Channel Director, South
Field Based UK, United Kingdom
Vinarchy. Redefining Wine.
Established in 2025 following the merger of Accolade Wines and Pernod Ricard Winemakers, Vinarchy is an exceptional global wine company committed to redefining wine.
Crafting extraordinary wines in Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Italy, South Africa, Chile and the United States, and sharing them in almost every corner of the world, we are relentlessly innovative, ambitious and imaginative at every stage from grape to glass.
About the role
Reporting to the Commercial Director, managing 4 direct reports and a team of 9 in total, this role will drive the business forward through excellent collaboration and execution with UK.
Grocery customers – our largest channel in our largest region. You will manage, motivate, develop and direct the team and cross-functional colleagues to achieve our business objectives and sales targets.
This role will account for 30% of our UK Off Trade Business so our largest channel c.5m 9L.
Key responsibilities include:
Strategic Channel Management:
• Develop and execute the grocery channel strategy in line with the company’s overall goals.
• Identify and target new growth opportunities within the grocery sector.
• Drive the strategic direction for both traditional and online grocery retail channels.
• Oversee the development and execution of Buy/Sell plans.
• Effectively sell in NPD priorities across the Grocery Sector.
Sales Leadership:
• Lead the sales team responsible for grocery accounts, ensuring targets are met or exceeded.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key grocery retailers and identify sales opportunities.
• Negotiate and manage high-value contracts and partnerships with retailers.
• Work closely with the marketing team to ensure promotions, pricing, and merchandising strategies align with channel objectives.
Category and Product Development:
• Lead the development and execution of category plans for grocery products.
• Identify consumer trends and product opportunities within the grocery sector.
• Collaborate with product development teams to bring new and innovative products to the market.
Budgeting & Financial Planning:
• Manage and oversee the grocery channel budget, ensuring alignment with forecasted sales and profitability targets.
• Ensure accurate forecasting for demand planning and financial modelling purposes
• Analyse sales performance and channel profitability to make data-driven decisions and improvements.
Market & Consumer Insight:
• Monitor market trends and competitive activity within the grocery sector.
• Provide actionable insights to the leadership team based on consumer behaviour, retailer dynamics, and industry developments.
Team Leadership & Development:
• Lead and mentor a team of sales professionals within the grocery division.
• Foster a high-performance culture within the team, setting clear goals and objectives.
• Ensure ongoing training and development of team members to maintain a high level of expertise and performance.
• Collaborative with understanding of holistic business outside of direct area of responsibility.
What you’ll bring:
Your Knowledge and Skills
• Extensive knowledge and experience of the UK FMCG market, preferably in drinks.
• Experience at a senior level with consolidated multiple accounts in the off-trade channel
• Proven senior leadership experience particularly of national account managers
• Experience in presenting, persuading, negotiating with a broad range of audiences
• Ability to communicate effectively to a diverse range of audiences using varied media
• High energy, self-managed, hands-on, strong interpersonal and organisation skills
• Ability to manage complexity and ambiguity with optimism and think outside of the confines of traditional discipline
• Strong business mindset with strategic long-term focus
• Organisational effectiveness and ability to align and leverage resources with hands-on leadership to ensure delivery of operational performance
• Motivational leadership, Influence & impact, ability to lead and deliver transformation
• Problem analysis, judgment, decisiveness; independence; resilience
• Purposeful People Leader; team player who is culturally sensitive and empathetic with excellent organisational and interpersonal skills
• Driver of excellent execution
• Bias for action, strong work ethic, and desire to achieve excellence with stability of performance under pressure
Functional
• Advanced account management expertise
• Commercial acumen / negotiation skills
• Advanced numeracy - analytical and insights driven
Essential Qualifications
• Minimum 5 years sales leadership experience, at least at SNAM / Controller level, with direct experience of managing UK Grocery customers in BWS / FMCG
• 5 years+ Team leadership experience
• Track record of delivery
Physical and Other Requirements
- Full driving license
- Ability to frequently travel within UK & Ireland - to customer head offices, trade events, Accolade offices
- Occasional overseas travel to accompany customers on customer visits (eg. Australia, South Africa)
- Bachelor’s degree advantageous
- WSET advantageous
Why join us?
Vinarchy is a home for passionate people to do their very best work. We believe in empowering our people and celebrating success.
We offer a competitive rewards package and the opportunity to work with a world-class team. You’ll also have access to:
- Wine allowance and access to unique wine specials
- Flexible working (Up to 2-3 days working from home)
- Paid Parental Leave
- Start your weekend early with our Fast Friday finishes!
- Loyalty Leave
- Vinarchy Anniversary day off
- Go Beyond Day - making a different in your local community
- Access to an extensive online learning library
- Employee Assistance Program
- Various exclusive employee discounts
Ready to redefine your future? APPLY TODAY!
At Vinarchy we are dedicated to building a diverse, dynamic and inclusive culture. Prospective candidates will be required to provide proof of legal work rights and undertake relevant pre-employment screening to verify eligibility and suitability. #LI-HYBRID