Area Sales Manager

Sapporo-Stone Brewing • Houston, TX

45m • $75,000 - $82,000

About The Position

Sapporo brewed the first beer of Japan in 1876. It’s now the number one selling Asian beer brand in the U.S. thanks to its best-selling Sapporo Premium. Sapporo acquired Stone Brewing in 2022 to brew all of Sapporo’s beer for the U.S. market. Stone Brewing, established in 1996, pioneered the West Coast Style IPA helping to fuel the modern craft beer revolution. Now one company, Sapporo-Stone Brewing is among the 15 largest breweries in the U.S. and operates production facilities in Escondido, CA and Richmond, VA plus seven Stone Brewing taproom and bistro locations. We’ve enjoyed a rich history following our passion and are in search of people who take great pride in building our legacy for the future.

Summary
The Area Sales Manager leads our efforts with our distributor partners capitalizing on the overall sales potential of our brand portfolio typically across multiple distributors. This role reports to the Regional Sales Manager and may lead Area Sales Representatives of their designated territory. The Area Sales Manager is responsible for the achievement of key business objectives including sales, distribution, brand priorities, budget management, and market share growth as created through our annual business planning process for designated territory.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in related field
• 5-7 years of related sales experience within the food or beverage industry, preferably in alcohol beverage sales and working within three-tier system
• Proven track record managing complex sales, sales programs, and portfolios of initiatives through excellent influence and customer service skills
• Effective and persuasive communicator with outstanding presence, presentation and negotiation skills that constantly strives for simplicity and clarity
• Solid execution skills with a passion for getting into the details where appropriate to make effective decisions and drive results
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Power BI and iDig (including KARMA)
• Flexibility to travel as needed, including weekends where necessary to drive sales and connect with customers
• Regular travel required to retail accounts. Must have a clean Motor Vehicle Record, valid Driver’s License and reliable transportation with vehicle insurance in good standing
• Must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds

Responsibilities

• Partner with Regional Sales Manager to develop volume, distribution, and execution targets for distributors in designated territory
• Lead distributor facing communication, strategy, and relationship within area
• Manage distributor inventory and shipments to ensure appropriate in-stock rates of all Sapporo-Stone items
• Manage co-op budgets with distributors, ensuring that the budgets and spending are always updated
• Manage pricing along with the Regional Director/Manager throughout the specific region, including FOBs, recommended PTRs and PTCs for every distributor within territory
• Build relationships with key wholesaler team members including General Manager, sales leadership, each channel manager, and other key personnel
• Ensure flawless execution of programs by distributor personnel and internal sales team
• Drive execution of all chain programs (i.e. distribution, promotions, programming) and authorizations through distributor execution and sales team support
• Build skills and capabilities of any team members by working with them on a weekly basis and providing coaching and development on sales core competencies
• Adhere to agreed-upon dollar budgets and all company policies as set by management and the company
• Stay current within the competitive landscape both in the retail and beer space, and seek out new opportunities to increase sales and penetration within territory
• Provide market insights to the Regional Director and other cross functional team members as needed
• Promote ongoing education for regional sales team on both our brand portfolio as well as the broader beer industry
• Work with distributors approximately 60% of the time, with the remaining 40% of the time focused on getting out in the market, approximately 25-30 retail account visits a week

Benefits

• Comprehensive Health Insurance, 401K, and Bonuses for Eligible Team Members
• Company beer perks program and discounts
• Paid Time Off - including Vacation accrual, Sick Leave, and 12 paid Holidays
• Benefit programs supporting Financial Wellness, Health & Wellness and Career Development

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager