Director of Sales - Retail

CANDIDATE LOCATION:  Austin / San Antonio area.

As an integral part of the Retail Channel for Kettle Cuisine, this role will formulate and implement sales growth strategies for these key customers. This role will be the “boots on the ground” meeting directly with key contacts at Whole Foods, as well as Amazon and other regional Texas customers (Brookshire & United). The position has one direct report who splits time with Project Management as well as works on account specific needs. The position reports directly to the SVP of Retail Sales to develop and implement short and long-range plans.

Role and Responsibilities

This role is geographically based in the Austin/San Antonion area. Occasional travel will be required from time to time to join customers for meetings at Kettle Cuisine facilities or for internal team meetings – estimated at 4-6 trips per year.

• In coordination with the SVP of Sales, directly manage and grow both customers.
• Establishment of goals, daily management and overall direction for these accounts.
• Achieve sales and profit objectives successfully through individual and team sales efforts on the directly assigned accounts.
• Manage the internal and external new development process for custom soup, sides and meals for these customers. Ideation sessions with customers typically 1-2x per year.
• Leverage account specific and Nielsen data to create actionable insights that drive improved sales performance.
• Maintain a robust and focused pipeline and report on progress weekly.
• Work with Demand Planning and Business development on Forecast, including annual sales growth and spending.
• Lead promotional efforts to maximize results.
• Serve as a trusted soup, sauce and sous vide category specialist.
• Partner with customer, UNFI (Tony’s) and Supply Chain to continually improve service metrics.
• Ensure on time and in spec delivery of R&D samples to customers as needed.
• Actively manage Associate Project Manager to ensure all customer projects are set up on time and accurately.

As A Leader Within the Kettle Cuisine Team You Are Expected To: 

• Model and support Kettle’s Core Values and safety culture.
• Manage performance of all team members.
• Build a strong, committed, and collaborative team.
• Develop individual team members & their careers.
• Create a culture of accountability & performance.
• Drive a focus on quality and continuous improvement.
• Plan work, track results and resolve variances.

Qualifications and Experience

• Minimum of five years of Sales experience in consumer-packaged goods in the Retail space.
• Prior sales experience with Whole Foods, Amazon, HEB.
• Demonstrated excellence in driving consistently strong profitable sales growth.
• Experience launching new products.
• Strong written and verbal communication and presentation skills.
• Strong Microsoft Office skills.
• Experience with Customer Relationship Management tools (Sales Force).
• Financial and business acumen.
• Private Label experience is a plus but not required.

Required Attributes

• Self-starter able to conceptualize and drive initiatives forward with limited oversight.
• Positive attitude and motivated by contributing to the overall success of the team.
• Able to develop strong and deep relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Creative problem-solving skills.
• Obsessive attention to detail, well organized and able to juggle many different projects at once.
• Comfortable moving at a fast pace and in ambiguous environments.
• Passionate about food and helping foodservice operators succeed in their businesses.
• Willing to address difficult situations head on with patience and respect.