Business Development Manager

Centre People Appointments; Slough; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 62,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company car or £800 per month carallow

24 days annual leave

Salary sacrifice pension

Life insurance

Commission scheme

Job summary

Centre People Appointments is seeking a Business Development Manager in the UK to grow freight forwarding across air, ocean, and land. The role emphasizes identifying new opportunities, building relationships, and securing accounts with tailored logistics solutions.

Expect ownership, autonomy, and potential progression into people leadership. The ideal candidate holds 3–7 years’ sales or BD experience in freight/logistics, with a strong hunter mentality and proven ability to win new business

Qualifications

• 3–7 years’ proven sales or business development experience in freight forwarding, international trade, or logistics.
• Strong hunter mindset with the ability to acquire new customers and close deals.
• Strong knowledge of international shipping, Incoterms, air/ocean freight, and customs processes.
• UK driving licence and right to work in the UK.

Responsibilities

• Identify, develop, and secure new customers for air, ocean, road, and multimodal freight forwarding services.
• Build and manage a strong sales pipeline through prospecting, networking, and referrals.
• Conduct sales meetings, presentations, negotiations, and customer visits.
• Understand customer supply chain needs and propose tailored logistics solutions.
• Achieve and exceed sales targets and KPIs through new business acquisition.
• Prepare pricing, quotations, and proposals in coordination with operations and pricing teams.
• Monitor market trends, competitor activity, and customer feedback.
• Maintain accurate CRM records, sales forecasts, and activity reports.
• Collaborate with operations, customer service, and finance teams to ensure smooth onboarding and service delivery.
• Represent the company at industry events, trade shows, and networking functions.

Skills

Hunter mindset

CRM proficiency

Sales experience

Negotiation skills

Presentations

Independent worker

Microsoft Office

Japanese language advantageous

Tools

CRM systems

Microsoft Office

Job description

A Japanese logistics company is currently recruiting a Business Development Manager to grow its freight forwarding business across air, ocean, and land transportation in the UK.

The Business Development Manager will be responsible for identifying new business opportunities, developing customer relationships, and securing new accounts by providing tailored logistics solutions. The role offers a high level of autonomy and the opportunity to later progress into a people management position.

The ideal candidate should have 3–7 years' sales or business development experience in freight forwarding or international trade, a strong hunter mindset, and proven ability to win new business and build long-term customer relationships.

(Ref: CC47642 - Please include this when making any enquiries.)

Main Responsibilities

• Identify, develop, and secure new customers for air, ocean, road, and multimodal freight forwarding services
• Build and manage a strong sales pipeline through prospecting, networking, and referrals
• Conduct sales meetings, presentations, negotiations, and customer visits
• Understand customer supply chain needs and propose tailored logistics solutions
• Achieve and exceed sales targets and KPIs through new business acquisition
• Prepare pricing, quotations, and proposals in coordination with operations and pricing teams
• Monitor market trends, competitor activity, and customer feedback
• Maintain accurate CRM records, sales forecasts, and activity reports
• Collaborate with operations, customer service, and finance teams to ensure smooth onboarding and service delivery
• Represent the company at industry events, trade shows, and networking functions

Ideal Candidate

• 3-7 years' proven sales or business development experience in freight forwarding, international trade, or logistics
• Strong hunter mentality with a proven ability to acquire new customers and close deals
• Strong knowledge of international shipping, including Incoterms, air/ocean freight, and customs processes
• Existing customer portfolio is advantageous
• Strong customer relationship management, negotiation, and presentation skills
• Commercially minded with the potential to progress into a people management role
• Self-motivated, target-driven, and comfortable working independently
• Proficient in CRM systems and Microsoft Office
• Japanese language skills are advantageous but not essential
• UK driving licence

Conditions

• Location: Slough, UK
• Working Style: flexible hybrid (1 day in office per week, with the remainder home based or visiting customers)
• Job Type: permanent, full-time Monday to Friday
• Benefits: company car or £800 per month car allowance, 24 days annual leave, salary sacrifice pension, life insurance, commission scheme

*All applicants for the Business Development Manager position must have the right to work in the UK without any restrictions as the Company is not able to offer visa support.

*We regret that we cannot accept applications from Working Holiday, Graduate or Student visa holders.

If your application is successful, you will be contacted within two business days. We regret that due to the high volume of applications we receive, we cannot provide feedback on individual CVs.