Souraneer Bera
Category Manager
Bangalore
Summary
- Proactive and achievement-oriented Category manager bringing 6+ years of marketing and leadership experience in ecommerce.
- Developed and executed strategies as part of company sourcing plan, category and commodity strategies.
- Negotiated and signed supplier contracts and conducted supplier business reviews on monthly, quarterly & yearly basis.
- Closed joint business plans to Improve company profitability, sales performance and support improved customer delivery through thoughtful supply base network design.
- Familiar with gathering, cleaning and organizing data for use by technical teams.
- Advanced understanding of statistical analytical techniques.
- Highly organized, motivated and diligent with significant background in Ecommerce retail sector
Overview
7
7
years of professional experience
29
29
years of post-secondary education
3
3
Language
Work History
Category Manager
Big Basket
07.2020 - Current
- Handling around 80 Cr Business for Cold Bev, Dairy & Frozen & Tobacco Category
- Handling e-commerce, trade & institutional segment from the Category Perspective
- Reduced inventory costs through effective vendor negotiations and optimizing product assortments.
- Developed detailed sales forecasts based on historical data, allowing for proactive inventory management decisions.
- Ensuring Growth in Category Margin month on month basis.
- Major brands : Coca-Cola India, Amul, PepsiCo Bev, Red bull, ITC, Philip Morris International Inc ( India operations)
- Key Projects:
- Multipack Pricing- Designed framework of multipack pricing (Ladder Pricing) for Bigbasket
- B2B Web/App - For Tobacco Order process flow
- Increased sales by 30-40% and reduced DC pilferage/write-offs by 90%
- Initiated collaborative forecasting with account partners which improved availability from to 90% and increased business in tail brands.
- Tier-2 City Openings -Created SOPs for assortment creation, DC stock filling process and ensured opening of 18 DCs with 90% availability in a span of 1 year.
- Studied technical aspects of category to identify key quality attributes and cost containment levels.
- Mitigated business risk and improved customer lead times through thoughtful supplier network design.
Associate Retail Key Account Manager
SC Johnson
11.2019 - 06.2021
- Customers/Accounts Handled: Modern Trade, CSD CPC Canteens, E Comm
- Monitored competitor activity within the industry, adjusting strategies accordingly to maintain a competitive edge in key accounts management.
- Conducted regular account reviews with clients to assess performance, identify areas for improvement, and strategize future growth opportunities.
- Modern Trade : D-mart, Reliance Retail, ABRL, Apollo, Max Hypermarket
- Ecom: Amazon, Big basket, CT, Amazon wholsale, Reliance Jio
- CnC: Metro Cash & Carry
- Local Modern Trade: Ratnadeep, Pothys, Sarvana, Neelgiris
- Brands Handled: All out, Kiwi, MrMuscle, Glade & Drainex
- Key Projects :
- Emerging Brand Growth: Mr.Muscle Sales & Share of shelf increased by 10% over last year
- Competitor Analysis: Analyzing the assortment, planogram, new launched Products and pricing of the customer
- Trade Spend planning, Handling distributors both direct & shared, SKU level forecasting
- Stock & sales Forecast, Offer negotiations with DSD as well regional buying teams
- Trade Spend Planning: Managing TSP to ensure the profitability for LMTs
- Utilizing Data Analysis Techniques for Assortment Correction in LMTs
Territory Sales Manager
Cash n Carry, Reckitt Benckiser
08.2018 - 11.2019
- Customers/Accounts: Metro Cash & Carry, Reliance Market
- Brands Handled: Dettol (OTC), DHL, Dettol Soaps, Veet, Moov & Durex
- Forecast for stocks, Promo & pricing negotiation with National Category teams.
- Provided exceptional support to existing customers, leading to increased repeat business and referrals.
- Negotiated contracts with vendors and suppliers, securing favorable terms for the company.
- Monitored competitor activities within the territory, adjusting sales strategies as needed to maintain a competitive edge.
- Established strong relationships with key clients, boosting customer retention rates.
- Partnered with cross-functional teams such as finance, operations, and customer service to ensure seamless order processing and delivery coordination within the territory.
Assistant Category Manager
Reliance Retail
02.2017 - 08.2018
- Category Managed: Cold Beverages, Health Drinks, and Tea & Coffee
- Streamlined inventory management processes for better efficiency and cost savings.
- Provided regular reports and insights to senior management, effectively communicating category performance and recommending future course of action.
- Brands: HCCB, PEPSI, Nestle, Mondelez, GSK, Heinz, Abbott- Pediasure, Nutricia, Dabur, Paper Boat
- New Store Assortment Finalization for Food FMCG
- Assortment rationalization as per National and Regional article requirements
- Channel Wise Sales Forecast and Outlook to stores to align stocks
- Supply Chain Planning, Merchandise Planning & Inventory Control
- Buying & Sales planning for 43 Cash & Carry stores across India
Education
MBA - Marketing Management And Research
BIMM
Pune 06.2015 - 06.2017
B Tech - Electronics And Communications Engineering
Haldia Institute of Technology
Haldia 03.2011 - 04.2015
Certification Program - Executive Post Graduate in Data Science & AI
UpGrad & IIITB
Bangalore 04.2001 - Current
Skills
Category development
undefinedAccomplishments
- Supervised team of 21 staff members.
- Collaborated with the Tech team for the development of Tobacco Ordering process flow.
- Resolved product issue through consumer testing.
- Achieved Higher Margins by introducing ladder pricing in the current organization.
Timeline
Category Manager
Big Basket
07.2020 - Current
Associate Retail Key Account Manager
SC Johnson
11.2019 - 06.2021
Territory Sales Manager
Cash n Carry, Reckitt Benckiser
08.2018 - 11.2019
Assistant Category Manager
Reliance Retail
02.2017 - 08.2018
MBA - Marketing Management And Research
BIMM
06.2015 - 06.2017
B Tech - Electronics And Communications Engineering
Haldia Institute of Technology
03.2011 - 04.2015
Certification Program - Executive Post Graduate in Data Science & AI
UpGrad & IIITB
04.2001 - Current
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