Director of Sales, Jesse & Ben's

Jesse & Ben's; New York (NY); Remote; USD 154,000 - 186,000; Full time

Job summary

Jesse & Ben's is seeking a commercially sharp Director of Sales to own major national accounts across natural, conventional, and club channels. You will drive annual plans, trade investments, and brokerage relationships while building the sales function to scale with a lean team.

The role requires 8+ years in CPG sales, direct ownership of key accounts, and a track record of profitable growth. A hands-on leader who embraces AI tools and data-driven decisions will thrive in this high-growth

Qualifications

• 8+ years in CPG sales with natural and conventional retailer exposure.
• Direct ownership of major national accounts and channel expansion.
• Commercial depth: account P&Ls, trade ROI, deductions, pricing.
• Experience leading brokers; familiarity with UNFI/KeHE is a plus.
• Hands-on leader who builds the function while executing.

Responsibilities

• National Account Growth: own relationships, annual plans, distribution and velocity, and category insights.
• Revenue, Trade and P&L: build account plans, manage trade investments, measure promotions, ensure profitability.
• Broker and Distributor Management: lead brokers, manage UNFI/KeHE relationships, optimize terms and calendars.
• New Business & Channel Expansion: pipeline for national/regional accounts and strategic expansion.
• Forecasting & Cross-functional Execution: own monthly forecasts and coordinate with Ops and Marketing for launches.
• Building the Sales Function: establish rhythm, tooling, reporting, and scale the team.

Skills

CPG sales

National accounts

Trade planning

P&L management

Team leadership

Budget management

Sales forecasting

AI tools usage

Job description

Jesse & Ben's makes real-food frozen fries that taste like the restaurant version you crave. Made with simple, better-for-you ingredients, we're all about great flavor, great food and no shortcuts. Founded by two friends, Jesse and Ben, who got obsessed with fixing a category that had gone stale, we're now scaling quickly across national, regional, natural and club retailers alike. We're a passionate team that cares deeply about turning junk food into joy food.

As we scale across freezers in America, we are looking for a commercially sharp, hands-on Director of Sales to join our Sales function. This role will own our biggest customers across natural, conventional and club: the account plans, the trade and the buyer relationships that grow distribution and velocity. You have lived on both sides of the store and know they are won differently. It is hands-on from day one: you will run key accounts yourself while you build the planning rhythm and the team that lets us scale.

Responsibilities

1) National Account Growth

• Account ownership. Own the relationship and annual plan for a core set of national accounts across natural, conventional and club.
• Distribution and shelf. Grow distribution, shelf placement and velocity, and defend the space we already have.
• Joint business planning. Start from each retailer's strategy and what winning looks like for them. Lead line reviews, business reviews and reset pitches, and negotiate pricing, promotion, assortment and terms.
• Category insight. Use SPINS, Nielsen and retailer data to find the gaps in the category, and build the story from the retailer's point of view: what they are seeing, and why our item earns the space.
• Relationships beyond the buyer. Build relationships with category managers, replenishment, merchandising and retail media teams.

2) Revenue, Trade and P&L

• Account plans. Build account-level plans that tie volume, price, promotion and distribution to a number we can commit to.
• Trade investment. Put trade behind the accounts most likely to drive future growth, and document the plan with each retailer so spend and deductions can be checked against what we agreed. Responsible for managing your trade checkbook and the trade offs involved.
• Promotional effectiveness. Measure what each promotion actually returned, and use it to shape the next one.
• Profitable growth. Partner with Finance on deductions, net price and account profitability.

3) Broker and Distributor Management

• Brokers. Lead our broker partners with clear priorities, scorecards and accountability.
• Distributors. Manage distribution relationships like UNFI and KeHE, including terms, programs and promotional calendars.
• Coverage model. Determine the strategy between direct and broker relationships.

4) New Business and Channel Expansion

• Pipeline. Build the pipeline for new national and regional accounts, sequenced by what our supply and brand can support.
• P&L analysis. Understand the commercial pros and cons of new business and channel expansion.

5) Forecasting and Cross-functional Execution

• Forecasting. Own a monthly forecast and a clean handoff into demand planning, so Operations can build to it.
• Launches. Lead launches end to end with Operations and Marketing so new doors ship on time and turn.

6) Building the Sales Function

• Operating rhythm. Set weekly account reads and the planning cadence the team runs on.
• Tools and reporting. Define the tools and reporting the team runs on, and use AI tools, to make them faster.
• Team. Help shape and hire the sales team as we scale.

What You Bring

• 8 or more years of CPG sales experience, with meaningful time on both the natural and conventional sides of the business
• Direct, day-to-day ownership of at least two of these accounts: Target, Whole Foods, Sprouts, Costco, Walmart, Kroger.
• High-growth startup or challenger-brand experience, scaling a brand into new retailers with a small team and a tight budget
• Commercial depth beyond relationships: account P&Ls, trade planning and ROI, deductions, pricing and syndicated data (SPINS, Nielsen or Circana)
• Experience leading brokers and working with UNFI and KeHE
• Willingness to be hands-on, running accounts yourself while you build the function
• A direct communicator who raises a problem early and brings a recommendation with it
• Comfort using AI tools as part of daily work

Our Values at Jesse & Ben's

We believe tempo is strategy: high standards, direct feedback, real craft, and doing work you'll look back on as some of your best.

• Humility. Stay open. Listen first. No one here is too important to sweep the floor.
• Excellence. Do it right, and do it consistently. Quality is the standard, not the goal.
• Resourcefulness. We won't always have the perfect tool, budget or playbook. We figure it out anyway. We always find a way.
• Ownership. If you see a problem, it's yours to solve or escalation. No spectators.
• Joy. We turn junk food into joy food. If we're not having fun, we're doing it wrong.

Logistics

Structure.

Full-time. Reporting to the President (and later to the VP of Sales).

Location.

Preferably located closely to a key retailer HQ. Remote candidates near a major airport will be considered.

Travel.

Regular travel to accounts, brokers and trade shows. Occasional visits to NYC hub and all team offsites.

Salary.

The estimated base salary for this role is $154,000 - $186,000. Actual compensation will be determined based on experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors permitted by law. This range represents the anticipated salary and bonus for this position at this time.

Bonus.

A meaningful annual bonus payout tied to company performance.