Brand Manager - Kids & Fun Brands, Fixed Term Contract

Job Description:

Mars: Where your Tomorrow Starts Today!

Mars is a family-owned business that has been making products for people and their pets for more than 100 years. We’re behind some of the best loved brands in the world including MARS®, SNICKERS®, EXTRA®, NUTRI GRAIN®, COCO POPS®, PRINGLES®, PEDIGREE®, WHISKAS®, BEN’S ORIGINAL ® MASTERFOODS ® and ROYAL CANIN® ORIJEN® ACANA® . We are dedicated to making a positive impact on people and the planet. 

Join us in building a sustainable future where people, communities, and the planet can truly thrive.

Segment: Mars Snacking ANZ

Role Title: Brand Manager - Kids & Fun Brands

Location: Melbourne

Hours:Full time,12 month fixed term contract

Reporting to: Portfolio Director, Breakfast

At Mars, we are driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. Across Australian homes, our beloved brands spark connection, morning cheer, and family memories.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Brand Manager to join our team on a fixed term contract. You will take the reins of our vibrant Kids & Fun Brands portfolio including Australian household staples: Coco Pops®, Rice Bubbles®, and Fruit Loops®.

Reporting to the Portfolio Marketing Director, you will champion brand performance, lead integrated marketing campaigns across all touchpoints, and steer future-focused innovation pipelines that resonate with parents and kids alike.

What You’ll Do

As Brand Manager, you will lead the strategic direction, commercial execution, and campaign deployment for iconic morning favourites:

• Strategic Growth & Brand Planning: Develop and execute robust 3-year growth plans and high-impact annual brand plans, setting clear priorities for Coco Pops and the wider portfolio.
• Integrated Campaign Leadership: Steer marketing campaigns from creative brief through to omnichannel execution and post-campaign reviews in partnership with creative, media, and digital agencies.
• Pipeline Innovation: Lead a dynamic 3–5 year innovation pipeline aligned with evolving consumer tastes and occasions, partnering cross-functionally to bring novel propositions to life.
• Commercial & Data-Driven Insights: Analyse retail scan data (Nielsen / Circana / IRI), consumer research, and category trends to uncover actionable growth drivers and optimize brand performance.
• Cross-Functional Orchestration: Collaborate across Sales, Category, Shopper Marketing, R&D, Supply Chain, and Finance, leveraging S&OP+ processes to manage milestones, risks, and commercial opportunities.
• Budget & Portfolio Ownership: Manage brand budgets with rigor, ensuring optimized spend allocation, return on investment, and governance compliance.

What You’ll Bring

You are a proactive, resilient marketer with a knack for turning rich consumer insights into winning commercial propositions:

• Experience: Minimum 3+ years of brand marketing experience, ideally gained within FMCG / CPG or fast-moving retail brand environments.
• Education: Tertiary qualification in Business, Commerce, Marketing, or a related discipline.
• Analytical Acumen: Proven strength in interpreting Nielsen/Circana scan metrics and market share data to build persuasive commercial stories and retail recommendations.
• End-to-End Project Mastery: Demonstrated experience steering multifaceted product innovations and customer-facing activations through complex stage gates on time and on budget.
• Decisiveness & Autonomy: High self-reliance with the confidence to stand alone, challenge assumptions, simplify complex problems, and drive continuous improvement.
• Influencing & Stakeholder Skills: Exceptional communication and storytelling abilities, capable of inspiring cross-functional teams and external agency partners.
• Brand Passion: A genuine enthusiasm for iconic legacy brands and a desire to make a lasting commercial and cultural impact.

Why you’ll love working for Mars:

· Purpose: Help craft beloved brands with a legacy of over 100 years of local manufacturing making products that people and pets will love all while helping to build a more sustainable future.

· People: A culture that values your contributions, fosters leadership, and recognises the impact you make. Your work truly matters here.

· Development: Shape your career with personalised development and real opportunities to grow from day one.

· Enjoy a team and business environment that is invested in helping you manage and grow your energy for work and life.