General Manager

Courtney Smith; Leeds; On-site; GBP 72,000 - 88,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary circa £80,000 per year

15% bonus

Company car allowance £800/month

Job summary

Courtney Smith, Leeds, is recruiting a General Manager to lead the UK business with full P&L and balance sheet responsibility. The role oversees an Operations Manager, three external sales people and five internal sales people, plus key accounts, for a £10m business that has shown strong growth.

Reporting to the Group Sales Director, you will drive revenue, margins, forecasting and strategy in a high‑performing distribution environment, supported by a new 100,000 sq ft Leeds distribution

Qualifications

• At least 5 years+ senior management / people management experience
• Proven experience of managing a P&L and understanding balance sheets
• Strong commercial and strategic leadership skills
• Experience of leading sales teams and driving business growth
• Excellent communication and relationship-building abilities
• A hands‑on, proactive approach to leadership
• Experience within distribution, warehousing or associated industrial environment would be advantageous
• The ability to motivate and develop an established team whilst creating a clear vision for future growth

Responsibilities

• Overall leadership and performance of the UK business
• Full P&L and balance sheet responsibility
• EBITDA and performance forecasting
• Developing and implementing the strategy for continued growth
• Leading, motivating and developing the existing sales and operations teams
• Managing key customer relationships and strategic accounts
• Identifying new commercial opportunities and markets
• Working closely with the Group Sales Director and wider European group
• Ensuring operational and commercial performance continues to improve
• Providing strong leadership across sales, operations and customer service

Job description

General Manager

Working for this specialist distributor who sell a range of Water Solutions used in variety of applications across diverse sectors including Construction/Agricultural/Industrial Distribution, Irrigation. This role is managing the UK business, this includes PNL / Balance Sheets / Forecasting. You will be responsible for a £10m pound business which has shown excellent growth over past 5 years. You will manage an operations manager, 3 external sales people, 5 internal sales people. You will also have key accounts that you will oversee.

The Company

Our client is part of a successful European-owned group with operations across the UK and Europe. The business has established a strong position within the specialist distribution market and has experienced excellent growth over recent years.

The UK operation supplies a wide range of specialist products and solutions into a diverse customer base spanning construction, agriculture, industrial, distribution and irrigation sectors.

The business has recently invested significantly in its UK infrastructure, including the development of a new 100,000 sq ft distribution facility in Leeds, providing an excellent platform for continued expansion.

The Role

Reporting to the Group Sales Director, the General Manager will take responsibility for the overall leadership, commercial performance and continued development of the UK business.

The role will have a strong commercial focus, with responsibility for revenue and margin performance, forecasting, pipeline management and the delivery of agreed business objectives. You will work closely with Operations, Finance and other key functions to ensure commercial strategy is aligned with operational performance and customer requirements.

You will lead an established team comprising an Operations Manager, three external sales professionals and five internal sales team members, whilst also maintaining relationships with key strategic customers.

This is an excellent opportunity for an ambitious and commercially minded leader who can combine strong people management, commercial awareness and strategic thinking to take an already successful business to the next level.

Key Responsibilities

• Overall leadership and performance of the UK business
• Full P&L and balance sheet responsibility
• EBITDA and performance forecasting
• Developing and implementing the strategy for continued growth
• Leading, motivating and developing the existing sales and operations teamsManaging key customer relationships and strategic accounts
• Identifying new commercial opportunities and markets
• Working closely with the Group Sales Director and wider European group
• Ensuring operational and commercial performance continues to improve
• Providing strong leadership across sales, operations and customer service

The Person

We are looking for a visionary and commercially focused leader with a proven track record of managing and developing a business and its people.

You will ideally have

• At least 5 years+ senior management / people management experience
• Proven experience of managing a P&L and understanding balance sheets
• Strong commercial and strategic leadership skills
• Experience of leading sales teams and driving business growth
• Excellent communication and relationship-building abilities
• A hands‑on, proactive approach to leadership
• Experience within distribution, warehousing or associated industrial environment would be advantageous
• The ability to motivate and develop an established team whilst creating a clear vision for future growth

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to influence strategy, develop the existing team and play a key role in delivering the next phase of growth for the UK business.

Package

• Circa £80,000
• 15% bonus
• High‑specification company car or £800 per month car allowance

Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire - ideally commutable from the office, expectation 3 days per week

Role: National UK responsibility