Business Development Manager

Onboard Retail; Dublin; Hybrid; EUR 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work & Flexitime

Generous annual leave

Bonus scheme

Free onsite lunch and health snacks

Great work-life balance

Friendly, international team

Exciting career opportunity in travel/

Job summary

Onboard Retail is seeking a Business Development Manager to drive revenue growth and expand our onboard retail services across Europe and the Middle East. You will identify opportunities, build strategic airline relationships, and manage end-to-end bid processes, delivering compelling proposals and winning outcomes.

The role demands strong commercial acumen, industry knowledge, stakeholder management, and bid-management expertise to position the company as a preferred onboard retail partner for

Qualifications

• Proven experience in business development, sales, account management, or commercial roles within airline or onboard services.
• Demonstrated success in securing new business.
• Experience managing RFI, RFP, tender, and bid processes.
• Strong commercial negotiation and presentation skills.
• Experience building and managing sales pipelines.
• Excellent stakeholder management and relationship-building capabilities.
• Strong project management and organisational skills.
• Ability to analyse market opportunities and develop commercially viable solutions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute business development plans to deliver revenue and growth targets in the airline onboard retail sector.
• Identify, qualify and pursue new opportunities with airlines, aviation service providers and industry partners.
• Build and manage a strong pipeline through proactive prospecting, market intelligence and relationship development.
• Lead customer presentations, commercial discussions and negotiations, with support from the Commercial Director and wider team.
• Work cross-functionally to develop compelling, competitive solutions and proposals.
• Own the end-to-end process for RFIs, RFPs, ITTs and other formal tenders.
• Coordinate input across Commercial, Operations, Finance, Technology, Supply Chain and Leadership to develop high-quality submissions.
• Prepare compelling bid responses, executive summaries, presentations and supporting materials.
• Ensure submissions meet customer requirements, deadlines and compliance standards.
• Capture lessons learned and continuously improve the quality and effectiveness of future bids.
• Build strong relationships with airline retail and inflight teams, procurement teams and key industry stakeholders.
• Represent the company at conferences, trade shows, networking events and aviation forums.
• Act as a brand ambassador, using industry relationships and market insight to identify new opportunities.
• Maintain accurate pipeline reporting and manage opportunity progression in partnership with the Commercial Director.
• Track pipeline value, conversion rates, bid activity and win/loss performance.
• Provide regular updates to senior leadership and support prioritisation of key growth opportunities.
• Contribute to commercial strategy, growth plans and market-entry opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for innovation, differentiation and new service offerings within onboard retail.
• Work with the Customer, Operations and Commercial Directors to develop and assess new opportunities.
• Contribute to business cases and financial models supporting investment and growth decisions.

Skills

Business development

Sales

Account management

Commercial roles

RFI/RFP management

Negotiation

Pipeline management

Stakeholder management

Project management

Market analysis

Communication

Job description

About Onboard Retail

Europe's leading airlines trust us to curate and manage market-leading onboard retail programmes that deliver unrivalled experiences for passengers and profitable ancillary revenue for airlines. Combining commercial expertise, tailored product choices and seamless execution, we help turn everyday journeys into stronger customer relationships.

Our Services span Product & Assortment Strategy, Procurement & Supplier Management Retail Programme Management, Menu & Packaging Design, Crew Engagement, Technology & Finance.

About the role:

The Business Development Manager is responsible for driving revenue growth and expanding market presence for the company's onboard retail services within the airline industry. The role focuses on identifying and securing new business opportunities, developing strategic relationships with airlines and industry stakeholders, managing the end-to-end bid process for Requests for Information (RFIs), Requests for Proposal (RFPs), and tenders, and working with the Commercial Director to build a robust commercial pipeline to support long‑term growth objectives.

The successful candidate will combine strong commercial acumen, industry knowledge, stakeholder management, and bid management expertise to position the company as a preferred onboard retail partner for airlines in Europe and Middle East predominantly.

Responsibilities

Business Development & Sales

• Develop and execute business development plans to deliver revenue and growth targets within the airline onboard retail sector.
• Identify, qualify and pursue new opportunities with airlines, aviation service providers and industry partners.
• Build and manage a strong pipeline through proactive prospecting, market intelligence and relationship development.
• Lead customer presentations, commercial discussions and negotiations, with support from the Commercial Director and wider team.
• Work cross-functionally to develop compelling, competitive solutions and proposals.

RFI, RFP & Tender Management

• Own the end-to-end process for RFIs, RFPs, ITTs and other formal tenders.
• Coordinate input across Commercial, Operations, Finance, Technology, Supply Chain and Leadership to develop high-quality submissions.
• Prepare compelling bid responses, executive summaries, presentations and supporting materials.
• Ensure submissions meet customer requirements, deadlines and compliance standards.
• Capture lessons learned and continuously improve the quality and effectiveness of future bids.

Industry Networking & Relationships

• Build strong relationships with airline retail and inflight teams, procurement teams and key industry stakeholders.
• Represent the company at conferences, trade shows, networking events and aviation forums.
• Act as a brand ambassador, using industry relationships and market insight to identify new opportunities.

Pipeline & Performance Management

• Maintain accurate pipeline reporting and manage opportunity progression in partnership with the Commercial Director.
• Track pipeline value, conversion rates, bid activity and win/loss performance.
• Provide regular updates to senior leadership and support prioritisation of key growth opportunities.

Strategic Growth

• Contribute to commercial strategy, growth plans and market‑entry opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for innovation, differentiation and new service offerings within onboard retail.
• Work with the Customer, Operations and Commercial Directors to develop and assess new opportunities.
• Contribute to business cases and financial models supporting investment and growth decisions.

Requirements

Essential

• Proven experience in business development, sales, account management, or commercial roles within the airline, aviation services, travel retail, or onboard services sectors.
• Demonstrated success in securing new business.
• Experience managing RFI, RFP, tender, and bid processes.
• Strong commercial negotiation and presentation skills.
• Experience building and managing sales pipelines
• Excellent stakeholder management and relationship‑building capabilities.
• Strong project management and organisational skills.
• Ability to analyse market opportunities and develop commercially viable solutions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Desirable

• Experience specifically within onboard retail, duty‑free, ancillary revenue, catering, inflight services, or aviation technology sectors.
• Knowledge of airline procurement processes and supplier qualification requirements.
• Existing network within the airline and aviation industry.
• Experience working with international customers and multi‑country opportunities.
• Understanding of airline operational environments and inflight customer experience.

Benefits:

• Hybrid work & Flexitime.
• Generous days Annual Leave.
• Bonus scheme.
• Free onsite lunch and health snacks options.
• Great work‑life balance.
• Friendly, international team with a strong sense of fun.
• Exciting career opportunity in the global travel retail space.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees, regardless of gender, age, disability, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or any other protected characteristic.