VP of Fresh Foods Merchandising

This position requires on-site presence at the Coborn's Support Center in St. Cloud, Minnesota. We offer a hybrid work environment with both remote and in-office days. Relocation Assistance is available.

ReFRESH your career with Coborn's, Inc.! We're on the search for an experienced merchandising leader to bring a FRESH new perspective to our team and lead our Fresh Foods Merchandising efforts including Deli, Bakery, Meat/Seafood, Produce, and Floral. If you're a strategic thinker with a deep understanding of fresh food merchandising, market trends, and product development, we'd love to talk to you about this exciting opportunity on our team!

Reporting to the Senior Vice President of Merchandising, this role will be responsible for leading high-performing cross functional teams through transformation!

In this role, you can expect to leverage your skills in several areas including:

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and implement a comprehensive merchandising strategy for fresh categories that aligns with company goals and customer expectations.
• Category Management: Oversee the selection, procurement, and pricing of fresh products to ensure a high-quality, profitable, competitive and differentiated assortment.
• Sales and Performance: Drive sales growth and profitability through innovative merchandising practices, promotional strategies, and effective inventory management.
• Team Leadership: Lead, mentor, and develop a team of merchandising professionals, fostering a collaborative and high-performance culture. Partner with cross functional teams to advance work.
• Vendor Relations: Build and maintain strong relationships with suppliers and vendors to ensure product quality, competitive pricing, and timely delivery.
• Market Analysis: Stay abreast of market trends, customer preferences, and competitive landscape to identify opportunities for growth and improvement.
• Customer Focus: Ensure that all fresh food offerings meet or exceed customer expectations in terms of quality, freshness, and value.
• Operational Excellence: Oversee the execution of merchandising plans and ensure adherence to company standards, food safety regulations, and best practices in fresh food departments.

Applicants who meet the criteria below will be considered for this opportunity

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree (B. A.) in Business Management, Merchandising, Food Science or a related field. An advanced degree or relevant certifications are a plus.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in fresh food merchandising, with a minimum of 5 years in a senior leadership role.
• Strong leadership, strategic thinking, and analytical skills. Proven ability to drive sales and profitability through effective merchandising strategies.
• Deep understanding of fresh food categories, market trends, and customer behavior. Experience with inventory management and vendor relations.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic and cross functional environment and adapt to changing market conditions and business needs.

If you feel we'd make a great pear, apply today!

We believe that building a team of people with different backgrounds, beliefs, experiences and perspectives inspires fresh thinking and opens us up to new possibilities. We are an EEO/AA Employer - All qualified individuals, including minorities, females, veterans and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Our remarkable employees strive to inspire happiness, healthy living and simplicity one guest at a time. With a vibrant and fun work environment, ongoing opportunities for career growth, and generous benefit packages, Coborn's offers a bright future for all employee owners.

This role offers Competitive Compensation, Short-Term and Long-Term Bonus Incentives, and Relocation Assistance to the St. Cloud, Minnesota area.

We're also proud to offer a variety of benefits including:

• A 10% Employee Discount (for the employee and their immediate household) and when visiting one of our locations with a coffee shop, you'll receive a discount there too!
• Paid Time Off (PTO/Vacation)
• Medical & Dental Insurance, Health Savings Account (HSA) & Flexible Spending Account (FSA) options
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Adoption Reimbursement
• Paid Family Caregiver Leave
• Company-Paid Term Life Insurance, Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance and Short-Term & Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Paid Military Leave
• Employee Health & Wellness Programs, Challenges and Resources - to assist our team members live a life of wellbeing!
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) - unlimited phone access to legal, financial, and work-life services and up to five free in-person counseling sessions, per situation/issue, per year.
• Tools, resources and opportunities for Career Growth & Development
• 401(k) plan options - we also match up to 20% of the first 5% contributed
• Participation in our Employee Stock Ownership Program (ESOP) - yes, we're employee-owned. Our team members benefit from the success of the company through this company-sponsored benefit!
• Additional Voluntary Benefits - such as Vision, Accident and Critical Illness Insurances

As a member of our team, you can also expect:

• Flexible scheduling - We understand that many of our employees are trying to juggle school, practice, family time, errands and personal hobbies, all with only about 16 hours of awake time in a day.
• Recognition - We celebrate a culture of recognition, encouraging employees to recognize and thank one another for remarkable behavior. We even have an app for that!
• Growth Opportunities - We're always looking for motivated, high-potential employees who want to be part of our next generation of leaders! There are opportunities to grow within our company to positions you may not yet even know exist. Coborn's, Inc. offers a variety of development programs for employees who want to grow their careers with us.

Our culture celebrates employee ideas and encourages creative innovations. We're growing, learning, and overflowing with energy. In a dynamic atmosphere that welcomes diversity, we are investing in our employees, along with the growth of our company. We invite you to join us in carrying out our vision to "Be Remarkable!" Apply today!

If you're friendly and dependable and you like to work with terrific people, we'd love to talk about this opportunity on our team!

Coborn's, Inc. is a fast-growing employee-owned grocery retailer located in the Midwest. Our grocery store formats include Coborn's, Cash Wise, Marketplace Foods, Hornbacher's, Tadych's Marketplace Foods, and Sullivan's Foods and we offer unique online grocery home delivery services through our CobornsDelivers and Cash Wise Delivers locations.

Coborn's, Inc. also owns and operates liquor stores under the Coborn's Liquor, Cash Wise Liquor, Andy's Liquor and Captain Jack's brands. Additionally, our fuel and convenience division, pharmacy, in-house grocery warehouse and distribution center, in-house Central Bakery, in-house Fresh Foods Commissary, and Tops Cleaners are significant assets to our operations. We also have a handful of other retail entities in the markets where the fit is right: Little Dukes, Ace Hardware, Country Floral Gifts & Greenhouse, Caribou Coffee, Dunn Bros Coffee, Godfather's Pizza, Erbert and Gerbert's, and Pet Supplies Plus.

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