E-commerce Team Lead Category Management with German (All Genders)

At zooplus, we are on a journey of building the most customer-centric pet care e-commerce experience in Europe. Our work makes over 12 million pet parents genuinely happier – and that’s something we really care about. And in Germany (DE) - our home base and largest market - category leadership isn’t a back-office role. It’s high visibility, high responsibility, and right at the heart of the action. Join us and discover a place where your potential meets your passion for pets. That’s the power of plus.  

We’re hiring an E-commerce Team Lead Category Management to take end-to-end ownership of key categories across DACH, driving topline growth and bottom-line performance through a sharp commercial strategy, strong cross-functional steering, and scaled flawless execution. 

This is a role for someone who thinks and acts like true General Manager of the Category: you own the commercial strategy, set the go-to-market, and lead a tight team while steering actions spanning across a broader cross-functional squad, incl. CRM, Paid Marketing, Vendor Management, Direct Marketing, and Own Brand Management. 

Why this role is different 
Local teams at zooplus are not “execution units” for central playbooks. They are at the pulse of their market and closest to the customers. You will be a market shaper and relationship builder, with a mandate to: 

• Local Relevance: Create market-specific actions that work against market relevant ambitions and problem statements.  
• Scalability: Build processes and initiatives that allow your team to gain agility, speed and time for strategic tasks. 
• Strategic Impact: Influence the cluster agenda and raise the bar for what “great” looks like in category management. 

What you’ll own 

Category Strategy & Sales Steering 

• Define and own the commercial category strategy and translate it into actionable plans. 
• Drive go-to-market strategy across DACH, in close collaboration with central and local stakeholders. 
• Lead performance management across category, sub-category, and product level using clear KPI steering (input and output metrics). 
• Actively grow our portfolio with a strong focus on Own Brands—driving acquisition, migration, and retention. 

Pricing & Promotions 

• Define competitive a pricing and promotion strategy for your category. 
• Monitor pricing dynamics for key products and bestsellers.  
• Run pricing tests and recommend local price adjustments in alignment with the central pricing team, balancing competitiveness and profitability. 
• Build and execute the campaign and promo roadmap with central teams. 
• Track performance, manage cost vs. budget, and optimize promotional impact. 

Commercial Merchandising & Onsite Strategy 

• Own the onsite commercial strategy for your categories: define how customers discover, evaluate, and choose - turning traffic into profitable growth. 
• Translate category strategy into scalable merchandising principles, ensuring the right portfolio is visible in the right moments across the customer journey. 
• Use onsite performance insights (conversion, AOV, attach rate, search share, sell-through) to steer priorities and continuously improve outcomes. 

Leadership & Cross-functional Steering 

• Lead and develop a small team (people leadership + direction setting). 
• Steer and influence an extended cluster squad to deliver outcomes, not just activity.