About the Role
The opportunity
Win new partnerships that shape the experiences customers can discover through Buyagift and Red Letter Days. New partner acquisition is a strategic priority and a key growth lever for the business.
Strategic growth
You will win partnerships at pace that expand customer choice, strengthen our range and deliver sustainable commercial growth.
Complex deals
You will own opportunities from proactive outreach to contract signature, including strategic partnerships involving multiple decision-makers, competing priorities, and legal and operational dependencies. You will build persuasive business cases, influence senior stakeholders and negotiate sound terms.
Your team
You will report to the Head of Partner Growth, working with Category, Commercial, Legal and Onboarding. Depending on your experience and the agreed scope, the role may include line management of two BD Managers alongside hands-on ownership of strategic deals. We welcome experienced people managers and strong commercial performers ready to step up into their first formal management role. Responsibilities will be confirmed during the recruitment process. Travel to partner meetings and industry events may be required.
Key Responsibilities
- Manage a prioritised prospect list from first outreach to signed agreement, keeping CRM stages, forecasts and dated next steps realistic.
- Research and approach high-potential experience partners through tailored calls, email, LinkedIn, referrals, events and meetings.
- Maintain clear plans for strategic prospects, engage the right decision-makers and follow through consistently.
- Understand each prospect's business model, goals, capacity and customer fit, then turn those insights into compelling proposals for Buyagift and Red Letter Days.
- Pitch to owners, founders, operators and senior decision-makers, navigating complex deals, competing priorities and objections.
- Balance customer value, margin and partner ambitions when negotiating sound terms, obtaining required commercial and legal approvals before commitments.
- Work with Category Managers to agree acquisition priorities based on supply gaps, customer demand and partner value.
- Win partners that improve quality, choice, regional coverage and category performance.
- Use market insight and prospect feedback to refine how we acquire partners.
- Use Excel and commercial reports to assess supply gaps, prioritise prospects and evaluate the potential value of partnerships.
- Work with Category, Commercial, Legal and Onboarding to agree requirements, owners and deadlines; give concise updates and flag setbacks promptly.
- Secure executed agreements and provide receiving teams with clear terms, contacts, expectations, product information and launch risks.
- Support successful partner launches and escalate blockers with their impact, actions tried and a specific recommendation or support request.
- Develop trusted relationships across experiences, hospitality, leisure, travel, wellness and entertainment, representing our brands at relevant events.
- Monitor competitors, customer trends and partner feedback to identify prospects and improve how we acquire partners.
- Where line management forms part of the role, set clear priorities and individual targets for two Senior Business Development Managers, taking accountability for their delivery and combined team results alongside your own strategic deals.
- Review team pipelines and forecasts, support complex negotiations and resolve delivery risks, while giving each manager clear ownership and autonomy.
- Hold regular one-to-ones and performance reviews, provide practical coaching and feedback, and agree individual development plans to support each manager’s growth.
About You
- You are a commercially driven, proactive relationship builder who enjoys opening doors and turning prospects into long-term partners.
- You are confident pitching, negotiating and influencing senior stakeholders while staying focused on quality, customer value and commercial impact.
- You are highly organised, resilient and comfortable managing multiple opportunities at once.
- You can work autonomously, use insight to prioritise the right prospects, and collaborate closely with internal teams to turn signed agreements into successful partner launches.
Essential Skills and Experience
- Strong experience owning new business, including prospecting, pitching, negotiating and closing new business relationships.
- Experience in B2B sales, business development, partnerships or commercial acquisition, including complex deals.
- Commercial judgement: using data and customer insight to assess partner fit, prioritise prospects, evaluate terms and consider long-term customer relevance.
- Consultative selling skills, including building business cases, influencing senior stakeholders and negotiating sound agreements.
- Pipeline discipline, with honest qualification, realistic forecasts and consistent deal progression.
- Clear communication, reliable follow-through and good judgement about when to seek support.
- Strong stakeholder management, influencing and relationship-building skills.
- Self-motivation, target focus and strong organisational skills, with experience managing a multi-stage pipeline.
- Confidence using CRM systems and Excel to analyse commercial data, manage a pipeline and make evidence-based recommendations.
Desirable Skills and Experience
- Experience line-managing a sales, business development or partnerships team, or readiness to step up demonstrated through coaching, mentoring or leading others towards shared results. Previous formal line management is not required; this experience is relevant where people leadership forms part of the role.
- Experience in a marketplace, e-commerce, travel, hospitality, leisure, gifting or experience-led business.
- Experience with partner onboarding, catalogue launch, product setup or supplier activation.
- Understanding of category management, product curation, customer proposition or supply acquisition.
Interview Process:
Our process may vary depending on role and availability. We keep candidates informed of any changes.
Skills Required
- Strong experience owning new business, including prospecting, pitching, negotiating, and closing new business relationships.
- Experience in B2B sales, business development, partnerships, or commercial acquisition, including complex deals.
- Commercial judgment using data and customer insight to assess partner fit, prioritize prospects, evaluate terms, and consider long-term customer relevance.
- Consultative selling skills, including building business cases, influencing senior stakeholders, and negotiating agreements.
- Pipeline discipline, including honest qualification, realistic forecasting, and consistent deal progression.
- Clear communication, reliable follow-through, and sound judgment about when to seek support.
- Strong stakeholder management, influencing, and relationship-building skills.
- Self-motivation, target focus, strong organization, and experience managing a multi-stage pipeline.
- Confidence using CRM systems and Excel to analyze commercial data, manage a pipeline, and make evidence-based recommendations.
- Experience line-managing a sales, business development, or partnerships team, or demonstrated readiness to step up through coaching, mentoring, or leading others.
- Experience in a marketplace, e-commerce, travel, hospitality, leisure, gifting, or experience-led business.
- Experience with partner onboarding, catalogue launch, product setup, or supplier activation.
- Understanding of category management, product curation, customer proposition, or supply acquisition.
What We Do
At Moonpig Group our mission is to help people connect and create moments that matter. We’re an international group made up of two brilliant brands – Moonpig in the UK, US and Australia, and Greetz in the Netherlands. We’re a technology platform at heart, but our customers know us as the leading eCommerce destination for greetings cards, gifts and flowers. Last year we delivered over 70 million personalised cards, gifts and flower bouquets in over 50 million orders, helping our customers celebrate all the occasions that matter to them, from milestone birthdays and anniversaries to new arrivals and all of those just-becauses. We have awesome people and a caring company culture: We give teams autonomy while supporting personal growth at all levels. Plus, we know how to have fun! Don’t just take our word for it, though; in Feb 2022, Moonpig was officially recognised as an outstanding company to work for by Best Companies and we earned a 2-Star accreditation, which is Best Companies second-highest standard of workplace engagement and represents organizations striving for the top. Head over to our careers site for more company info and our current opportunities - https://www.moonpig.com/uk/blog/moonpig-careers/moonpig-careers/
