Sales Director of Europe

Summary

The Director of Sales - Europe is a key sales leadership role with responsibility for developing and executing Sartori’s business development plans across Europe. The role will be primarily focused on profitably growing Sartori’s premium branded retail line at large national retail chains across Europe.

This position will be responsible for aggressively growing distribution of Sartori branded retail products with new & existing customers; building strong promotional strategies to drive trial and repeat; identifying & prioritizing the right cadence of future targets/markets; and capable of building and leading a regional sales team.

The successful candidate builds trust and fosters collaborative relationships with customers, local partners, and colleagues based in the United States. This challenging yet rewarding role, based in Germany, serves as a central hub for Sartori's European operations.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• Responsible for meeting sales goals, driving profitable revenue & aggressive distribution growth at headquarter level through sales calls and in-person meetings with buyers at existing & new accounts (in co-operation with local partners, as needed).
• Primary market focus will begin with Germany & the UK; this team member will be responsible for identifying, prioritizing, and executing against the appropriate cadence of customer targets and specific European markets to follow.
• Maximizes promotional budget to drive trial, increase repeat buy-rate, and support successful product launches to ensure items stick on shelf.
• Maintains a strong level of trust with local partners to ensure reliable importing and distribution capabilities, aligned growth strategies, and create Sartori champions to support the growth of the Sartori brand in Europe.
• Collaborates with Marketing to develop pricing strategies which maintain/are accretive to the health of the business and maximize distribution potential; this will require sensitivity to the impact of the EUR/USD Fx.
• Identifies opportunities to improve freight & production efficiencies for Europe region products to support the continued health of the Retail Global business segment.
• Recommends key projects & resource investments with appropriate prioritization & cadence to drive profitable growth in the Europe region in support of strategic growth plan development, budgeting, and tri-annual S&OP forecast.
• Build & lead a regional sales team as Sartori’s European business grows to assure Sartori exceeds customer expectations as collaborative cheese category partners.
• Manages Merchandising Platform in Germany to drive incremental distribution, further brand trial & awareness at store & consumer level, and ensure all existing & newly authorized items are on-shelf, properly priced & merchandised to meet brand & customer standards.
• Utilizes Salesforce to manage forecasts & promotional activities, and bring internal visibility to new opportunities & customer requests.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Sales, Marketing, or other related field.
• 10+ years of sales or cheese buying experience in German and/or European dairy industry required
• Fluency in German & English required
• Export related experience desirable

OTHER KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Entrepreneurial spirit
• Works well independently and as part of a team
• Demonstrated leadership qualities
• Exceptional communication skills, with strong ability to listen and present ideas at an executive level
• Strong customer focus to enhance the customer experience
• Highly organized with ability to manage multiple projects against deadlines
• Proactive problem solver

CERTIFICATIONS, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

• Valid passport for travel, required.
• Valid driver’s license. Must maintain a clean driving record according to Sartori’s fleet policy.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a Team Member to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the Team Member is regularly required to sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; and talk or hear. The Team Member is occasionally required to stand; walk; reach with hands and arms; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The Team Member must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, and ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a Team Member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

This position requires regular travel within Germany and to other European/UK markets with some weekend work and overnight stays; occasional travel to the United States is required.