Whitby Seafoods is an independent, family owned British seafood manufacturer with more than 40 years of heritage.
Established in Whitby in 1985, the company has grown to become the largest scampi manufacturer in the UK and worldwide. It now employs approximately 300 people across its manufacturing sites in Whitby, North Yorkshire, and Kilkeel, Northern Ireland.
Whitby Seafoods combines the scale and commercial challenge of a major national food manufacturer with the accessibility, personality and influence of an entrepreneurial family business. Its products are available across all the UK’s major supermarkets, as well as on the menus of leading national pub and restaurant groups.
The company’s flagship Whitby Scampi brand is the UK’s best selling scampi brand across frozen, chilled, gluten free and foodservice.
This is an exciting time to join Whitby Seafoods as the business continues to invest in its brand, broaden its customer base and develop new opportunities across UK foodservice.
The Role
Whitby Seafoods is looking to appoint an experienced National Account Manager Foodservice to help drive the continued growth of its UK foodservice business.
This is a commercially focused role with responsibility for winning new end user business while also managing and developing relationships across national and regional foodservice wholesalers and wholesale groups.
A major part of the role will focus on identifying, developing and converting new national and regional end user customers that Whitby Seafoods does not currently trade with directly.
Target customers will include:
- High street restaurant and casual dining chains
- Pub and bar groups
- Leisure and hospitality groups
- Other significant multi site foodservice operators
Whitby Seafoods is looking for someone who understands how these businesses buy, who the key decision makers are and how to navigate the journey from initial conversation through product development and trial to listing and rollout.
The successful candidate will need to be comfortable prospecting, opening doors and creating opportunities.
The role will also focus on developing Whitby Seafoods’ business through national and regional foodservice wholesalers and wholesale groups.
This will include managing existing relationships while identifying opportunities to increase distribution, volume and visibility across the wholesale channel.
A key part of the position will be understanding the relationship between end user demand and wholesale distribution, creating demand with operators while ensuring the right products, pricing and distribution are in place through their nominated wholesalers.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Identifying and winning new national and regional end user customers
- Building relationships with QSR, restaurant, pub, hospitality and contract catering groups
- Developing national and regional foodservice wholesalers
- Increasing distribution, volume and visibility across the wholesale channel
- Creating and managing a strong new business pipeline
- Managing opportunities from initial introduction through trial, listing and rollout
- Building effective relationships at buyer, chef, procurement and senior commercial level
- Negotiating commercially sustainable agreements
- Working collaboratively with internal teams to support successful customer launches and development
- Representing Whitby Seafoods professionally across the UK foodservice market
The Candidate
We are looking for someone with:
- Strong experience in UK branded foodservice sales
- Existing relationships within QSR, high street chains and major multi site foodservice operators
- Good knowledge of foodservice wholesalers and buying groups
- A demonstrable track record of winning new business, not simply managing established accounts
- Strong commercial and negotiation skills
- The ability to build relationships at buyer, chef, procurement and senior commercial level
- Energy, resilience and a genuine appetite for being out with customers
- The confidence to prospect, open doors and create opportunities from scratch
- The ability to manage a national territory and a significant amount of travel
- Strong communication, presentation and influencing skills
- A proactive, hands on and commercially driven approach
The Culture
Whitby Seafoods has a distinctive culture built around its values, known internally as The Whitby Way.
The company deliberately avoids unnecessary hierarchy and encourages people to work collaboratively across departments. Its family owners remain actively involved in the business, giving employees direct access to decision makers and the opportunity to make a visible contribution.
The successful candidate will need to combine commercial ambition with a collaborative and culturally sensitive approach. This role will suit someone who enjoys taking ownership, values long term relationships and wants to help grow a successful British food brand without the restrictions of a large corporate environment.
Location
The position will be home based, with significant travel throughout the UK to meet customers.
The successful candidate would ideally attend Whitby Seafoods’ head office once a week. However, for candidates based further afield, there is flexibility for this to be once a fortnight, potentially incorporating an overnight stay where appropriate.
Highly competitive basic salary, car or car allowance £8,500, 7% pension contribution and additional company benefits.
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