Simone Cameron
Te Atatu South,NZ
Summary
Highly skilled Category Manager with more than 20 years of experience across Category Management & Product Management in retail. Motivated to develop profitable ranges to meet customer demand & trends; through pricing, promotion and product positioning strategies. Creative & design led, with experience and skills to develop profitable & successful home brand product. Conscientious, hardworking and excels at multitasking in fast-paced environments.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Planner
Moochi - NZ Fashion Designer
Auckland, NZ
07.2022 - Current
- Set up weekly stock forecasting tool to improve companies stock management, decreasing store stock holdings by 16%, increasing sell through to 91%, whilst maintaining the sales year on year
- Introduced in depth Category Management reviews to enable improved decision making on future launches - enabling better decisions on designs, colours and improved buying mix
- Managed weekly stock deliveries to ensure right product right time, pivoting based on customer buying trends to achieve companies stock and sales KPI's.
Lead Category/Category Manager - Snow & Water
Torpedo7
Auckland, NZ
08.2017 - 07.2022
- Won Category Manager of the Year 2018
- Drove the expansion of the Snow & Water product lines, in particular Water category profit $ increased 57% year on year in FY21 & increased again year on year by 41% in FY23, over summer period
- Success via high margin House brand development/growth
- In particular, improving house brand designs significantly so there is less discounting/better sell through and better margins
- Managed a diverse product portfolio for the Snow & Water categories, delivering an improved GMROI from 1.37 to 2.97 by developing strategic supplier partnerships and executing data-driven inventory management across 1500+ SKUs.
Category Manager - Fashion Stationery
Warehouse Stationery
Auckland, NZ
08.2013 - 07.2017
- Drove a 40% increase in year-over-year profit $ by analyzing consumer trends and adjusting product positioning, implementing new designs and negotiating cost-saving deals with suppliers for the fashion stationery category
- Launched 3 successful new house fashion stationery brands
- Category Managed 10+ product launches a year across 400+ SKUs, from design/product trends/ideas, to concept, to sourcing, through to implementation to market and managing sell through to hit aged stock and stock targets.
Category Manager - Paint
Woolworths Group Australia (previously John Danks)
Melbourne, Australia
09.2010 - 07.2013
- Achieved a 15% increase in year-over-year sales for the paint category by analyzing market trends, optimizing the product mix, and forging strong supplier relationships to enhance inventory turnover rates
- Developed aspirational promotions & advertising to inspire customers to decorate
- Range reviews, stock management, pricing/competitive analysis for $47 Million annual sales (largest category in the business), making 34% margin, with over 3,000 SKUs
- Wholesaler to 600+ Home Timber & Hardware and Thrifty Link stores across Australia.
Product Manager - Men's Shaving & Grooming
Remington
Melbourne, Australia
09.2009 - 08.2010
- Led cross-functional teams in identifying customer needs and developing innovative items, resulting in a successful go-to-market strategy for the demographic
- Spearheaded the development of a new men's grooming product lines, conducting extensive market research and coordinating with R&D, leading to successful launches throughout Australia international markets and a 16% increase in category revenue within the first year.
Product/Brand Manager - Decorative Surfaces
Carter Holt Harvey
Auckland, NZ
10.2007 - 07.2009
- Lead the launch of a new luxury decorative surfaces, leading cross-departmental teams to achieve a market penetration that generated 12% growth in sales revenue within the first year
- Bringing modern, beautiful melamine/veneer cabinetry and stone top benches to NZ market.
Category Manager - Small Appliances
Noel Leeming
Auckland, NZ
05.2004 - 09.2007
- Won Category Manager of the Month Award 6 times: top Category Manager to exceeded sales, profit, aged stock and stock targets
- Developed and executed a category strategy for small appliances that increased sales by 23% year on year, through data-driven assortment expansion and vendor negotiations that improved product margins by 15%.
Education
NZ Certificate in Floristry -
Open Polytechnic
01.2022
Fashion Design 1 -
Whitecliffe Short Course
12-2015
Interior Design Certificate -
Nanette Cameron School of Interior Design
01.2008
Bachelor of Commerce - Marketing & International Business
University of Auckland
Auckland, NZ01.2002
Skills
- Supplier Relationship Management
- Cost-Reduction Strategies
- Promotional Planning
- Demand Forecasting
- Strategic Sourcing
- Financial Acumen
- Data Analytics
- Product Management
- Merchandising Understanding
- Performance Metrics
- Merchandising Strategies
- Sales Tracking
- Data Analysis
- Vendor Relations
- Pricing Strategies
- Performance Improvements
Affiliations
- Lover of clothes, netball, design, yoga, aesthetics, the ocean, ngahere, surfing, native fauna & flora, snowboarding and people
Timeline
Senior Planner
Moochi - NZ Fashion Designer
07.2022 - Current
Lead Category/Category Manager - Snow & Water
Torpedo7
08.2017 - 07.2022
Category Manager - Fashion Stationery
Warehouse Stationery
08.2013 - 07.2017
Category Manager - Paint
Woolworths Group Australia (previously John Danks)
09.2010 - 07.2013
Product Manager - Men's Shaving & Grooming
Remington
09.2009 - 08.2010
Product/Brand Manager - Decorative Surfaces
Carter Holt Harvey
10.2007 - 07.2009
Category Manager - Small Appliances
Noel Leeming
05.2004 - 09.2007
NZ Certificate in Floristry -
Open Polytechnic
Fashion Design 1 -
Whitecliffe Short Course
Interior Design Certificate -
Nanette Cameron School of Interior Design
Bachelor of Commerce - Marketing & International Business
University of Auckland
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