Sales Representative- East Coast

University of Chicago • Chicago, IL

12d • $68,000 - $88,000 • Remote

About The Position

The University of Chicago Press seeks a house sales representative to cover the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic and New England states (ME, VT, NH, MA, RI, CT, NY, PA, NJ, DE, MD [including Washington, DC], ) for the Press, its marketed clients, and commission clients. Account base is independents, museum, college and regional specialty stores.

Requirements

• Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
• Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor’s degree.
• 3+ years of work experience in the book industry.
• Valid driver’s license.
• Strong understanding of the book retail sector, including market trends, key players, and distribution channels.
• Proficiency with Edelweiss.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook programs, Teams, Zoom, and similar office software.
• Facility with learning new software and systems.
• Superlative self-starting and self direction: ability to work independently, set priorities, take initiative.
• Advanced organizational skills, detail-oriented mindset: ability to schedule own appointments, manage order processing, customer service needs, and inbox management.
• Excellent communication skills: share seasonal progress, operational concerns, store and buyer feedback, publisher communications, communications with accounts.
• Office management skills: provide accurate & timely expense and sales reporting, work on planning our annual regional trade show attendance, and, when necessary, our attendance at Winter Institute.
• Problem-solving skills: serve to enhance customer service and be a resource for accounts/liaison with order fulfillment and customer service and Chicago Distribution Center.
• Ability to travel by car and airplane.
• Efficiency in prioritizing tasks to meet deadlines and handle multiple accounts.
• Excellent verbal and written communication for presenting books and effectively conveying information.
• Independent bookstore experience a plus.
• A proven ability to cultivate and develop positive and productive business relationships.
• Candidate needs to be based in the territory.

Responsibilities

• Travel seasonally as needed to sell frontlist titles in person.
• Maximize opportunities with secondary and tertiary accounts.
• Prospect and develop new accounts.
• Continuously promote and support back list sales.
• Think creatively to develop sales approaches that will realize potential for these books through inventory reviews as well as seasonal, thematic, and regional opportunities.
• Create custom Edelweiss collections and markups as needed to support sales efforts.
• Create, edit, and share Edelweiss markups and catalog notations with buyers.
• Work closely with client publishers to maximize sales of their books.
• Attend meetings as needed.
• Represent the Press and clients at trade shows and conferences as needed.
• Complete call reports as required and communicate with team members and client Presses.
• Handle account inquiries (including publicity contacts, stock checks, event orders, and tracking) and provide support to ensure customer satisfaction.
• Outreach to stores regarding special offers, awards, publicity breaks, and other time-sensitive matters.
• Work with Sales Director to benchmark and formulate expectations for territory.
• Has a moderate/high level of authority in selling products and services.
• Works with marketing and other units to target growth areas and generate leads.
• May visit key national markets to investigate operations and local conditions.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Benefits

• The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off.
• Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook .

What This Job Offers

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