Job description
CONTRACT
London, England, England
The History of Foley Family Wines
In spring of 1996, Bill & Carol Foley purchased 1,000 acres of lush and fertile earth within the then relatively unknown Sta. Rita Hills region of Santa Barbara County. Their plan – produce hand-crafted Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that reflected the best of California’s Central Coast. Named for their two daughters – Lindsey & Courtney – Lincourt Vineyards was born, and with it, the beginning of Foley Family Wines.
In the 25 years since, Foley Family Wines has grown into one of the world’s largest producers of fine wine, adding some of the industry’s most valuable wineries, located in the most recognized winemaking regions, including Napa, Sonoma, the Pacific Northwest, and New Zealand. Today, the Foley Family Wines portfolio boasts a number of the most-celebrated names in wine, including Chalk Hill Estate, Chalone, Ferrari-Carano, and Sebastiani. To learn more about Foley Family Wines, please visit www.foleyfamilywines.com
Job Title: Regional Sales Director – EMEA
Location: London, England
Summary: Foley Family Wines is a dynamic, ultra-premium producer of highly acclaimed wines, and is fast becoming one of the leading luxury wine companies in the industry. We are seeking an experienced Regional Sales Director to join our International Sales team and drive accelerated development of our business in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Reporting directly to the VP of International Sales, the successful candidate will maximize the performance, growth, and profitability of FFW brands in the region. Key responsibilities include effective brand management, importer/distributor management, new business development, and promoting and professionally representing the FFW portfolio across the territory.
** This role is an independent contractor.**
Roles and Responsibilities:
- Effectively manages and engages importers, distributors, agents, and direct-retail partners to enhance sales, depletions, distribution, profitability, and prominence of FFW brands
- Develops new priority export markets with established, A-tier distributors and importers across the assigned territory
- Performs careful ROI analyses of all new business initiatives, and builds and executes regional strategic plan(s) that align with FFW corporate and divisional objectives
- Plans and conducts distributor business reviews and JBP’s
- Aligns brand positioning and strategy consistently across all markets and channels
- Provides solutions and proactively addresses inventory issues, labelling and compliance, sales forecasts, demand planning, payment and credit issues, and other logistical challenges
- Develops strong working relationships with distributor and agency sales, marketing, and other key external stakeholders, including the major monopolies
- Works closely with FFW internal stakeholders including brand marketing, compliance, trade hospitality, finance, customer service, winemaking, and operations
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:
- Candidate will demonstrate a history of achieving sales goals in prior positions
- Ability to manage priorities and workflow
- Strong desire for achievement, accomplishment, and a long-term vision
- Strategic, analytical, reasoning, and quantitative skills
- A thorough understanding of strategy development including brand positioning and effective programming
- Robust command of the English language with excellent oral and written communication skills; Additional language skills a plus
- Must possess strong negotiation and selling skills
- Extremely detail-oriented, a creative mindset, and the ability to view problems as opportunities
- An understanding of P&L management and the importance of long-term, profitable growth
- The ability to prioritize, lead, implement and drive results against divisional KPI’s
- Business maturity, comfortable in rapidly changing environments with a high degree of ambiguity
- Ability to work independently and manage upward with little oversight
- Fluent in Microsoft Office and cloud-based computing
- Familiarity with Beverage Alcohol industry-specific reporting tools a plus
- Valid passport, driver’s license, clean driving record, and automobile insurance coverage where applicable
Experience and Qualifications:
- Four-year university degree in Business Administration or similar field required
- Minimum 7 years Beverage Alcohol industry experience, preferably with familiarity at both the distributor and supplier level
- Advanced wine studies completion or certification, including but not limited to SWE, ISG, CMS, WSET, or undergraduate Wine Business degree
- The ideal candidate will have an established network within the Beverage Alcohol industry in the region
- Proven track record of volume growth, profitability, and distributor management
- Experience building brands with a range of budgets
Experience working in cross-functional teams
Physical Requirements
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly sitting, listening, and using hands and fingers, operating a keyboard on a computer, frequently talking and exchanging ideas with individuals both in person and on the phone. The employee is required to occasionally walk, handle, or feel objects, talk or hear. The employee will occasionally lift and/or move up to 18 kilograms.
Work Environment
This is a home-office based, full-time position that requires a minimum of 30% travel for business and relationship development. Occasional trips to offices & wineries in California, Oregon, Washington are also to be expected.
Location
Candidate must be based in the UK.
Company Core Values:
Teamwork – Be Each Other’s Partners in Wine
Commitment – Crush Every Day Like It’s Harvest
Quality – Good vs. Grape: It’s All in The Details
Integrity – It Takes a Vineyard
Safety – Tend the Vines
Entrepreneurship – Love the Wine You’re With
Fun! Smile! You Have Purple Teeth!
Foley Family Wines provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status or any other characteristic protected under federal, state or local law.