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Salary range is commensurate with experience and execution capability.
Health Care: Primera offers an Individual Coverage HRA (ICHRA) that provides a monthly employer-funded allowance employees use to purchase their own health insurance. This offers flexibility and portability while maintaining employer support.
Benefits Structure: Benefits are designed to support long-term performance and personal accountability rather than one-size-fits-all plans.
Remote Work: This is a full-time, remote role with clear expectations for availability, ownership, and results.
Growth & Impact: Compensation growth is tied to performance, execution quality, and increasing scope of responsibility, not tenure.
Internal Number: CM101
Reports To: Executive Vice President
Location: Remote | Full Time
Position Overview
The Category Manager is responsible for executing and managing Primera’s supplier category strategies, rebate programs, group buying initiatives, and related supplier programs.
This role turns supplier and category strategy into organized, measurable results that drive member value, supplier performance, and cooperative growth. The Category Manager ensures programs are executed accurately, data is reliable, and performance is visible across assigned categories and suppliers.
Through disciplined execution and performance visibility, this role contributes insights and recommendations that inform category and supplier strategy.
Working closely with the EVP, cross-functional teams, Supply Partners and Member-Owners, this position supports Primera’s mission.
Role Focus
This is an execution-driven category role.
Execution is the primary responsibility. Strategic contribution is expected through analysis, pattern recognition, and recommendation, not through ownership of strategy development.
Success requires strong ownership, analytical discipline, and operational follow-through. As trust and familiarity grow, the role increasingly influences supplier and category decisions through data-driven insight and execution credibility.
Key Responsibilities
Category & Supplier Program Execution
Manage day-to-day execution of assigned supplier categories and programs
Partner with the EVP of Supplier Relations and suppliers to implement initiatives that drive volume, adoption, and rebate achievement
Ensure category initiatives align with cooperative priorities and performance goals
Identify performance trends and execution constraints that inform future category and supplier decisions
Rebate Program Management
Own execution and tracking of supplier rebate programs, including tier structures, forecasts, and performance
Coordinate with Finance to support accurate reconciliation and timely rebate processing
Maintain organized records of supplier agreements, rebate documentation, and historical performance
Performance Tracking & Reporting
Monitor category and supplier performance against rebate tiers, margin objectives, and benchmarks
Maintain performance trackers, dashboards, and scorecards in collaboration with data partners
Translate execution data into clear insights and recommendations to support EVP-led strategic decisions
Surface trends, risks, and opportunities early with context and proposed actions
Group Buying, Exclusive & Private Label Support
Support execution of group buying initiatives, including supplier coordination, participation tracking, and reporting
Assist with evaluation and analysis of private label and exclusive buying opportunities in collaboration with leadership
Track ROI, participation, and performance outcomes tied to these initiatives
Supplier Communication & Coordination
Serve as a primary point of contact for program-level supplier communications
Coordinate supplier documentation including contracts, rebate grids, sponsorship deliverables, and pricing files
Support supplier performance reviews with clean data, execution insight, and accountability context
Operational Excellence & Process Support
Support development and maintenance of SOPs related to category management, rebates, and supplier programs
Maintain organized systems for timelines, deliverables, and documentation
Contribute to continuous improvement of workflows and execution processes to reduce errors and rework
Education & Experience
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Marketing or a related field preferred.
Relevant experience in category management, supplier programs, purchasing, rebates, or execution-focused roles.
Demonstrated experience owning complex programs, managing supplier or category performance, and delivering measurable outcomes may be considered in lieu of a formal degree.
Experience in cooperatives, distribution, or complex supplier environments strongly preferred.
Familiarity with the turf, ornamental, or specialty green industry is a plus.
Primera is a member-owned cooperative of independent, entrepreneurial distributors serving the green industry across the United States. Our members are locally owned businesses led by owners and operators who value autonomy, accountability, and long-term success.
We exist to help independent distributors compete and win in an industry that continues to consolidate. Primera provides scale where it creates leverage, while preserving the independence that makes our members strong. That balance defines who we are and how we operate.
Primera is an operating cooperative, not a passive buying group. We focus on disciplined strategy, strong supplier partnerships, and shared capabilities that drive real results for our members. Participation is earned through value creation, not mandated through structure.
People who thrive at Primera understand independent-minded owners. They can influence without authority, align interests without forcing consensus, and execute in environments that value judgment over bureaucracy. They are comfortable making decisions, taking ownership, and being accountable for outcomes.
