Category Manager

ABOUT WEROAD: CONNECTING PEOPLE, CULTURES, AND STORIES Founded in 2017, WeRoad is a fast-growing startup disrupting the travel industry across Italy, Spain, UK, Germany, France, Switzerland and the US. We're a community of travelers who turn every trip into a life-changing experience, connecting like-minded Millennials and Gen Z travelers and sending them on adventures to 1000+ destinations worldwide, guided by a network of thousands of Travel Coordinators. Our mission is to design and deliver experiences worth living and sharing, rewriting the rules of the travel industry — not through performance marketing, but through community, word of mouth, and the people who lead our trips. ABOUT THE ROLE JOB TITLE: Category Manager – Passion-Led Experiences LOCATION: Milano, hybrid TYPE OF CONTRACT: Permanent contract, full time REPORTING TO: CSO SALARY RANGE: 45-60 K€ Passion-led experiences give people a different, and often stronger, reason to travel: to learn something, get better at something, or go deeper into something they already love, sports, skiing, wine, cooking, art, diving, sailing. They reach people who wouldn't pick a trip off a geography-led catalogue, but will book instantly if the offer is "learn to ski with a real instructor" or "a wine week with a sommelier." This is incremental portfolio, incremental CR, and a new top-of-funnel that isn't competing for the same demand as our classic itineraries. This is how we bring in people who don't yet see themselves as group travellers only. Someone who wants to learn to sail may never have considered a group trip, but they will follow a sailing instructor, join their events, and eventually book their first WeRoad experience through that passion, not through a destination search. We're looking for a Category Manager to own this vertical offering end to end: build the portfolio, source and grow the ecosystem of vertical experts and partners, and turn them into real experiences content channel across both WeRoad (trips) and WeMeet (our community events platform). This is a business-owner role, you'll run the P&L for the category, not just the pipeline. WHAT YOU'LL DO Own vertical portfolio growth & performance - Grow passion-led / vertical experiences to at least 20% of the overall trip portfolio. - Drive a +20% uplift in average conversion rate (CR) across the non-vertical portfolio by strengthening the vertical offering as a differentiator. - Grow Events to 50% of the overall vertical offering. - Own the P&L of the vertical category across WeRoad and WeMeet — offering mix, unit economics and commercial performance. - Partner with Marketing, Content and Product to bring vertical stories, expert profiles, real people and experiences to life across the funnel on website, social media, communications Build and manage the vertical partner ecosystem - Identify, develop and manage new vertical categories and partners: active trips, food & wine, wellness, art & culture, festivals, sailing, and future verticals. - Source vertical experts as Travel Producers, event creators and group leaders on WeRoad and WeMeet - Onboard vertical DTC and travel brands onto the WeRoad marketplaces as supply for trip and events - Launch and run the affiliation program to sustain partners and producers that want to expand our audience and community together with us WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR - Strong business sense with a track record of experience owning a P&L, ideally gained in strategy consulting, or as a founder/early operator of a community business or DTC brand. - A startup / product-led-growth mindset: comfortable building fast, testing, and iterating rather than over-scoping before shipping. - AI-native: uses AI tools naturally in day-to-day work to move faster and scale output without scaling headcount. - Genuine drive to build a community of creators and experience-makers — you see vertical experts as partners and a distribution channel, not just suppliers. - Comfortable owning both sides of the job: the commercial/P&L discipline of category management and the hands-on push of onsite and in-app offering, content and activation. - Strong relationship-building skills to source, convert and retain vertical experts through a structured, tiered partner journey. - Fluent in English; Italian a strong plus given the size of the domestic vertical ecosystem. YOU WILL LOVE WORKING AT WEROAD IF - You dream big, aim higher, and push yourself beyond limits you didn't think possible. Challenges excite you, and you're hungry for the next win. - You want to be part of a young, smart, and fun team that shares your passion for travel and community. - You're an entrepreneur at heart, take responsibility from day one, and move fast to make things happen. - You prefer adventure over routine and thrive in the fast-paced, ever-changing ride of a scaleup — testing, learning and adapting because growth comes from action. - You believe in the power of people: WeRoaders, Travel Coordinators and vertical experts are at the core of everything we do. WHAT WE CAN OFFER - Performance-based bonus – A discretionary annual variable bonus, and based on performance and company results. - A free WeRoad trip every year – Choose your dream destination with €1,400/year travel discount or travel even more as a Travel Coordinator. - Trust-based holidays – We believe performance is driven by impact, not by hours at a desk. You are encouraged to take the time you need to recharge, beyond contractual minimums, within shared guidelines. - Opportunities to learn – We invest in your growth with training and learning opportunities. - New parent support – €3,600/year for 3 years after birth or adoption (or prorated if your child is under 3 when you start at WeRoad). - Extra benefits – Meal vouchers (€8/day – when applicable), a €1,000 bonus for your wedding or civil union, and one-off bonus when you hit 5 years with us. - Fun – A vibrant co-working space, team buildings and meet-ups. - Hybrid working - Flexible working, and we support you to work from your destination of choice up to 1 month per year. Ready to apply? At WeRoad, cultural fit matters as much as skills. We assess both the what, what someone brings and the how, how they work and live our values. With multiple steps, we make sure every new joiner is not just a match, but 150% aligned with our Culture. The selection process will consist of: - introductory call with Talent Acquisition Lead - technical and background-based interview with Hiring Manager - Case Study/ Second technical interview - Culture Champions step