Key Account Manager – Wholesale

El Segundo, CA – (Remote)

COMPANY OVERVIEW

Chicken of the Sea is an iconic American brand that was founded in 1930. Today, Chicken of the Sea enjoys broad distribution across all major retail channels, with growth opportunities in foodservice and outside the U.S. Besides its eponymous brand, Chicken of the Sea also sells Genova and King Oscar premium seafood products.

Chicken of the Sea International (COSI) has been wholly owned since 2000 by Thai Union (TU), the largest global producer of ambient seafood. Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods is a sister U.S. company that focuses on frozen and chilled seafood sales. Other iconic seafood brands in the TU Global portfolio include John West, Mareblu, and King Oscar. Under the leadership of CEO Thiraphong Chansiri, Thai Union has more than tripled its revenue to over $4 billion annually and has an aggressive growth agenda.

Chicken of the Sea International operates under the common corporate vision, mission and values of Thai Union, an industry leader in sustainable fishing practices and manufacturing processes that capture the freshness, nutritional value, and sensorial experience of seafood. The global organization lives by the 6 deeply held values: Passionate, Humble, Respectful, Responsible, Collaborative, and Innovative.

COSI is an organization that is very proud of its heritage. First established as VanCamp seafood company more than 100 years ago (1914), the company celebrates its story as one of the oldest food companies in the country that is still in operation. The company is currently undergoing a significant business transformation aimed at accelerating business growth.

OVERVIEW OF ROLE

To be the liaison between Chicken of the Sea Corporate, national wholesalers, brokers, distributors and customers to ensure desired sales results by orchestration of business activity through written and verbal communication, market presence and sales direction to achieve annual sales volume objectives, maximizing the utilization of promotional funds, gaining and retaining key distribution points and gaining new wholesale accounts while meeting operational needs through accurately forecasting sales plans.  The primary goal is to deliver Chicken of the Sea annual sales plan objectives by product and by customer. The wholesale manager is responsible for the growth of business within the current customer base and new wholesale business opportunities by developing relationships, understanding the customer’s critical business strategies, then create and execute solutions to achieve the customer’s business objectives and grow revenue internally.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Daily sales and cold call execution. Utilize Seafax, Eureka and other customer platforms to develop lists of prospects while growing current customer base in the wholesale channel
• Price updates (calls/e-mails) to core customers weekly, discuss inherent knowledge of market triggers/levers 
• Ability & autonomy to negotiate off COSFF price sheet as the account managers book of business, on major buys. Requires discussion and alignment internally to assure inventory/market alignment
• Travel face to face as needed to ensure core account touch points – i.e – develop innovation platforms, set up culinary meetings, attend & cook with culinary teams and brokers to demonstrate our products vs. the competition
• Collaborate internally with procurement, category and inventory manager partners
• Attend all major customer summits/conferences as key account manager/leader, manage core account meetings
• Oversee Sales coordinator entry of PO’s into SAP infrastructure 
• Establish personal budget by item/by customer/ with growth projections as part of company budgeting processes & report against monthly
• Manage customer requests through lifecycle (RFI, RFQ,RFP, Specification/TQ documentation, Sustainability, etc.)
• Manage customer issues regarding AR/AP, TQ, Delivery, etc.
• Deliver the agreed upon business growth plans in the wholesale channel in alignment with the company’s financial goals
• Works with the sales leader on the development of a comprehensive wholesale development strategy
• Collaborates with a wider team to expand wholesale development efforts to achieve annual profit plan
• Reviews monthly and quarterly sales objectives and results for target accounts and prepare action plans where improvement is needed
• Utilizes Power BI, internal sales reports, and pricing files daily to communicate offers to wholesale customers
• Gathers information on emerging market and industry trends to understand the competitive landscape
• Stays current with development in the field through participation in work withs, food shows, and reading publications
• Develops strong working relationships with a wider team at COSFF and internal cross functional teams
• Learns quickly when facing new challenges; thrives on fast-paced learning environment
• Adapts well to change and views new experiences as growth opportunities
• Seeks out opportunities to improve by applying feedback from others
• Ensures that data and activity on new and current accounts is accurately entered and managed within company platforms
• Presents to and consults with senior level management on sales strategy plans and results
• Stays current with company’s value-added offerings and solutions
• Responsible for accurately forecasting and revising monthly sales activity by customer to meet sales needs
• Responsible for day to day wholesale customer account communication, conducting customer presentations, sales meetings, product cuttings and facilitating top to top contact for all customers in the wholesale channel
• Responsible for direct communication to assigned wholesale customer contacts
• Responsible for timely and accurate submission of all business reports and process orders
• Responsible for developing and adhering to a purposeful travel schedule to maximize business activity within budget
• Accurate monthly forecasting will be achieved by channel to minimize OOS conditions, reduce improper inventory holdings and decrease the risk of creating obsolete inventory issues 
• Ensure promotional activity is a justifiable expense, properly planned and accounted for, reconciling deductions in a timely fashion

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10+ years’ relevant sales experience in seafood, and 5 or more years’ with a proven track record of wholesale business accounts and customers
• Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States
• Available to travel in most cost efficient mode of transportation approx..1 month each year
• Ability to express information in terms of profit and loss, cost and expense ratio
• Strong financial acumen and ability to properly plan and execute business plans
• Flexible; readily accepts change; open to new ideas
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with and influence a variety of key stakeholders
• Strong communication skills; ability to effectively communicate with internal and external teams
• Ability to understand and manage industry and companywide compliance
• Demonstrated ability to deliver against deadlines and produce high-quality results (accuracy, thoroughness in the deliverables they are producing)
• Proficient in Microsoft Applications Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)
• Excellent organizational and project management skills, including the ability to execute multiple initiatives at the same time
• Demonstrated experience with building trust with a prospective customer and securing new business in the wholesale channel
• Demonstrated skills in the area of consultative selling, networking and negotiations
• Proactive, self-directed, with the ability to structure a weekly schedule to be successful
• Understanding of marketing principles, product lines, ordering procedures and credit terms

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, communicate (typically by talking, listening, writing, and typing), move around the office to various locations for meetings and in-person gatherings, and reach or carry materials with arms and hands.

Moreover, the employee is required to operate telephones, computers and other standard office equipment. Employee may, on occasion, be required to lift up to 35 lbs.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties and responsibilities of the job.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer

The company is dedicated to producing sustainable, convenient and quality seafood products for healthy families worldwide. Its brand portfolio includes Thai-leading brands as well as highly recognized international brands Chicken of the Sea, John West, Petit Navire, Parmentier, Mareblu, King Oscar and Rugen Fisch. 

As a company committing to innovation and globally responsible business practices, Thai Union is proud to be a member of the United Nations Global Compact, a founding member of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) and the first Thai company in the food products sector to be recognized as a member of Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) Emerging Markets 2016 – for the third year running.  As a global seafood leader, we have a responsibility to set the standard for social, environmental and economic responsibility. 

We heeded our stakeholders’ calls with SeaChange®, Thai Union’s sustainability strategy with measurable commitments to delivering real, lasting changes in the way we operate. SeaChange® aims to drive a positive transformation throughout the global seafood industry.