Director, Cat Product Innovation, Management & Strategy
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Director, Cat Product Innovation, Management & StrategyGreater Milwaukee or Greater Chicago Area • Marketing/Research & Development

Full-time

Description

At Stella & Chewy's, it's our mission to help pets and pet parents thrive through the love of raw. If that noble mission appeals to you, we'd love to talk to you about joining our pack. We are located in Oak Creek, WI, a suburb south of Milwaukee. Our teams make this company everything it is today, and you'll feel this energy throughout every aspect of our workplace. We value working with people of different talents, experiences, and backgrounds. Here at Stella & Chewy's, we show up as our best and authentic selves. Come join our pack!

Job Summary:

The Director, Cat Product Innovation, Management & Strategy plays a critical role in driving growth, innovation and ongoing management for the entire cat category at Stella & Chewy's. This position leads cross-functional product development initiatives, manages the product lifecycle, and develops strategic plans to support market competitiveness and business performance. We are looking for someone who thrives when diving into internal, competitive and market data to understand performance and create business cases to determine the best path forward. The ideal candidate combines strong analytical and strategic thinking with a deep understanding of the pet food industry and consumer trends. They are passionate about everything cats have to offer and of course, have a cat themselves!

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and execute the long-term cat product roadmap aligned with company goals, market insights, and consumer needs.
• Manage the full cat product lifecycle from ideation and development to launch and end-of-life. Conduct SKU rationalization and recommend improvements based on performance and consumer demand.

Innovation Pipeline:

• Identify and evaluate new cat product opportunities based on market trends, consumer feedback, and competitive analysis. Partner with R&D to maximize cat nutrition, cost formulation and product delivery for maximum CATisfaction. Lead go-to-market planning in partnership with R&D, sales, finance and marketing teams.

Market & Competitive Analysis:

• Monitor CATegory trends, pricing strategies, competitive activity, and regulatory changes within the pet food industry.

Executive and Cross-Functional Leadership:

• Regularly interface with executive leadership via frequent presentations and communication methods. Collaborate with internal teams including R&D, Operations, Sales, Finance, and Supply Chain to ensure successful product development, commercialization, and delivery.

Performance Analysis:

• Analyze sales, margin, POS and customer data to assess product performance and make data-driven recommendations.

Customer & Channel Insights:

• Partner with customer marketing and sales teams to gather insights from retail, DTC, and e-commerce channels to inform product strategy.

Requirements

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Animal Science, or related field (MBA preferred)
• 8+ years of product management experience, preferably in consumer packaged goods (CPG), pet food, or food manufacturing
• Proven experience managing cross-functional product initiatives and strategy development
• Strong analytical, project management, and communication skills
• Passion for pets, especially cats and knowledge of pet food industry trends is a plus

Preferred Traits:

• Strategic thinker with a bias for action & scrappiness
• Strong collaboration and interpersonal skills – teamwork is essential!
• Executive presence – ability to communicate to a variety of audiences at various levels of detail
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Customer- and consumer-centric mindset
• Comfortable in a fast-paced, growth-oriented environment

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status, or any other status protected by law.

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the person occupying this position. You may be required to perform other job-related duties as requested by Management.

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