Brand & Activations Manager

Salt Digital Recruitment; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 335,000 - 391,000; Full time

Job summary

Salt Digital Recruitment is seeking an ambitious Brand and Activations Manager for a fast-scaling beverage brand in Johannesburg. You will drive the consumer activation ecosystem, turning strategy into high-impact field marketing campaigns, trade toolkits, and event experiences that build loyalty.

This on-site role requires hands-on activation management, collaboration with sales and trade marketing, and a data-driven approach to optimize ROI and sponsorships across multi-location campaigns.

Qualifications

• Proven experience as Brand Activations Manager or similar in FMCG/beverage.
• Strong field marketing and event logistics experience.
• Ability to translate marketing strategy into actionable field assets.

Responsibilities

• Plan, execute, and scale end-to-end brand activations and experiential events nationwide.
• Develop field toolkits, playbooks, and event launch packs from marketing plans.
• Manage partnerships, sponsorships, promoters, and suppliers.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align activations with calendars and retail moments.
• Evaluate ROI, budgets, and post-campaign metrics to drive improvements.
• Stay ahead of trends in experiential design and youth culture.

Skills

Brand activations

Experiential marketing

Campaign planning

Budget management

Vendor management

Travel flexibility

Job description

Salary: R 30 000 - R 35 000 CTC per month (depending on experience)

Location: Johannesburg (Onsite)

Overview

An extraordinary opportunity has become available for an ambitious Brand and Activations Manager to join a premier, fast-scaling beverage brand as they transform their category into a high-energy consumer phenomenon. Built on rapid market expansion, vibrant culture, and deep industry footprint, the business offers the rare sweet spot of robust organizational backing paired with a high-octane, experience-first spirit. Candidates will step into an elite, highly agile environment that values high autonomy, rapid execution, and bold innovation over bureaucracy. In this pivotal role, the manager will serve as the engine of the consumer activation ecosystem-building high-impact field marketing campaigns, scalable trade toolkits, and dynamic event experiences that turn everyday touchpoints into strong brand loyalty. For a strategic and operational leader who thrives on building modern experiential formats, loves managing on-the-ground field execution, and wants to work in a collaborative culture where high-impact engagement directly drives sales growth, this is an ideal fit.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Plan, execute, and scale end-to-end brand activations, experiential events, festival sampling campaigns, and high-density consumer drives across a national footprint.
• Manage and optimize activation pipelines to seamlessly transform high-level marketing strategy into actionable field toolkits, retail execution playbooks, and event launch packs.
• Build, maintain, and monitor strategic brand partnerships, sponsorship properties (music, sport, lifestyle), promoter agencies, and supplier relationships.
• Collaborate directly with cross-functional leadership, trade marketing, and sales teams to align activation timing with key promotional calendars and retail moments.
• Critically evaluate, test, and refine field activation formats, applying commercial discernment to maintain strict brand identity and visual standards across all touchpoints.
• Monitor campaign performance, track sampling metrics and ROI, manage activation budgets, and implement ongoing execution improvements.
• Stay ahead of emerging lifestyle trends, experiential design, and youth culture to drive continuous field marketing innovation.
• Provide strategic recommendations based on trial volumes, consumer engagement data, and sell-out performance across all regions.

Requirements

• Proven experience as a Brand Activations Manager, Experiential Marketing Specialist, or Event Lead within FMCG, beverage, or fast-paced consumer environments.
• Strong hands-on experience with building scalable field activation models, event logistics, promoter management, and multi-location campaign rollouts.
• Demonstrated proficiency with consumer insights, experiential campaign design, and integrating trade/POS visibility into physical event touchpoints.
• Technical and operational focus applied to field logistics, agency procurement, and run-of-show execution, rather than a traditional copy/design-only background.
• Strong critical thinking and analytical skills with the ability to evaluate commercial ROI, post-campaign metrics, and budget reconciliations accurately.
• Exceptional self-management, proactive problem-solving abilities, and an execution-first mindset across a matrix organization, with a willingness to travel and work flexible event schedules.
• Exposure to beverage, FMCG, lifestyle sports, or music event environments is advantageous.