10 questions with Susanna Green on Category Management

Join us behind the scenes at Ceuta Group and dive into the latest segment of our “10 Questions with” series. In this 5-minute quick-fire interview, Susanna Green, Senior Category/Shopper Manager at Ceuta Group, an IQVIA business, discusses the underestimated power of category management in consumer healthcare.

Hit Play to find out:

• Why category management is critical to brand growth in the retail landscape.
• The 3 key factors retailers require from Health & Wellness brands when it comes to category management.
• How brand owners can use category management to enhance the in-store experience for Health & Wellness shoppers.
• And more…

Please start by introducing yourself.

Hello. I’m Susanna Green and I’m a Senior Category and Shopper Manager at Ceuta Group.

1 – What do you enjoy most about your role?

I love the variety of working with different brands and clients across the Group.

2 – What is category management?

Category management involves analysing consumer behaviour, macro trends, and competitive offerings to optimise the performance of a category.

3 – Why is category management important?

It helps both suppliers and retailers to work together to strategically grow the category for the future.

4 – How should brand owners balance objectivity with championing their brand during category management?

It’s vitally important that you demonstrate a category need, not just a brand need, but then show how your brand can tie in to grow the category.

5 – Can you list three key factors retailers need from brands when it comes to category management?

Retailers need you to bring robust data, to demonstrate how to grow the whole category and not just your brand. You also need to show retailers that you understand their strategy and their customers.

6 – What role does customer data play in your category management strategy?

It’s very important that you understand consumer behaviour and you can understand the triggers and barriers to purchasing that are present in your category.

7 – What strategies can businesses use to enhance the in-store experience for Health & Wellness shoppers?

Businesses need to understand their shopper and their decision hierarchy. Then, they need to understand how to best lay out the fixture and apply point of purchase.

8 – How can brand owners ensure their category management strategy aligns with overall market trends?

Category managers need to keep their finger on the pulse. They need to be aware of all the macro trends in the market that affect their category and ensure that their category strategy moves with them.

9 – What metrics do you use to measure category performance?

We use basic measures, such as sales growth, distribution, and rate of sales. We also use shopper metrics, such as penetration frequency and weight of purchase.

10 – Why would a client come to you and Ceuta Group for help?

Clients come to us for anything category related. It could be something like a category vision or a compelling selling deck. Some of the compelling selling decks I’ve written recently have unlocked better brand distribution as well as new listings across the board.

Get in touch to discuss how we can make your brand objectives a reality

A key point to take away from our interview with Susanna is that category management is imperative to success in the evolving Health & Wellness retail landscape. Health & Wellness brand owners need to stay abreast of consumer shifts in preferences and shopping behaviour in order to optimise their category strategy, improve the customer experience, and drive sales. Effective category management enables brand owners to build a strong, collaborative partnership with retailers and improve the performance of their brand in-store, resulting in better brand distribution and new listings.

If you need support in developing successful category strategies or expanding your brand’s market coverage in the UK or on a global scale, our Health & Wellness industry experts can help you.