Commercial Manager

Fresh People Ltd; Greater London; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 61,000; Full time

Job summary

Fresh People is seeking a Commercial Manager for a leading international fresh produce business based in Dartford, Kent. You will manage and develop key UK retail customers, translating category requirements into effective commercial plans and delivering growth in sales, volume and margin.

You will lead negotiations, build Joint Business Plans, forecast demand and work closely with Procurement, Supply Chain and Finance to meet customer needs while developing new products and packaging solutions.

Qualifications

• Minimum proven commercial experience in fresh produce.
• Strong understanding of UK retail customers and category management.
• Excellent negotiation and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage and develop strategic relationships with major UK retail customers.
• Build and deliver Joint Business Plans.
• Identify, pursue and secure new retail business opportunities.
• Grow existing accounts through category development, innovation and customer partnerships.
• Lead commercial negotiations, annual reviews and tender submissions.
• Own customer sales, volume, margin and profitability targets.
• Manage customer pricing and promotional investment.
• Deliver accurate forecasting and demand planning.
• Monitor weekly commercial performance including sales, margin, forecast accuracy, service, waste and claims.
• Work closely with Procurement, Supply Chain, Operations, Technical and Finance to deliver customer requirements.
• Support the development of new products, pack formats and sustainable packaging solutions.
• Contribute to the development and delivery of the UK retail commercial strategy.

Skills

Commercial acumen

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Category management

Sales forecasting

Relationship management

Data analysis

Tools

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

Commercial Manager

Fresh People is recruiting a Commercial Manager for a leading international fresh produce business based in Dartford, Kent.

This is a commercially focused role with responsibility for managing and developing key UK retail customers, delivering profitable sales, volume and margin growth, and building strong relationships across retail buying, category and supply chain teams. You will work closely with the Sales Director and wider business to translate customer and category requirements into effective commercial plans.

The role

• Manage and develop strategic relationships with major UK retail customers.
• Build and deliver Joint Business Plans.
• Identify, pursue and secure new retail business opportunities.
• Grow existing accounts through category development, innovation and customer partnerships.
• Lead commercial negotiations, annual reviews and tender submissions.
• Own customer sales, volume, margin and profitability targets.
• Manage customer pricing and promotional investment.
• Deliver accurate forecasting and demand planning.
• Monitor weekly commercial performance including sales, margin, forecast accuracy, service, waste and claims.
• Work closely with Procurement, Supply Chain, Operations, Technical and Finance to deliver customer requirements.
• Support the development of new products, pack formats and sustainable packaging solutions.
• Contribute to the development and delivery of the UK retail commercial strategy.

About you

You will bring proven commercial experience within the fresh produce sector, with a strong understanding of UK retail customers, buying structures and category management. You will be commercially driven, confident leading negotiations and managing senior customer relationships, with a proven track record of growing existing business and identifying new opportunities.

Excellent negotiation and stakeholder management skills, together with advanced Excel and PowerPoint capability, will also be required.

The role is based on site in Dartford and offers a salary of £55,000, up to 10% annual bonus and 25 days holiday plus bank holidays.