National Key Account Manager | Meridian Wine Merchants | National

Managed People Solutions; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 800,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading wine company is seeking a National Key Account Manager to maintain and develop business relationships with key accounts. This role requires a degree in marketing or related fields and three years of experience in the liquor industry. Responsibilities include account management, strategic negotiations, and market analysis to ensure success. The role offers a dynamic work environment in Johannesburg, Gauteng.

Qualifications

• 3 years of work experience in wine or liquor industry, FMCG retail sales.
• Previous key accounts’ management experience beneficial.
• Cape Wine Academy Certificate or equivalent beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Maintain and develop business relationships with KA customers.
• Develop new customer base and maintain existing KA customers.
• Negotiate and manage KA Trading Agreements.

Skills

Key account management

Sales strategy development

Negotiation skills

Market analysis

Customer relationship management

Education

Degree or diploma in sales, marketing, commerce or economics

Job description

Overview

Job title: National Key Account Manager | Meridian Wine Merchants | National

Job Location: Gauteng, Johannesburg

Deadline: October 14, 2025

Key Responsibilities

• Maintain and develop good business relationships with respective KA decision making customers by regular contact, engagement and quick response / revert times on all matters relative to the respective account.
• Developing KA customer base (new customer development) and maintaining the existing KA customers. Report on change in customer base improvement by key account responsibility area.
• Negotiating marketing budgets with KA customers and ensure that there is an effective management of TSA spend to achieve objectives laid out. A quarterly review of spend vs budget is required to be sent for client reviews within the deadline date stipulated.
• Develop Liquor Chain and Online Key account strategy in conjunction with customers, clients and regions in alignment with strategic objectives.
• Negotiation, implementation and management of KA Trading Agreements. This includes management of rebates to ensure that payments are up to date.
• Communicate all agreed activities to Trade Marketing.
• Regular trade visits with Sales Teams.
• Effective involvement in and contribution to trade marketing feedback sessions.
• Effective communication with RSM’s and managing allocated products for relevant key accounts to RSMs.
• Develop an account plan for each key account customer for the fiscal year. Ensure that these plans are signed off by the relevant clients and customers. Ensure that a report is drafted that is sent quarterly pertaining to spend vs budget.
• Analyse market trends, customer preferences and provide inputs on the same to marketing. Ensure that use is made of all IRI reports to support the analysis.
• Keep abreast of industry trends through networking with opposition counterparts and forging stronger relationships with customers. Ensure that there is a sharing of information from industry trends with Buyers from datasets in cycle meetings.
• Submitting sales reports to key accounts monthly - communicating monthly, quarterly and year to date sales, showing growth / shortfalls to targets.
• Acquiring and analysing (customer group figures) sales in and sales out data to guide on forward planning.
• Ensure continuous development and up-to-date industry knowledge and competence.
• Contribute towards informal succession planning and skills transfer within the Sales / Trade Marketing team by, adopting a coaching and / or mentorship approach and teaching team members new learnings.
• Adhere to all MWM-related policies and procedures and ensure best practice approaches in role.
• Follow through to ensure that personal quality and productivity standards are consistently and accurately maintained.
• Plan and prioritize, demonstrating abilities to manage competing demands.
• Demonstrate ability to anticipate and manage change effectively.
• Demonstrate flexibility in balancing achievement of own objectives with the ability to understand and respond to organizational needs.

Qualifications and Experience

• Degree or diploma level qualification relating to sales and / or marketing, commerce or economics, or wine.
• 3 years of work experience in wine or liquor industry, FMCG retail sales, customer service and / or hospitality.
• Previous key accounts’ management experience beneficial.
• Cape Wine Academy Certificate or equivalent beneficial
• Sales / Retail / Business Development jobs