The Category Management Handbook

Stage 4Strategy

Overview and benefits of this stage

This stage represents the heart of the category management process and some would argue its very purpose. Each of the three stages preceding this stage have been building up to this point in time. A ‘good’ strategy is predicated on diligent research and critical analysis, and without the necessary prior investment in these areas, you cannot expect to develop an effective category strategy.

The kind of strategy we are talking about here refers to a long-term plan to manage the spend within any given category; it is obviously not referring to a short-term plan to source a new supplier! This may sound somewhat patronising, but it is a distinction that strikes at the heart of many of the current ...