Served as a strategic ambassador between emerging/specialty brands & sales teams, spearheading initiatives to drive profitable sales growth. Led selling strategies incorporating the 4P’s (product selection, placement, promotion, pricing), path to market & packaging, ensuring alignment with market trends & consumers opportunities.• Brand & Sales Leadershipo Played a pivotal role in analyzing retail market conditions, securing optimal brand placement while guiding the client, retailer & FDM sales team towards a strategic, collaborative growth plano Proactively monitored & communicated with all parties (client, retailer, sales team), ensuring alignment on market & consumer opportunities • Sales Collateral & Data Insightso Advised on creation, optimization of sales collateral, ensuring it aligned with the brand strategyo Leveraged industry data for sales performance, drawing actionable insights to support brands positioning for success; Facilitated knowledge exchange within the teams, empowering informed decision making• Financial Monitoring & Reportingo Tracked monthly sales performance, identifying bonus opportunities & concernso Provided strategic oversight of retailer promotions, ensuring the team focused on sales initiatives that contributed to financial success

Led category management strategy for East Region business development, client partnerships, and regional grocery accounts. Delivered insight-based solutions for internal teams and external clients, enhancing customer outcomes. Prioritized associate development by fostering a continuous learning environment that enhances storytelling and strategic insights capabilities.• Client Leadership Advisory:o Built strong relationships with category management and sales leaders, aligning business objectives and cascading insights to expand business strategies.o Expanded merchandising initiatives and category thought leadership by leveraging industry knowledge and internal client relationships with key East Region retailers.• Associate Development:o Guided Senior Team Leaders in developing their teams’ storytelling, strategic insights, and critical thinking skills to deliver more value to clients.o Mentored newer leaders to shift from tactical to strategic initiatives, empowering them to take ownership of routine tasks.o Completed McKinsey Management Accelerator course, gaining skills in adaptability, problem-solving, and business strategy.• Customer/Sales Engagement:o Fostered collaborative relationships with key regional customers, delivering market recommendations aligned with their retail strategy.o Led strategic retail engagements, including quarterly top-to-top meetings and business development initiatives, to align Advantage’s capabilities with customer goals.

Managed team efforts across key clients (Sargento, Mars, Alcon, Land O’Lakes, Upfield, Revlon) and regional accounts in the Carolinas/Southeast region, including Harris Teeter, Food Lion, Lowes/MDI, Food City, and Ingles.• Associate Development:o Coached and developed direct reports, enhancing their Category Management skills, promoting 3 direct reports to dedicated client teams and training sales leaders to expand their analytics capabilities• Business Expansion:o Created growth strategies using category, consumer, and industry insights for both established clients and emerging brands. Provided analytical acumen sourcing Syndicated/Panel data (NIQ, Circana), Space Planning (Blue Yonder/JDA),

Guided the Southern U.S. region’s sales strategies by incorporating key insights into strategic growth plans; Targeted key national/regional accounts (Publix, Food Lion, Kroger, Albertsons/Safeway), delivering ~$500MM in incremental sales; Strategies Increased buying rates & reduced leakage to competitors• Leveraged “The Partnering Group (TPG)” strategic model, aligning with key retailer personal on growth strategies• Created fact-based selling stores for Dean Foods leadership while facilitating cross-functional collaboration between Marketing, Sales, Finance & external agencies

Identify & interpret key consumer insight tools to monitor industry, channel & consumer/shopper trends; Provide education & support to team members on insights; Interface & build relationships within the retail, corporate and the bottler community

Shopper Marketing ManagerRevenue/Trade Marketing ManagerCategory ManagementSpace PlanningKey Account Manager