Job Introduction
As we continue our mission to make people and nature happy through chocolate, we're looking for a Category Trade Manager to join our UK Trading team on a 12-month fixed-term contract, covering maternity leave.
In this role, you’ll be responsible for driving category performance across our UK channels, maximising sales, margin and growth through effective planning, execution and performance management. With a particular focus on key seasonal and peak trading periods, you’ll play a pivotal role in turning commercial insight into action.
Working closely with our Retail, Ecommerce, Marketing and Supply teams, you’ll identify opportunities and risks, respond to trading performance and market trends, and ensure we have the right products, pricing and stock in place at the right time. You’ll also provide category insight and recommendations to support wider commercial decisions and help deliver a consistent customer experience across channels.
As well as a competitive salary and a range of company benefits, you’ll receive 50% discount on all products, and a 70% discount for you and your guests when you stay at our Rabot Estate hideaway on the paradise island of Saint Lucia.
Here at Hotel Chocolat, we've adopted hybrid working. This means you’ll join us on site for 3 days a week, and for the other 2 days – you can work from wherever you like! The on-site location for this role is our support office, ‘Mint House’, in Royston, Hertfordshire. Our home from the very beginning, it’s just off the A505 and 10 minutes’ walk from Royston train station, with direct rail links to London King’s Cross.
What you’ll be doing
- Drive category performance across UK channels, delivering sales, margin and growth targets.
- Act as the key category contact for Ecommerce, Retail and Marketing, aligning teams around trading priorities, stock availability and market opportunities.
- Partner with Retail to translate category priorities into clear performance targets and effective store execution.
- Analyse weekly and seasonal trading performance, turning data and customer insight into actionable recommendations.
- Manage pricing, promotions and clearance activity to optimise sales, margin and stock sell-through.
- Partner with Supply teams on forecasting, stock allocation and inventory planning.
- Support range reviews, portfolio planning, new product development and ranging decisions with commercial insight.
- Identify category growth opportunities through trading analysis, customer insight and competitor review.
- Coordinate category plans for key seasonal and peak trading events, ensuring stock, pricing, ranging and launches support our commercial objectives.
- Provide category priorities and commercial input into the ecommerce trading calendar to ensure a joined-up omnichannel approach.
- Build strong cross-functional relationships and influence stakeholders to drive aligned commercial decisions and continuous improvement.
What you’ll bring
- Strong commercial acumen and analytical skills, with the ability to turn data into clear, actionable recommendations.
- Experience managing category trading performance across a broad product portfolio.
- Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to build effective relationships across multiple teams.
- Experience analysing trading performance and presenting insights, recommendations and business cases clearly and concisely.
- Excellent organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities, particularly during seasonal and peak trading periods.
- A genuine passion for product, retail and creating exceptional customer experiences.
It would be great if you also have experience in an omnichannel retail environment, knowledge of forecasting, demand planning or S&OP, and experience with range reviews, portfolio planning, new product development or seasonal trading events.
Who We Are…
We’re one of the UK’s favourite premium chocolate brands, with a range of products spanning luxury gifts, alcohol, and our pioneering drinking chocolate system, the Velvetiser™.
A cacao pod takes years to grow – it can’t be rushed if it’s going to be just right for our products. The same can be said for Hotel Chocolat, which originally started as a mint production company before we realised it was luxury chocolate that we were really passionate about.
Now, we’re market leaders in the industry. What began as an online-only business grew to 135 stores across the UK, and we’re still growing… Today, we’re multi-category, multi-channel, and multi-territory, and our customers, colleagues, cacao farmers, and suppliers all benefit from the success we make together. To learn more about us and read about our People Pledge – our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion – click here: hotelchocolat.com/uk/engaged-ethics/our-people.html