Category Lead

Summary

Join Hungryroot as a Category Lead to shape and scale our product assortment. You will own end-to-end category management, including assortment architecture, vendor selection, and merchandising. Leverage data and customer insights to inform category strategy and drive sales and profitability. Build and manage supplier partnerships, focusing on cost optimization and innovation. Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including Culinary, Analytics, Food Safety, Marketing, and Supply Chain. This role requires 5+ years of experience in category management and a passion for food, health, and wellness. The position offers a remote-first work environment and a competitive salary.

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in category management, buying, or merchandising—ideally within eCommerce
• Proven ability to negotiate, manage projects, and communicate effectively across internal and external stakeholders
• Experience building vendor partnerships and developing private-label products
• Working knowledge of retail and eCommerce food safety standards
• Strong analytical mindset with strong proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets
• Highly collaborative, with a track record of effective cross-functional partnership
• Agile and solutions-oriented; thrives in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
• Self-motivated, positive, and proactive with a transparent communication style
• Passion for food, health, and wellness, with a pulse on industry trends and consumer behavior

Responsibilities

• Own and lead the strategic direction of your assigned categories—developing a long-term vision and executing against clear goals to drive customer satisfaction, growth, and profitability
• Proactively identify and source innovative brands and products that align with Hungryroot’s core values of health, convenience, and taste—ensuring a differentiated, mission-aligned assortment
• Own the end-to-end product lifecycle, leading cross-functional execution from pipeline planning and vendor negotiations through onboarding, launch, and in-market performance management
• Leverage data and customer insights to inform category strategy, guiding decisions on product mix, pricing, promotion, and placement to improve business performance and customer value
• Identify and deliver cost-saving initiatives, renegotiating vendor agreements or exploring alternative sourcing while preserving quality, performance, and margin goals
• Steer long-term assortment health, identifying assortment gaps, whitespace opportunities, market trends, and rationalization needs to ensure the mix evolves with customer preferences and business priorities
• Partner with product development, culinary, and leadership teams to conceptualize and launch private-label innovations that meet our high standards and drive business impact
• Build and manage best-in-class supplier relationships, holding vendors accountable to performance standards across cost, quality, food safety, and service
• Own category compliance and quality, partnering closely with food safety and regulatory teams to uphold federal, state, and internal standards
• Collaborate cross-functionally with supply chain and fulfillment teams to ensure product availability, minimize disruptions, and maintain healthy inventory aligned with demand
• Work with brand partners and our partnerships team to design and activate promotional opportunities that elevate category performance and support revenue goals

Preferred Qualifications

Familiarity with tools like NetSuite, Airtable, Looker, or other ERP systems is a plus

Benefits

• Remote-first: work from home, work from our NYC office, work from anywhere in the U.S. - you decide!
• Equity
• Unlimited vacation policy
• Universal paid parental leave
• Monthly Hungryroot credit for delicious, healthy groceries
• Comprehensive health, vision, dental, and life insurance
• Wellbeing benefits including One Medical, Spring Health, LiveHealth, Rightway care concierge, and more
• 401k
• A work from home stipend to support your initial home-office setup