Sephora Senior Category Manager
- Location
- Employment
- Full-Time
- Seniority
- Senior
- Department
- Merchandising, Buying & Planning
- Posted
- Apr 27, 2026
About Sephora
Sephora is a leading prestige beauty retailer and part of the LVMH Group. Renowned for its curated portfolio of global and niche cosmetic brands alongside its own Sephora Collection, the company is recognized for retail innovation, strong omnichannel capabilities and a culture that emphasizes diversity, creativity and commercial rigor.
Sephora in Düsseldorf seeks a Senior Category Manager to lead assortment, supplier management and commercial strategy for beauty categories.
Role & Responsibilities
- Own sales, revenue and productivity for assigned beauty categories across brick-and-mortar and e‑commerce channels.
- Define assortment strategy, manage product lifecycle and oversee brand selection and delisting decisions.
- Manage supplier relationships: conduct business reviews, define joint commercial opportunities and follow up on action plans.
- Develop commercial activation, promotional and pricing plans in collaboration with Revenue & Growth teams.
- Monitor market, supplier and product performance; deliver KPI-driven reporting and actionable recommendations to improve assortment, pricing and positioning.
- Coordinate floorplan planning, store openings and renovations to align store space with category strategy.
- Lead merchandising localisation and execution for corners, pop‑ups and store deliverables.
- Collaborate closely with supply chain, CRM, retail operations, finance, digital and visual merchandising to deliver integrated, consumer-centric initiatives.
- Negotiate with regional EME teams and suppliers on brand investments and localization of centrally-negotiated elements.
- Drive process and tool improvements to increase productivity and cross-functional alignment; lead and develop Junior Category & Category Managers.
Qualifications
- Minimum 5 years of relevant experience in category management or merchandising; 6+ years in a similar role preferred, ideally within prestige beauty or cosmetics retail.
- Deep knowledge of the beauty industry, brand dynamics and trade marketing principles.
- Proven track record of commercial ownership with measurable revenue and margin responsibility.
- Strong analytical capability with advanced Excel modelling and data interpretation skills.
- Experienced in supplier negotiation and relationship management.
- Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills; fluency in English required.
- Demonstrated ability to lead teams and manage multiple projects in an agile, fast-paced environment.
- Highly organized with strong prioritization and problem-solving skills.
Skills
Experience
Minimum 5 years of category management or merchandising experience in prestige retail or the beauty industry; 6+ years in the same or closely related position is preferred. Demonstrable P&L, supplier negotiation and assortment ownership required.
Education
Bachelor's degree in business, marketing, retail management or a related discipline; master's degree (MBA/MSc) preferred.
Workplace
The role is situated in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Culture
Sephora cultivates an inclusive, creative and performance-driven environment where diversity and personal expression are valued. As part of LVMH, the employer champions empowerment, continuous learning and cross-functional collaboration, with a focus on innovation and customer-centric retail experiences.
About Cerulean
Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.
Frequently Asked Questions
The luxury industry is characterised by a diverse and nuanced nomenclature. Esteemed houses frequently employ proprietary terminology, and even within a single organisation like Sephora, titles may vary across global markets to reflect local conventions. To ensure absolute clarity, Cerulean assigns a standardised, industry-coherent canonical title to every listing. However, it is worth noting that this role is functionally synonymous with «Category Lead — Beauty», «Senior Merchandising Manager», «Assortment Manager — Prestige Beauty», «Head of Category & Brand Partnerships», and other variations. Our sophisticated search architecture anticipates these variations, ensuring that inquiries using related terms will seamlessly yield the exact roles you desire.