Category Manager-Cosmetics

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The HeadHunter Group is an innovative Staffing and Recruiting Company with HQ in the US, Dover, Delaware, operating in Canada, Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Cyprus, Greece, and Bulgaria. We offer the newest mentality in the Staffing industry and our core business is Candidates and Clients.

Job Title: Category Manager Parfums & Cosmetics 

Location: Tirana, Albania

Reports to: Commercial Director

Company Overview:

Our Client is a global leader in the travel retail industry, offering a wide range of high-quality products to traveler's across airports, railway stations, and other transport hubs worldwide. As a division of a well-known Group, one of the world's largest media and retail conglomerates, the Company operates through a diverse portfolio of brands. The company's mission is to provide traveler's with a unique, seamless shopping experience by blending global brands with local flavour, ensuring that every journey is memorable.

Job Overview:

As Category Manager Perfumes & Cosmetics, you will be responsible for developing and executing the commercial strategy for the beauty category across our travel retail locations. You will optimize product assortment, pricing, promotions, and supplier relationships to drive sales,increase profitability, and enhance customer/traveler experience in a dynamic, fast-paced environment.

Key Responsibilities:

Category Strategy & Planning

• Define and implement the category vision, strategy, and KPIs aligned with company objectives and traveler expectations.
• Analyze market trends, traveler insights, and global beauty trends to identify growth opportunities.

Assortment & Product Management

• Curate and manage a compelling product assortment across perfumes, skincare, cosmetics, and beauty accessories.
• Collaborate with global and local suppliers to source exclusive or travel retail-specific product lines.
• Monitor brand performance and manage space allocation and planograms accordingly.

Supplier & Brand Relationship Management

• Build and maintain strong relationships with key suppliers and beauty brands.
• Negotiate commercial terms including trading agreements, marketing support, and exclusive deals with local suppliers.
• Collaborate with international central team and local suppliers for in-store activations, launches, and training initiatives.
  

Pricing & Promotion

• Develop pricing strategies that balance competitiveness, margin, and customer value perception for local brands.
• Create and manage promotional calendars to support brand launches, seasonal events, and key travel periods for local brands while executing for international ones according to their guidelines.
  

Performance Analysis & Reporting

• Monitor sales performance, profitability, and stock levels.
• Deliver regular reporting on category KPIs and present actionable insights.
• Recommend and execute actions to optimize sales and margin.
  

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with operations, marketing, logistics, and visual merchandising teams to ensure successful execution of the category strategy in-store.
• Partner with the digital/e-commerce team to extend beauty category visibility in omni channel environments (if applicable).
  
  

Qualifications & Skills

• Bachelors degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Retail Management or related field. Masters is a plus.
  5+ years of experience in category management, merchandising, or buying ideally in beauty, travel retail, or luxury sectors.
• Strong knowledge of the fragrances, skincare, and cosmetics market.
• Proven negotiation skills and experience managing commercial agreements.
• Analytical mindset with ability to derive insights from sales and market data.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, international, and multicultural environment.
• Fluent in English; additional languages (e.g., French, Italian) are a plus.
  
  Why Join Us?
  

• Work with iconic global beauty brands in a dynamic and international retail environment.
• Be part of a category that connects emotion, aspiration, and luxury with the traveler journey.
• Contribute to a leading travel retail group that values innovation, agility, and people
  development.