NATIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGER (FOODS DIVISION)

Solent Group work with a diverse portfolio of Retailers and supply bespoke products within various categories, including Health & Beauty, Household Impulse Snacking and Reusable Bags. We are proud to be best-in-class when it comes to own-label product innovation. Our Categories are fast-paced with ever-evolving trends and a host of ground-breaking products coming to market on a regular basis – we add value to retailers by leading and owning each category. Here at Solent we want people to be extraordinary. We pride ourselves on creating and producing amazing products and brands for our Global Customers. You will be joining a company with offices globally across South Africa, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Vietnam, and the UK. Department : Commercial Reporting to : National Account Controller Location : UK (Remote with regular travel to our headquarters in Christchurch, Dorset) The Opportunity – National Account Manager (Foods Division) Solent Group is seeking a dynamic National Account Manager to build relationships with our customers and manufacturing partners. You’ll develop existing accounts and look for new business to add to our already prestigious portfolio. You will plan and oversee all aspects of the projects and meet the desired goals. You will oversee the organisation and scheduling of people, tasks and resources. You will be experienced in successfully managing national accounts within FMCG (ideally foods) while travelling nationally and internationally. You will have strong commercial acumen coupled with a strong sales background and project management skills. As part of your role you will develop the Foods portfolio and add to this with the teams, you will also be working with the foods product team to ensure all members of the team are upskilled in the product skill matrix in order to support the commercial function to hit budget. Key Responsibilities Bring your passion and enthusiasm to grow existing clients, alongside generating new business Live the Solent Values and work with your teams to drive the Vision Work with all depts to ensure customer strategy is met Formulate customer-specific sales plan/strategy You will be working independently alongside a pre-set sales strategy to achieve account-specific budgets Understand customer KPIs, and targets and review performance, with knowledge and proposals to reach category standards Relentlessly pioneer the future and pursue ambitious growth opportunities in your customers Be resourceful and employ innovative solutions to deliver value, gross margin & volume targets for your customers Contribute to the wider sales team and support other colleagues with their accounts Assigning, monitor and co-ordinate project milestones and progress, with both internal and external stakeholders Lead and plan the implementation of the project (resource, relationship, allocation) Ensure visibility and feedback is maintained About You Minimum 2 years’ experience managing national accounts, ideally top 6 grocers Strong commercial acumen Retail/FMCG/ Food experience essential, ideally top 6 grocers Experience across our product categories, ideally in Foods/Manufacturing and or Private Label Appetite/experience with international grocers Detail-orientated with an ability to multi-task and set priorities Experience in Critical Path Management Resource Planning & Allocation Project Risk Assessment Familiar with using Microsoft Outlook, Teams, Excel, and PowerPoint We Offer Competitive salary and performance-based incentives Flexible working arrangements 25 days holiday per annum, increasing to 27 days after 3 years’ service and 30 days after 5 years’ service Extensive benefits programme Learning and development and progression opportunities Pension Scheme Contribution Solent social events run by our inhouse Social Team Cycle to Work scheme Please visit us at https://.../work-with-us/ for further information and more details on our wide range of benefits! At Solent Group, we celebrate diversity and promote equality and inclusion across our global teams. We welcome applications from all, regardless of personal characteristics or background.