Cape Town: National Retail Key Account and Operations Manager posted by Optential Consulting

About the Role

The Retail Key Account and Operations Manager is a national role based in Cape Town, responsible for managing all retail key accounts and overseeing all retail in-store execution. The primary focus is to manage existing national retail accounts, build on these by adding new products/packs, and develop new business opportunities for the company.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategy: Implement strategies for driving and generating sales revenues to deliver on national and regional sales volume targets by customer, brand, pack, and by channel.
• Sales: Deliver on national and regional sales volume targets by customer, brand, pack, and by channel.
• Team: Motivate the company, distributor, and agency teams to maximize their individual performance and the overall performance of the business.
• Key Account Management:
• Manage relationships with retail key accounts, identify new opportunities, close new listings, deal effectively with issues, and grow the business and market share.
• Book regular promotions and campaigns to ensure national and regional sales volume targets by customer are delivered.
• Manage discounts to ensure profitability of each account.
• Understand and analyze retailer data to build strategies and plan to optimize sales.

• Merchandising Agency Management:
• Manage National Sales & Merchandising Agency.
• Conduct monthly cycle brief meetings.
• Ensure agency teams are trained on the company merchandising standards and product key selling points. Regular refresher and NPD training.
• Conduct regular trade visits with Divisional Managers in all regions.
• Meet regularly with senior leadership to review KPIs and overall performance.

• Trade Execution:
• Merchandising excellence: Work with the agency team to ensure retail outlets are executed to company standards and right pack availability and cold space achieved.
• Flagship outlets: Using the 80/20 volume principal, ensure top retail outlets across all retailers and regions have over-indexed execution. Help define what good looks like in these outlets and assist with execution.
• Distribution: Set regional retailer targets and ensure retail distribution and availability targets are met.
• Trade visits & Reports:

a. Ensure effective execution in-store at least 2-3 days per week needs to be in trade with the agency team.

b. Regular travel to other provinces is required.

• Marketing:
• Promotions: Agree an annual promotion calendar. Check that agreed retail promotions are implemented in store. Keep a tracker of active promotions in trade. Any promotions not active to be addressed by the relevant buyer.
• Pricing: Achieve target RSP. Ensure DC recommended and in-store pricing is checked on a regular basis, and any variance to be addressed by the relevant buyer.
• Retail POS & assets:

a. Ensure successful roll-out of national POS drives. Track and enforce on-time placements.

b. Ensure agency teams have an up-to-date target list of fridges they can place in retail and ensure they are assisted with the movement, distribution process.

c. Help develop and implement trade marketing merchandise in relevant venues in accordance with the national rollout guidelines and timing.

• Team:
• Lead, inspire, motivate, and manage your team to maximize individual performance and the overall performance of the business.
• Mentor staff to improve their performance, increase morale, develop their leadership capabilities & business knowledge, and limit staff turnover.
• Manage team time and attendance.
• Conduct weekly team meetings.
• Meet monthly with the team to review KPIs and performance.
• Provide regular training and product refreshers.
• Regular trade visits with the team.

• Communication & HR:
• Deliver monthly reports needed for the purposes of the management meeting.
• Self-manage to ensure personal quality and productivity standards are maintained.
• Provide regular feedback to CEO on team performance.

• Travel:

You will be expected to travel frequently to visit company staff and key accounts around the country.