Trade Marketing & Execution Manager

SOLATO; New Jersey; Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SOLATO in the NYC/NJ metro area is seeking a Manager, Trade Marketing & Execution to lead 360 activations across distributors, operators and consumers, built around key occasions and seasonal moments. This hands-on, cross-functional role drives activation standards, field execution, and alignment with Sales, Customer Success and Marketing to grow capsule consumption and account expansion.

Travel to SOLATO accounts and markets is expected as part of building repeatable programs and measurable

Qualifications

• 7+ years of relevant Trade Marketing or field activation experience.
• Experience building occasion-based programs across distributors, operators and consumers.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to measure program ROI.
• Excellent cross-functional leadership and collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Own and develop annual Trade Marketing programs and the commercial calendar.
• Lead 360 activations across distributors, operators and consumers.
• Define activation standards and ensure strong field execution at the point of consumption.
• Partner with Sales, Customer Success, and Marketing to drive account growth and retention.
• Monitor performance, KPI ROIs and opportunities for program improvements.
• Travel to SOLATO accounts and markets to implement programs and train partners.

Skills

Trade Marketing

Field Execution

Customer Development

Foodservice / CPG

Hospitality

Job description

This is a hybrid, field-oriented role serving the broader NYC/NJ metro area, with regular travel to SOLATO customers, distributors and markets across the U.S

SOLATO is building a new category in foodservice: freshly made gelato and sorbet, produced on demand through our innovative capsule-based system.

As we continue to grow across hotels, corporate dining, airport lounges, universities, restaurants, cafés and other foodservice channels, we are looking for a Manager, Trade Marketing & Execution to help us turn every SOLATO placement into a successful, growing account.

This is a highly commercial, hands-on role at the intersection of Trade Marketing, Customer Success, Sales and Marketing.

Selling and installing a machine is only the beginning. This role will own how SOLATO comes to life in market: building trade marketing programs around key occasions, activating operators and distributors, driving strong execution at the point of consumption, and ultimately increasing capsule consumption, repeat business and account expansion.

What You’ll Own

Trade Marketing Programs & Commercial Calendar

Own and build SOLATO’s annual Trade Marketing calendar, developing integrated programs around the moments and occasions that can drive incremental demand and consumption.

This includes programs around occasions such as Summer, Valentine’s Day, Labor Day, Black Friday, the Holiday/Christmas season, new flavor launches and other relevant seasonal or commercial moments.

Each program should be developed as a 360 commercial activation across three key audiences:

Distributors — programs that motivate and equip distributor sales teams to generate opportunities, drive placements and grow capsule volume.

Operators — programs that give SOLATO customers compelling reasons to activate, promote, expand and increase consumption.

Consumers — programs that create visibility, trial, engagement and demand at the point of consumption.

You will own the development and execution of the full program mechanics, including:

• Distributor and operator incentives
• Sales SPIFFs and contests
• Volume-based programs and incentives
• Machine-placement and expansion offers
• POS and merchandising materials
• Consumer-facing activation
• Sampling and trial programs
• Seasonal and occasion-based promotions
• New product and flavor launches
• Staff engagement and education
• Program communication and execution toolkits

Every initiative should have a clear commercial objective, target audience, mechanic, execution plan, timeframe, KPI and ROI measurement.

The expectation is not simply to create promotions. It is to build repeatable Trade Marketing programs that create both PUSH through our distributor and operator network and PULL through consumer demand.

Account Activation & Trade Execution

Own SOLATO’s execution standards from machine placement onward, ensuring every new account is properly launched and positioned for success.

You will:

• Build and implement a consistent activation process for new SOLATO placements
• Ensure accounts have the right POS, merchandising, visibility and consumer communication
• Develop staff education and training standards
• Partner with Sales and Customer Success to create a seamless handoff from placement to activation
• Identify and address execution gaps across existing accounts
• Establish clear activation standards across different channels and account types
• Ensure Trade Marketing programs are translated from plans into strong execution in the field

Consumption & Account Growth

Help evolve our Customer Success organization from primarily reactive support toward proactive account development.

You will:

• Monitor account performance and capsule consumption
• Identify low-consumption accounts and develop targeted reactivation plans
• Identify opportunities for increased usage, additional machines and account expansion
• Develop playbooks for growing existing SOLATO locations
• Work closely with Customer Success to proactively manage account health, retention and growth
• Establish clear KPIs for activation, consumption, retention and expansion
• Use account and program performance to continuously improve future Trade Marketing initiatives

Cross-Functional Commercial Leadership

Trade Marketing & Execution sits at the intersection of multiple functions, so collaboration will be fundamental to the role.

You will work closely with:

• Customer Success to activate accounts, improve execution and drive consumption
• Sales to support machine placement, account development and expansion
• Marketing to develop campaign concepts, creative assets, POS, consumer communication and product launches
• Strategic Partnerships & Distribution to activate distributor networks and strategic partners
• Operations and Distribution to ensure programs can be executed effectively
• External stakeholders, including distributors, operators, agencies, vendors and other commercial partners

The role will be responsible for connecting these stakeholders around one coordinated activation plan and ensuring that plans move from concept to execution.

Field Execution

This is not a desk-only role.

We expect this person to regularly visit SOLATO accounts, observe execution firsthand, engage with operators and distributor partners, identify opportunities and translate what is happening in the field into stronger programs and execution standards.

The Manager, Trade Marketing & Execution should be equally comfortable building the strategy for a national seasonal program and walking into an account to understand why that program isn’t being executed properly.

What Success Looks Like

Success means creating a repeatable commercial engine that connects:

And building a Trade Marketing capability that consistently creates:

PUSH Distributors and operators are motivated, equipped and incentivized to sell, place and promote SOLATO.

PULL Consumers see SOLATO, understand it, try it and create demand that drives capsule consumption.

We will measure success through outcomes including machine activation, capsule consumption, account retention and expansion, distributor participation, program execution, incremental volume and Trade Marketing program ROI.

What We’re Looking For

We are looking for someone with strong experience in Trade Marketing, foodservice, CPG, beverage, hospitality, customer development or field execution, ideally with experience building and executing programs across distributors, operators and consumers.

The right person will likely bring:

• 7+ years of relevant Trade Marketing, customer development, commercial activation or foodservice experience
• Demonstrated experience building occasion-based and seasonal Trade Marketing programs
• Experience developing 360 programs involving trade incentives, POS, promotions, consumer activation and field execution
• Strong understanding of distributor and operator economics and how to influence behavior through commercial programs
• Experience with volume-based programs, sales incentives, SPIFFs or similar commercial mechanics
• Strong understanding of how products win at the point of consumption
• Experience working with distributors, foodservice operators or multi-location accounts
• Strong commercial instincts and comfort partnering closely with Sales
• Ability to translate strategy into detailed execution plans
• Strong analytical skills and ability to measure program performance and ROI
• Strong project management and cross-functional leadership skills
• A bias toward action, ownership and problem solving
• Comfort operating in a fast-growing environment where processes and capabilities are still being built
• Willingness to spend meaningful time in the field

Experience with major foodservice distributors such as Sysco, US Foods, FreshPoint or similar networks is a strong plus.

The Opportunity

This is an opportunity to build SOLATO’s Trade Marketing & Execution capability from the ground up.

You will help define how we activate customers, create commercial programs, engage distributor networks, drive consumer demand, execute launches and occasions, increase consumption and grow our installed base.

We are looking for someone who can see the full commercial picture — from the strategy and economics behind a program, to the POS in an account, to the behavior of a distributor sales rep, to the experience of the consumer.

Most importantly, we are looking for someone who sees an opportunity, builds a plan around it, brings the right people together, executes it, measures the result and makes the next program better.