Career Opportunity - Account Manager (North West)

Career Opportunity – Account Manager (North-West)

James Clay and Sons are recruiting for a North West Account Manager. The position will be suitable for someone who is passionate about good beer, familiar with the area, is motivated to apply their commercial experience to a portfolio of the world’s best beers.

About Us

Since 1978 our overriding passion for sharing great beer with discerning customers throughout the UK has pushed our business forward.

James Clay and Sons is an importer, national distributor and brand builder of speciality beer from Europe, USA, UK and Japan. We focus on delivering both national and international beers that challenge and excite our customers. At James Clay and Sons we have built strong working relationships both with brewers and our customers that range from bar & pub operators, wholesalers, restaurateurs to retailers.

Our Head office is located in Brighouse within easy travelling distance of Manchester and Leeds, our Midlands Office is in Stoke and our London depot is near London Bridge.

This position will suit someone who is looking for a role that combines developing strong relationships, effective communication and sharing a passion for all things beer. The applicant must have the drive and ambition to develop the community that supports the world’s best breweries. Above all else they must be able to demonstrate strong commercial acumen with a history of negotiating win-win deals with substantial free trade customers.

Role Overview

You will work alongside our Account Management Team and report into our National Sales Manager

You will be responsible for:

Developing our relationships with existing direct and indirect delivered on-trade customers in a defined geographical area.

Developing new business for the Company.

Working with representatives of our supplying brewers.

Embedding yourself in the “beer community” of your region.

Most crucially, delivering strong sales and profit growth in the North West primarily, Manchester, Liverpool, Chester and Preston

Business Development

The successful person in this role will strive to be part of the “beer community” in their region. They will have their own network of industry contacts and be looking to develop this network further. They will be able to use their relationships in this community to build the brands we work with, to develop new business with new customers and provide first hand analysis of latest news and developments. Activity within this area will include, but is not limited to...

Commercial

Above all else this is a commercial role and your target will be to profitably develop your sales area and work with colleagues in the wider business to profitably grow James Clay and Sons. Pricing and investment decisions will be yours, in conjunction with the National Sales Manager (NSM) and Head of Sales. An ability to think and act commercially will be key to success in this role along with the determination to deliver the best service for your customers and supplying brewers. With full P&L responsibility for your area you will also, in conjunction with your NSM or Head of Sales, develop and deliver a strategy for sustained sales growth.

Customer Management

Responsible for managing the relationship between James Clay, our suppliers and our customers. Key to success will be an ability to prioritise time and other resources to profitably develop our business with long term relations with key customers. You will be responsible for managing and coordinating your customers relationship with all James Clay internal departments.

An ability to maximise returns from your existing customer base while managing a pipeline of prospective new business will be essential. It would also be expected that you would be a regular visitor, in a social sense, to many of our key customers, further strengthening our ties to the local community.

Supplier Relations

James Clay and Sons work with some of the leading breweries from around the world. This role involves working with them to aid understanding of your region as a key influencing market within the UK and helping them to realise ambitions for their brands at a local level through supporting key accounts and winning new business.

General

At James Clay and Sons we are proud of our reputation for delivering a professional, knowledgeable and supportive service. You will be an important ambassador for the company and the friendly and efficient manner in which you deal with our customers is extremely important.

Accuracy, efficiency and a friendly personality are essential traits for this position as well as the ability to work in a team.

Training and Development

This role is ideal for an experienced industry sales professional looking to develop a broad experience in the world of craft beer. Not only will they be trained on our extensive portfolio of beer, they will also learn about the logistics of importing & distributing beer and gain exposure to brand building activity. With training and development, you will then be able to take advantage of the new opportunities that arise within a dynamic business in a vibrant sector of the market.

Key Skills & Experience

Negotiation Skills.
Ability to effectively manage customer and supplier relationships.
A self-starter with the ability to prioritise effectively.
Sound commercial experience of the North West independent free trade. Experience of brand sales and development.
Analytical and strategic competence.

Demonstrate a track record of sales success especially with regard to new business development.

Hours and Conditions

You will report into the National Sales Manager

This is a fulltime role at 40 hours per week. Hours of work will vary with evening work to be expected.

We seek candidates with demonstrable directly relevant experience of the industry and ideally the North West region gained over a number of years, however, we are also open to applications from candidates with less experience who show potential to develop into the role. For the right candidate we can offer a salary and package commensurate with their experience and potential along with the opportunity to progress within our business as we continue to grow. A bonus is also payable linked to individual and/or company performance.

Holiday: 20 days per year plus statutory bank holidays. Increasing by 1 day for every 3 years employment up to a maximum of 25 days per annum.

The company has a pension scheme. Expensed travel.
Necessary IT and Phone provided.

CLOSING DATE FRIDAY 10th of FEBRUARY

Please apply by sending CV and cover letter to Head of Sales Matt Eyre on sales@jamesclay.co.uk