5 questions with Tory: Meet an applied economics alumna

Five Questions with Tory

Tory Ahmann Bradley
Applied Economics with an emphasis in food retailing, 2013 | Leadership minor
Senior Category Manager for CVS Confectionary at Mars Wrigley

Describe your current job. What does it look like on a weekly basis?
I manage the confectionary category for the aisle at CVS. I am constantly looking for opportunities to improve the assortment, shelving, and pricing strategy. I do this by using multiple sources of data from Nielsen to Kantar to stay ahead of the trends for chocolate, fruity candy, gum, and mints.

What do you most enjoy about your current role?
I enjoy the opportunity to be a detective in how to optimize the category. I don’t just look at Mars Wrigley data, but I look at the category as a whole and how I can coordinate the insights and story to help it grow. Also, I enjoy the people I work with cross functionally with CVS buyers and the Mars Wrigley sales team.

What made you choose the College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) and your major?
I started as a food science major because I’ve always been interested in the food industry but quickly realized that my strengths were in business versus science. Then, I was able to stay in CFANS to complete my applied economics degree. It also allowed me to take food and agriculturally-focused business classes, which were aligned with my interests.

How did your experiences in the major help you in your career? 
I think having the business courses but from the angle of food and agriculture really helped tailor my knowledge for the jobs that I was interested in.

What class or which professor had the most significant impact on you?
The professor and career counselor that had the biggest impact on me is Heather Nagle. She teaches a career readiness course, and overall she was one of the most supportive people during college and even into my career. I knew that I could always meet with her to make sure my interviews and resumes were strong, and it was wonderful to know I had an advocate as I was navigating my career choices.

Thanks for sharing more about your experience in our college and beyond, Tory. We are CFANS proud of you!