Education Category Manager

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Education Specialist (Contract) to help define, grow and optimise our education category across the Office National network. This is a hands-on, commercial role where you’ll bring deep expertise in education procurement, curriculum-based product ranges, and market trends to:

·       Build and execute a clear education category strategy

·       Optimise product ranges across school, childcare and institutional segments

·       Align supplier partnerships and unlock growth opportunities

·       Strengthen member capability to win and service education customers

·       enhance our E commerce offering for parents, schools and students

You’ll play a critical role in positioning Office National as a trusted partner to schools, childcare centres and tertiary education providers. Your key responsibilities include, but not limited to:

Category Strategy & Range Optimisation

·       Review current education ranges across stationery, curriculum resources, furniture and early learning

·       Identify opportunities to expand, rationalise or enter new segments

·       Build a clear category architecture aligned to education needs and procurement behaviours

Supplier & Range Development

·       Assess supplier performance, pricing and product suitability

·       Identify and onboard new suppliers aligned to strategy

·       Develop exclusive ranges and private label opportunities

·       Ensure supply readiness for seasonal demand (e.g. Back to School)

·       Pricing, Market Positioning & Procurement

·       Review competitor positioning and recommended pricing strategies

·       Support bulk pricing, tender requirements and contract frameworks

·       Provide guidance on school procurement processes and tender opportunities

Category Growth & Expansion

·       Identify opportunities across early learning, classroom resources and education furniture

·       Support expansion into complementary categories and solutions

·       Ensure alignment to classroom use, compliance and customer needs

Digital & Go-to-Market

·       Contribute to development of an education specialist site (including BTS journeys and bulk ordering)

·       Work with marketing on catalogues, campaigns and promotional strategies

·       Strengthen engagement across key trading periods (e.g. Back to School)

Member Capability & Sales Enablement

·       Equip members with tools, frameworks and training

·       Help members win new education customers and grow existing accounts

·       Support large-scale order management and long-term customer relationships

About You

You are commercially minded, strategic and hands-on, with strong experience in education or category management. You’ll bring:

·       Proven experience in the education sector or category management

·       Strong understanding of education products and supply markets

·       Demonstrated experience in range development and optimisation

·       Supplier management and negotiation

·       Pricing and commercial strategy

·       Private label sourcing

·       Ability to translate market insights into actionable category plans

·       Experience working with dealer networks or B2B models (preferred)

Why This Role?

Shape a high-volume, high-growth category with strong commercial impact. Work across a broad, evolving product portfolio. Drive meaningful outcomes for a national member network. Flexible contract engagement with clear deliverables and impact.