Ideal Candidate is based in West Coast, preference for CA

About Us

At Zevia, we’re creating a world of better-for-you flavor—better for people and the planet. Our team is made up of courageous challengers and tenacious builders who are passionate about our mission. We’re solutions-oriented, always improving, and we operate with a healthy thirst for risk. We believe in staying true to our convictions while continuously learning and evolving.

At our core, we are people-centric. We care deeply, lead with empathy, and operate as one team—no egos, just a shared purpose. We strive to reflect the diversity of our consumer base within our organization and foster a culture of empathy and humility.

Together, we aim to impact global health, provide affordable better-for-you products, and protect the planet by reducing plastic.

We’re fighting the good fight to change the beverage industry for the better — and we’re just getting started.

Summary

The Director, Sales drives business performance and is responsible for building quality key account businesses with key customers in their specific region of the US.  The Director, Sales directly manages the business of their assigned regional and sales accounts. 

Responsibilities include playing a primary role in tailoring strategy and programs optimized for the national and regional chains in the assigned territory.  This role builds and sells these programs to local decision-makers.  This role creates and manages account budgets that focus on key performance indicators (KPIs), including price, promotion execution, and quality distribution.  

What You’ll Do 

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Represent Zevia in the marketplace with passion, enthusiasm, a positive attitude, a growth mindset, and professional demeanor. 

• Build distribution on priority packages in keeping with company strategy and plans. 

• Ensure all assigned accounts’ schematics reflect Zevia standards relative to flow and package mix. 

• Sell Zevia’s optimum price program by using best practices and available tools. 

• Ensure all promotions are accompanied by point of sale and incremental displays – beyond “price reductions”. 

• Construct annual Customer Marketing Agreements and manage associated funds for all designated accounts on a weekly and monthly basis. 

• Conduct quarterly business reviews to update accounts on business, channel competition, and identify opportunities. 

• Provide category insights that promote change in promotion, price, or display practices. 

• Provide feedback to local decision makers on any relevant developments, information, or successes. 

• Maintain local and national knowledge regarding accounts and competition. 

• Provide forecasting and planning input for the territory. 

• Create distribution goals across all packages with retailers. 

• Work closely with the territory management team to execute initiatives in-store. 

• Develop and manage promotional trade spend with retailers. 

• Educate, train, and interact with distributor representatives on Zevia’s products, merchandising standards, and sales strategies to drive superior execution in stores. 

• Support distributor trade shows. 

• Perform other duties as assigned. 

What We're Looking For

• 6+ years of outside sales and management experience, in a similar role or industry. 

• Representation and sales experience with a successful history in the territory. 

• Experience using syndicated data sources (i.e., IRI, Nielsen, SPINs). 

• Experience with various channels like conventional and natural grocery, mass merch, and convenience. 

• Experience working with cross functional partners (finance, operations, etc.). 

• Track record of building, presenting, and implementing creative programming. 

• Knowledge of beverage category product distribution and the logistics of delivering products to store shelves. 

• Competent computer skills, including Microsoft Suite (Power Point, Word, Excel, Outlook, and Teams). 

• Excellent communication and negotiation skills with the ability to listen well and read a situation. 

• Excellent verbal and written communication/presentation skills. 

• Strong planning, organizing, and time management skills. 

• Aptitude for leading others and building highly productive business relationships with retailers through excellent written and oral communication skills.  

• Analytical and engaging. 

• Storyteller and critical listener. 

• Ability to create win-win business solutions that resonate with the retailer and the consumer. 

• Self-driven to succeed and surpass targets. 

• Ability to work independently and make informed decisions independently. 

• Team first attitude. 

• Strong ability to positively influence others outside of a direct reporting relationship. 

• Healthy beverage segment awareness and passion for healthier products. 

• Ability to travel via car with a valid driver’s license and untarnished driving record. 

• Ability to travel outside of local territory for multiple nights, at least once per month. 

• Ability to work flexible hours/weekends as travel and national marketing and consumer events require.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position has no direct supervisory responsibility but will serve as a coach and mentor within the department.

Work Environment

Under normal operations, this position operates in a home office environment for 60% of the time.  This role has significant travel requirements of up to 40% with the focus on this travel to be attending customer and corporate headquarters (HQ) appointments. 

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

The employee is occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to thirty (30) pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to fifty (50) pounds.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

Position Type

Full Time, Exempt 

Travel

This position requires up to 40% travel.

Work Authorization/Security Clearance

Must be eligible to work in the U.S.

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

What We Offer

• A collaborative environment, where everyone contributes and delivers
• A place where you can grow, develop and learn
• Competitive compensation that includes a base salary, discretionary bonus and stock options. See below for range.
• A comprehensive benefits package which includes:
  • An array of medical plans
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • Group Life Insurance
  • Short-term disability + Long-term disability
  • Flexible Spending Accounts: Medical, Dependent and Limited Use
  • Health Savings Account
  • Accident Insurance
  • Critical Illness Insurance
  • Hospital Indemnity Insurance
  • Legal Insurance
  • Travel Assistance
  • Employee Assistance Program
  • Pet Insurance
  • 401k Plan (Traditional and Roth)
  • Vacation, Personal/Sick Days, and Holidays
  • Professional development contributions
  • And of course, all the Zevia you can drink!

About Us

At Zevia, we’re creating a world of better-for-you flavor—better for people and the planet. Our team is made up of courageous challengers and tenacious builders who are passionate about our mission. We’re solutions-oriented, always improving, and we operate with a healthy thirst for risk. We believe in staying true to our convictions while continuously learning and evolving.

At our core, we are people-centric. We care deeply, lead with empathy, and operate as one team—no egos, just a shared purpose. We strive to reflect the diversity of our consumer base within our organization and foster a culture of empathy and humility.

Together, we aim to impact global health, provide affordable better-for-you products, and protect the planet by reducing plastic.

We’re fighting the good fight to change the beverage industry for the better — and we’re just getting started.

Summary 

The Category Manager will report to the Sr. Director of Business Insights & Category Leadership and will be responsible for leading category insights, analytics, and storytelling efforts that support Zevia’s commercial strategy.

This role will partner closely with Sales to influence retailer decisions and improve performance across key accounts. The Category Manager will be responsible for integrating multiple data sources—including syndicated, shopper, retailer POS, and internal data—to develop insights that drive distribution, improve shelf placement, and accelerate growth.

The ideal candidate is highly analytical, commercially minded, and an effective communicator who can translate complex data into clear, actionable narratives. They will play a key role in positioning Zevia as a trusted category expert and strategic partner with retailers.

Essential Functions

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Analytics & Insight Discovery

• Analyze and integrate data from Syndicated sources (SPINS, Circana, Nielsen), Shopper panel data (Numerator) and Retailer POS platforms (Walmart Retail Link, Costco CRX) to Identify key business drivers and drainers across distribution, pricing, promotion, assortment, and merchandising
• Deliver clear insights on category trends, competitive dynamics, and shopper behavior
• Lead business driver and drainer analysis to discover new growth opportunities
• Utilize Zevia’s Next Gen AI-powered Insights platform to accelerate insight discovery and uncover non-obvious opportunities
• Translate data into concise, actionable insights to support selling priorities

Sales Partnership & Retailer Storytelling

• Serve as the primary insights partner to Sales, supporting Key Account Managers across top retailers
• Develop fact-based selling stories for: Line Reviews, Joint Business Plans (JBPs), New item sell-in
• Create and deliver customer-specific category insights presentations alongside Sales teams
• Influence retailer decisions through insight-led recommendations on assortment, placement, and shelf recommendations
• Ensure insights directly support commercial outcomes, including distribution gains, improved shelf quality, and increased velocity

Category Strategy & Shelf Impact

• Support category reviews and provide ongoing insights on macro trends, channel performance, and competitive activity
• Translate insights into recommendations that improve: Shelf placement and visibility, Sku velocity, Promo effectiveness
• Position Zevia as a trusted category expert and partner with retail customers

Required Competencies and Skills/Abilities:

• Ability to build relationships throughout many cross-functional teams, gather information across internal networks, and understand stakeholder needs in a proactive way
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and navigate through competing demands.
• Proven analytical skills across multiple data platforms and an aptitude for translating multiple sources of information into impactful presentations.
• Proven ability to present to any audience across multiple levels, internally and externally, with information that influences action on opportunities.
• Entrepreneurial and curious spirit that finds new areas across the organization where insights can influence and improve strategy and decision-making efforts.
• Direct experience with strong understanding of syndicated scan data, internal sales data, retailer portals, shopper panel data, and third-party industry trend data. 
• Experience with Consumer/Shopper panel data like Numerator or IRI/Nielsen Homescan.
• Skilled in Microsoft Office PowerPoint and Excel, comfortable with Power BI or other data visualization software/tools.
• Ability to work independently.

Required Education and Experience

• At least 3-5 years of Category Management experience in the Consumer-Packaged Goods (CPG) industry with additional benefit from beverage and/or natural product experience.
• 4-Year degree preferred and/or equivalent combination of education and work experience.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position is not a direct supervisor

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. The employee is occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to (10 pounds). Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

Full time, exempt

Travel

Per business need, up to 25%

Work Authorization/Security Clearance

Must be eligible to work in the U.S.

EEO Statement

We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified job candidates and employees. To that end, Zevia maintains a workplace free of discrimination and harassment on the basis of an individual’s race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists), color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical condition), gender (including gender identity, gender expression, change of sex, and transgender status), sexual orientation, sexual and reproductive health decisions, height, weight, age, any physical or mental disability (including gender dysphoria or similar gender-related conditions), medical condition, national origin, ancestry, marital status (including registered domestic partnership, civil union, or any other partnership status), familial status, caregiver status, military or veteran status (including unfavorable discharge from military status), genetic information, genetic testing, predisposing genetic characteristics, caregiver status, order of protection status, work authorization status, citizenship status, immigration status, conviction record or history, arrest record, pre-employment marijuana testing, credit history, salary history, Civil Air Patrol status, status as a victim of domestic violence, assault, or stalking, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local, state, or federal law (each, a “Protected Characteristic”).

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

What We Offer

• A collaborative environment, where everyone contributes and delivers
• A place where you can grow, develop and learn
• Competitive compensation that includes a base salary, discretionary bonus and stock options. See below for range.
• A comprehensive benefits package which includes:
  • An array of medical plans
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • Group Life Insurance
  • Short-term disability + Long-term disability
  • Flexible Spending Accounts: Medical, Dependent and Limited Use
  • Health Savings Account
  • Accident Insurance
  • Critical Illness Insurance
  • Hospital Indemnity Insurance
  • Legal Insurance
  • Travel Assistance
  • Employee Assistance Program
  • Pet Insurance
  • 401k Plan (Traditional and Roth)
  • Vacation, Personal/Sick Days, and Holidays
  • Professional development contributions
  • And of course, all the Zevia you can drink!