ViVAS Wines Division - Category Development Manager
Bidvest-3663 Food Service
Total years of experience :17 years, 7 Months
Category Development Manager - Midlands & Wales
• Manage the whole drinks category across 4 Business units in the Midlands & Wale under the ViVAS Wine Brand with 35% margin growth.
• Responsible for Joint Business Planning, Tendering, Financial Budgets, A&P support, Key account P& L, staff & customer training.
• Managed Regional Brewers, Undisciplined Multiples, B& I Catering, Education, HoReCa & Independent On-trade customers through active monitoring, new initiatives and sales targeting.
• Generated Marketing & Sales initiatives for sales team of 21 and 28 telesales winning additional £386, 000 of Independent new business in 1st year, and £356, 000 in year 2.
Export Sales Manager for Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, Poland, Baltic States, Ukraine, Western Mediterranean, Middle.East, Malta, Slavic & non-EU countries.
• This role is measured by ensuring that the distributor or retailer efforts are focused on appropriate consumer targets, vicinities and trade channels in order to achieve the long-term objectives for the brand portfolio.
• Effected by travelling across Europe frequently for launches, trade shows, training, events, meetings and market visits to maximise sales & on-shelf visibility.
• Monitoring programmes, resources, and execution priorities are tailored to each market as well as targeted consumer marketing objectives.
• Responsible for market strategy through managing and allocating A&P monies.
• Multiple Brands Manager across Europe for international leading wine brands, including their Premium, Flagship and Luxury products:-
\[yellow tail\], Alvi’s Drift, Finca Rewen, FirstCape, Vavasour, Eagles Cliff, Valdorado, Canti & Fratelli Martini and Hyperion
• Experienced in managing Multiple Grocers, Retail groups and Distributors across 15 countries:-
MPries,
Esselunga
Carrefour (Fr-Es-B) Supermarkets,
LGCF,
Groupo Codorniu,
Delta,
Heinemann,
Capetta.
MMI,
Gulf Brands,
Tridens
Vinfort.
Vrutak
Battaillard
• KPI - Driving promotional activities for \[yellow tail\], Eagles Cliff, Finca Rewen, Valdorado, and Alvi’s Drift wine brands and directing winning brand strategies for local market activation in order to achieve sales and brand performance.
• Ensuring compliance within the specific legal/cultural constraints of the market with producers ensuring integrity of brand standards and global brand identity.
• Finding and validating new opportunities across all channels from researching potential distributors in or outside Europe. Making recommendations for trading terms to the producers with summaries from the prospective distributor’s business proposals, market plans and adjusting for cultural differences, eventually creating joint business plans.
Notable new business achievements in this role above managing existing retailers and distributors-
o Recruited new distributor listing both \[yellow tail\] and FirstCape in Estonia - yr1 - 4712 x 9ltr cases, and yr3 8246 x 9ltr cases.
o New distributor in Malta for FirstCape yr2 2200 x 9ltr cases rising to 4400 x 9ltr cases yr3. New listing for Valdorado & Alvi’s Drift
o Tenerife - recruited new distributor for FirstCape & Canti - yr 2 5600 x 9ltr cases FirstCape and yr3 Canti - 7800 x 9ltr cases.
o New listings - Poland & Belgium - Vavasour NZ wines. FirstCape distributed in Spain.
o Changing Italian distributor gave 40% growth.
Role to develop new wine business in the Cotswold's, Mid Wales and Herefordshire area.
• £280K growth with 29 new a/c’s against a budget of £200k in 1st year, but Enotria's owners withdrew support for West Midlands and Wales after 1 year.
• Sell Wines to deliver both high volume and value to the business with full responsibility for P&L.
• Develop wine knowledge and selling skills in customer accounts & staff teams, through regular staff training, service & front of house coaching and joint trade visits.
Account Manager - 6 month role
• Recover lost business in established territory whilst recruiting account executive as a replacement.
• Recovered 85% of lost business in the period of Independent free trade worth £300, 000 at 21% margin.
Wine Development Manager with Buying Team - 6 month contract
• Assist with selection, sourcing and development of new products to the range and develop brochure.
• Drive wine business at regional centres to Key Accounts through staff development, coaching & accompaniment.
• Develop the creation of wine listing skills in staff and developing their product knowledge.
Key Account Manager ( New Business Team )
• Find & develop new outlets before passing to the On-trade account managers or partner wholesalers.
• Achieved 120 new profitable On-trade Direct Customers and installed over 400 taps through Wholesalers.
National Sales Manager - UK
• Drive sales of Mari Mayans absinthe & other brands through national & regional wholesalers to pub/club & retail outlets.
• Manage Sales and Marketing budgets, strategies and activities in HoReCa, Sainsbury’s, Fascia Groups, Drinkshop & Independents.
• Contributed to Website design & e-commerce development.
Regional Wine Development Manager 01.03.98 -11.07.03
• Servicing my own Key account base and managing small sales team.
• Developed £1million additional wine sales across 4 territories for the Regional Manager.
• Organizing producer wine events & dinners at Officers Mess’s, HoReCa and Independent Free-Trade.
• Drive sales of Key Brands - Constellation Group wines, Olde English, Gaymers and Blackthorn ciders at every opportunity.
Sales Area Manager - South West 16.03.98 - 01.03.99
• Account management of regional free trade and servicing Compass, NAFFI, National & Contract accounts in HR, GL, SA & NP postcodes
• Adding over 70 new free-trade accounts in the first 6 months before promotion to WDM.
• Managing a small team of sales staff covering Retail, Wholesale and Private Sales of Wines and Spirits across Mid Wales and Cotswolds,
• Awarded Wines and Spirits Education Trust Diploma after studying part time for 2 years