Gourmet Specialty Foods and Seafood Sales Manager

Are you a bona-fide “Foodie” who tries to keep up with the latest food trends. Is your industry knowledge strong enough to relate to cutting-edge chefs? Are you the energetic type, entrepreneurial, tenacious, and passionate about great food. Our client is seeking an individual with Food Service Sales Background, who is looking to align themselves with a well-respected food service distributor in the industry. Are you constantly looking to apply your food service knowledge and customer service skills, to benefit your personal financial situation? Our client serves a multitude of companies within the food industry with a focus on high quality and outstanding service.

The Gourmet Specialty Food and Seafood Sales Manager serves as a member of our client’s sales team and manages multiple team members by building strong and mutually profitable relationships with customers. The key responsibility is to drive sales activity by providing outstanding service and solving problems for customers. This is achieved by working effectively with all stakeholders to ensure that their customers are receiving the highest level of support to facilitate their success.

Responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

• Execute the sales process by implementing the following key steps; develop product knowledge, prospect, and approach new clients, engage client in needs assessment, present solutions, close the deal, and follow-up.
• Investigate and resolve customer questions with a high sense of urgency.
• Travel extensively throughout assigned territory to meet current and prospective customers soliciting orders. May also call on customers via telephone or electronic platforms.
• Develop leads- analyzing who is buying what and how to capitalize on that information.
• Quote prices, establish credit terms, and prepare sales contracts for orders obtained.
• Facilitate product delivery to customers based on the company’s production and delivery schedules.
• Work with Sales Assistants and Account Managers to facilitate high levels of customer service and address any customer issues quickly.
• Collaborate with Purchasing and Operations to ensure inventory levels meet customer demand.
• Compile and upload customer data and other sales information into the database.
• Prepare reports of business transactions and generate expense reports.
• Perform other duties as required by the supervisor.

The Right Candidate will be:

• Experience: Minimum of 5 years outside sales experience selling perishable food products –seafood and land-based proteins. Past experience in an executive hospitality role would be a benefit.
• Education: Degree in Business, Sales, Marketing Hospitality or Culinary Arts are preferred.
• Communications: A strong communicator with exceptional interpersonal skills. Has built and maintained strong sales teams consistently able to achieve their goals.
• Technical: High proficiency in using personal computer and Microsoft Office Suite, including having an ability to process basic arithmetic tasks.
• Personal Attributes: Be highly motivated, personable and exhibit a history of successfully working in a high paced environment. Must be a self-starter and quick study to learn company products and operations rapidly.
• Travel: 25% local travel required.
• A person who is comfortable in his/her own skin, who will work well with people on all levels.
• The ability to drive territory growth by building a knowledge base of the leading restaurants, hotels and food service companies, their management, menus, and customers and approaching them with well thought out ideas.

QUALIFIED and MOTIVATED candidates please send your resume and references to Ed Culleeney, Executive Recruiter, Kalos Consulting at ed@kalosconsulting.com If you prefer to have a conversation feel free to reach out to me at 630-394-2421.