We are looking for a senior commercial leader accountable for driving sales, profitability and channel penetration across the UK & Ireland business (£1.2bn GBP). Reporting to the Managing Director for UK&I, this role leads a team of ~100 individuals across omnichannel commercial execution (retail, discounters, convenience, e-commerce and Away-From-Home/foodservice), owns customer relationships and negotiations with major retailers and wholesalers, and delivers growth through range, innovation and go-to-market excellence.
Essential Functions & Responsibilities:
- Define and deliver the UK&I commercial strategy aligned to objectives: Recapture brand love, Be Preferred, Be in More Occasions.
- Full P&L accountability for UK&I sales performance (NSV, gross profit and contribution to EBITDA), driving both volume and margin improvement through pricing, mix, cost-to-profit and fixed cost absorption initiatives.
- Lead the Omnichannel sales organization (retail multiples, discounters, convenience, e-commerce, category development, sales finance, Ireland and Away-From-Home), empowering the team to execute customer plans and deliver targets.
- Own major customer relationships and commercial negotiations with key external partners: Grocery Multiples (Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons, Co-op, Waitrose), Discounters (Aldi, Lidl), national wholesalers and major foodservice chains/operators; secure ranges, promotions, and strategic partnerships that increase distribution and share of shelf/occasion.
- Accelerate Away-From-Home (AFH) strategy to make AFH the #1 driver of Heinz penetration - win chains and independents, develop chef-led innovation & pack formats, relaunch FOH equipment and digital, and build brand experiences in AFH locations.
- Drive innovation and NPD pipeline (flavours platform, new formats/packaging, adjacencies) and translate it into commercial wins with customers and operators.
- Collaborate with Procurement, Supply Chain and Operations to optimise service, cost and availability (including co-packer management), and to reinvest savings into growth.
- Build commercial capabilities and the Brand Growth System across people: recruit, develop and retain high-performing sales, category and e-commerce teams.
- Represent the voice of the customer internally; align marketing, shopper and field activation to maximise impressions and sell-through.
Expected Experience & Required Skills:
- Senior FMCG commercial leader with extensive UK & Ireland experience (ideally experience across Grocery Multiples, Discounters and foodservice).
- Proven track record of P&L ownership and delivering strong topline and margin results.
- Experience leading large omnichannel sales functions (c.100 FTEs or comparable scale) and cross-functional teams.
- Strong negotiator and relationship builder with national retailers, wholesalers and foodservice operators.
- Demonstrable success in innovation-led growth, pack/format innovation and activation that translates into sales.
- Commercial and financial acumen: ability to model trade-offs, price/mix optimization and value-engineering to free investment.
- Excellent leadership, stakeholder management and capability building skills.
- Comfortable operating in a matrix environment, working closely with Procurement, Supply Chain, Marketing and Category teams.
Location(s)
London - The Shard
Kraft Heinz is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Underrepresented Ethnic Minority Groups/Women/Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity and other protected classes.
What the Team is Saying
What We Do
Kraft Heinz is a global food company with a delicious heritage.
With iconic and emerging food and beverage brands around the world, we deliver the best taste, fun and quality to every table we touch.
We’re on a mission to disrupt not only our own business, but the global food industry. A consumer obsession and unexpected partnerships fuel our progress as we drive innovation across every part of our company.
Around the world, our people are connected by a culture of ownership, agility and endless curiosity. We also believe in being good humans, who are working to improve our company, communities, and planet.
We’re proud of where we’ve been – and even more thrilled about where we’re headed – as we nourish the world and lead the future of food.
Why Work With Us
We believe that great people make great companies, and we’re growing something great here at Kraft Heinz.
Operating in over 20 global markets, across 9 functions, no matter your career goals, we have a seat at the table for you.
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Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
We also believe providing a more flexible and agile model is essential in today’s workplace. A majority of our office-based employees will be able to work remotely for up to two days each week.
