Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel EMEA

Stanley1913, with its history and heritage of more than one century, saw unrivalled and exponential growth over the past years. The company is known across the globe for its durable, innovative, and stylish food and drink containers. In this important role, the Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel will manage and develop Stanley1913’s distributor network in the EMEA region.

About Stanley1913

As a result of Stanley1913’s relentless focus on quality and durability and their products’ unique and attractive styles, as well as high consumer engagement on social media, the company experienced unprecedented growth in the last few years. To achieve and sustain this significant growth, Stanley1913 has focused on its two core strengths: innovation and sustainability.

In its more than 111 years of existence, Stanley1913 has continued to optimize technologies to keep warm goods warm and cold goods cold. The brand has also expanded its selection of designs, including a line of products in vibrant colors, to appeal to various demographics. Stanley1913’s products are all made with a “Built for Life” lifetime warranty, promising durability that lasts.

The global brand, owned by HAVI, is headquartered in Seattle, U.S., with a growing regional team in Amsterdam and additional locations such as Shanghai and Rio de Janeiro. The new Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel EMEA will drive the regional distributor strategy, significantly impacting Stanley1913’s sustained growth.

Vacancy: Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel – EMEA

The Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel EMEA will create a viable business plan and profitable sales roadmap for the distribution channel, which includes approximately ten major distributors with new ones to be added. The focus is on new business development, geographic expansion, and strategic account management with attention to the recent shift in category focus and driving sales. This new role reports directly to the General Manager EMEA.

With another doubling in revenue expected for the next year, Stanley1913 must use its resources efficiently to optimally position the brand and keep the omnichannel approach effective and agile. This person will focus on identifying new distribution opportunities, optimizing partnerships, and managing the revenue pipeline. They will work with the E-commerce team, responsible for the complementary D2C channel, and with the Retail Sales team, responsible for retail account management in Stanley1913’s focus countries, to align and keep compatible sales and branding activities across the region.

Part of the strategic challenge lies in finding a suitable role and position for the distributor channel in Stanley1913’s omnichannel commercial context, to make this channel a factor of stable growth in driving turnover. The sales organization has recently been restructured to facilitate optimal omnichannel growth and the
category focus has shifted from outdoor and houseware to sports, lifestyle, and luxury. Distributors must be carefully included and onboarded in this development, which will be the responsibility of the Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel EMEA.

Overseeing monthly and annual sales plans to achieve sales targets within the distribution channel is also a key component of this role. This requires close collaboration with Stanley1913’s Sales Operations and Supply Chain teams to ensure accurate demand and sales planning and identify opportunities. They will then
create actionable plans to also achieve financial targets, based on data-driven analysis on e.g. sales, margin, and inventory. In addition, the Senior Sales Director Distribution Channel EMEA will monitor and control expenses in line with the budget and lead negotiations for large, complex contracts in the EMEA market.

Strong stakeholder management
The Senior Sales Director Distributor Channel EMEA works with distribution partners and Stanley1913’s internal Commercial, Marketing, Finance, Operations, and Supply Chain teams. They also represent the distribution channel strategy in management meetings, influencing decision-making at the highest level. This person will initially have one formal direct report, who in turn leads a team that this role will also provide coaching to.

This coaching aspect, as well as building strong relationships with distributors, will be crucial factors for success. This person will help members of the sales team to grow in their roles and build their confidence and, by seeing, recognizing, and developing colleagues’ qualities, uplift the entire team.

““This person will have a lot of connection within each department in our regional team, and therefore a lot of exposure to and representation across the entire organization. They will also be traveling quite a lot, to meet with distributors as well as international colleagues. This contributes to a versatile, dynamic, and highly international professional challenge.” – Ben James, General Manager EMEA

The candidate is strategic and has strong coaching skills. They have experience with distribution models, sales, brand management, and customer relations but especially distinguish themselves in the field of people leadership. They are a strong stakeholder manager who builds excellent, meaningful relationships both
internally (with other teams and internationally) and externally (with distributors
and partners).

Of course, the candidate fits perfectly within Stanley1913’s innovative, dynamic, creative, collaborative culture and they enjoy taking on big challenges. In that highly interesting and fast-paced environment, a senior sales leader will have the opportunity to transform and cement Stanley1913’s distributor strategy for durable success.

Interested?

Stanley1913 is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.
To express your interest, please contact Marc Mohr at marc.mohr@topofminds.com.