Hershey's Territory Sales Lead (Chicago South District)

Hershey Company; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 54,000 - 61,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health care

Vision

Dental

Retirement

Vacation

Sick leave

Overtime & incentives

Job summary

The Hershey Company in Chicago South District is seeking a Territory Sales Lead to drive flawless store-level execution for high-volume retailers. You will own promotional and merchandising plans, ensure 100% distribution of Hershey products, and build strategic relationships with key decision makers to grow sales across the territory.

You will analyze store and market data, plan routes for efficiency, and lead consultative selling to maximize incremental sales and in-store displays.

Qualifications

• GED or HS Diploma or equivalent.
• 2-year Associate/Community College degree required OR 3 years of previous sales experience.
• Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain consultative business relationships with customer Key Decision Makers (KDMs) at all levels.
• Develop and execute action plans to increase sales; cultivate a network of influential contacts.
• Maximize sales and merchandising opportunities; influence KDMs to order additional products.
• Complete daily/weekly activity reports and manage administrative functions.

Skills

Valid US driver's license

Territory mobility

Customer relationship management

Adaptability

Phone/oral communication

Education

GED or HS Diploma

Associate/Community College degree

Bachelor’s degree (strongly preferred)

Tools

Microsoft Office

Tablet usage

Job description

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Note:If you apply for a role at Hershey through our career’s website, we may use technologies that use automation to filter your candidacy based on objective criteria. We also use AI-enabled tools that help us facilitate the selection of our future Hershey talent. These tools may help with activities such as matching and scoring candidates to roles based on requirements and scheduling interviews. These systems process only the information you provide in your application, including your resume, work history, education, and responses to screening questions. While these technologies assist with certain steps in our recruitment process and may provide recommendations, all final decisions, including those affecting whether candidates advance to subsequent stages in the applicant process, are made by our talent acquisition teams with meaningful human review and independent judgment. Depending on your location and the specific role you apply for, additional disclosures about our use of AI in recruitment may be provided to you separately.

Hershey’s Territory Sales Lead (Chicago South District)

Requisition Number: 129333

Why Hershey:

At The Hershey Company, our culture is rooted in purpose and inspired by Milton Hershey’s enduring vision that business should create opportunity for others. Through our commitment to corporate philanthropy, we create positive impact by supporting communities, helping children thrive, and operating as a business for good. This includes our deep and long standing partnership with Milton Hershey School, where we invest in education, workforce readiness, and hands on engagement to help students succeed beyond the classroom. Supported by strategic grantmaking, product donations, cross brand collaboration, and strong employee volunteerism, Hershey offers a place to work where making a difference—locally and globally— is part of how we do business every day.

Title: Territory Sales Lead

Job Location: Chicago South District *Must be willing to relocate anywhere within the Chicago South District*

Summary

The Territory Sales Lead (TSL) ensures flawless execution of store level sales and promotion plans with customer retailers in assigned territory. The territory consists of high-volume food chain grocers and mass merchandiser customers. The TSL masters retail execution plans by driving incremental sales, implementing, and maintaining best-in-class promotional and merchandising strategies, and ensuring 100% distribution on authorized Hershey items across all classes of trade. A successful TSL will be driven, entrepreneurial, influential, and planful.

Consultative Business Partnering

Customer Relationship Development and Management:

• Build and maintain consultative business relationships with customer Key Decision Makers (KDMs) at all levels.
• Partner and collaborate with KDMs to develop and execute action plans to increase sales. Cultivate a network of influential contacts at all levels of customers to achieve sales objectives.
• Leverage strategic relationships with KDMs to influence and negotiate customers’ assistance in the merchandising of Hershey products.

Data Analysis

• Obtain and analyze relevant store, product, and market data and leverage trends and analytics to build the business.
• Utilize and complete pre-call planning methods and other company tools.
• Review and make recommendations to modify routes that maximize business efficiencies for all sales calls within territory.
• Effectively solve problems by analyzing information, utilizing consumer trends and customer insights to guide decision making and influence others to act.
• Engage in forward selling via consultative sales techniques using provided data sources, technology, processes and procedures.
• Maximize sales and display opportunities by conducting store walk-throughs and gaining commitment by KDMs on successful outcomes.
• Tailor strategies to influence KDMs to order additional products to increase incremental sales and to obtain best in class quality of merchandising locations.

Merchandising

Achieve all merchandising objectives executing customer specific promotional plans to the sales floor using forward selling. Partnership at store level is critical for TSL’s to effectively build, maintain and execute product on the sales floor, in addition to merchandising and maintaining permanent secondary displays and other display vehicles.

Administrative Responsibilities

Complete and submit reports of daily and weekly activities, expenses, competitive activity, account changes, promotions and all administrative functions within assigned territory using company approved methods and technology.

Qualifications

Education and Experience

• GED or HS Diploma
• 2-year Associate/Community College degree required OR 3 years of previous sales experience.
• Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred.

Minimum knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform essential duties/responsibilities, with or without a reasonable accommodation:

• Must have a valid US state issued driver’s license
• Must reside or be willing to commute within territory boundaries
• Must be able to drive to make multiple sales calls on a daily basis
• Must be able to lift 10-60 lbs. on a regular basis with or without reasonable accommodations
• Must be able to bend, kneel, stoop down and demonstrate manual dexterity on a frequent basis with or without reasonable accommodations
• Occasionally climb ladders
• Occasionally use equipment such as crushing balers, handheld electric trucks
• Must be able to use tablet and other wireless technology; some roles will require an intermediate level of computer skills with the Microsoft Office products
• Must have daily access to wireless internet
• Must have flexibility and adaptability to changes in territory coverage
• Occasional weekend work may be required during peak seasons and select territories may require occasional overnight stays.

Benefits

• Employees can expect to be paid a starting base salary of $54,000. Additional compensation may include overtime & incentives. Other benefits include health care, vision, dental, retirement, vacation, sick leave.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The policy of The Hershey Company is to extend opportunities to qualified applicants and employees on an equal basis regardless of an individual's race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion, citizenship status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other categories protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.

The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Minority/Female/Disabled/Protected Veterans.