exceptional in-store execution for over 40 years, enhancing the customer experience in grocery retail. Operating in all 18 Kroger divisions across the U.S., we partner with some of the world's top brands to optimize their presence in over 2,500 store locations. Our team thrives on tackling diverse challenges in the fast‑paced retail industry.

We value dedication, talent, and a passion for excellence.

Flexible, M-F Work Schedule, 9 Holidays off
Earn a competitive salary plus 80% employer‑covered benefits
Full‑Time Associates:
Eligible for medical, dental, vision, life and AD&D insurance, disability coverage, a retirement program, mental health support, paid time off, and 9 paid holidays annually.
A dynamic work environment where you’ll make a real impact.

Empire Marketing Strategies is seeking an authentic and passionate Senior Category Insights Manager to join our team in the Greater Cincinnati area, focusing on our partnership with Kroger. This role involves leveraging data and insights to create compelling selling stories that drive portfolio expansion and increase retail share for clients. As a leader, you will coach team members and foster cross‑functional collaboration to establish best practices in insights and category leadership.

Reporting to the Director of Category Insights, you will oversee strategy development, assortment recommendations, new item presentations, and category business reviews, while organizing products both online and offline. By utilizing consumer and shopper insights, you will develop innovative solutions for mutually beneficial business growth while mentoring your colleagues.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions:

• Strategic Category Management
• Client Partnership Development
• Team Leadership and Collaboration
• Data Analysis and Reporting

• Strategic Category Management – Establish category management defining strategies to provide the framework for customer/account specific plans focused against merchandising, product assortment, placement, pricing, and promotion online and offline.
• Serve as the category expert internally, creating compelling, actionable & measurable category plans and working collaboratively with cross‑functional teams including sales, strategy, shopper marketing, and insights.
• Build comprehensive knowledge of the products, attributes, strategies, tactics, and competitive trends in the marketplace for assigned categories online and offline.
• Client Partnership Development – Develop long‑term, strategic partnerships with clients, particularly with Kroger, fostering relationships at senior levels.
• Present insights and provide strategic point of view in clients meetings as well as ad‑hoc discussions as applicable.
• Monitor company and customer assortments, identifying opportunities for incremental business growth.
• Team Leadership and Collaboration – Coach and train Insights Team colleagues to support their growth through best‑practice sharing, mentoring, and ad‑hoc training.
• Work effectively with Sales, Marketing, Shopper Marketing, Shopper & Consumer Insights, Brand, eCommerce, and other Category Leadership resources to establish, lead and maintain performance management including the streamlining of reporting cadences, macro assessments, and opportunity gap analysis.
• Data Analysis and Reporting – Develop and present comprehensive, concise, and objective category reviews incorporating shopper, consumer, retailer, syndicated, and loyalty data.
• Maintain tracking and reporting of company and customer assortments to monitor progress against goals, identify incremental opportunities to drive the business.
• Provide ad‑hoc category management reporting, trend analysis, customized reports, and special project work directly to internal/external leaders as necessary.
• Bring intellectual curiosity and a forward‑thinking mentality to maintain awareness of market trends and retailer strategies and adjust client’s strategy accordingly.
• Keep abreast of developments and best practices in…