Inside Sales Team Lead

Inside Sales Team Lead
Location: Rickmansworth, United Kingdom
Only 20 mins from London, Marylebone (Chiltern railways) and 30 mins from Baker Street (Metropolitan line)

Imagine working for a company with a mission you can truly believe in, a playful and energetic culture, a talented team of coworkers, and a bright future!  Melissa & Doug, the toy company committed to nurturing childhood wonder, is looking for a Sales Team Leader- Europe.

In this role, you’ll be an essential part of our mission to inspire creativity and imagination in children throughout the world with thoughtfully designed toys that spark free play.

ROLE OVERVIEW

We’re seeking a dynamic Sales Team Leader- Europe, who is passionate, driven and willing to roll up their sleeves to make things happen! 

You’ll have deep experience working with the independent retail sector across Europe, a proven track record building and developing teams, with a focus on executing with excellence, and inspiring others. 

You’ll be a proactive and hands on leader, willing to give and take constructive feedback, keen to learn and embrace the unique and unconventional ways of working at Melissa & Doug. 

You will have built a strong comprehension for the geographical nuances of the diverse European cultures and know how to successfully deploy different approaches to maximise sales and product distribution. You will play a critical role in delivering our company’s strategic plan to grow our brand internationally.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES

•    Responsibility for the overall Independent sales growth across the defined regions
•    Building, leading and inspiring the Independent sales team 
•    Establishing clear goals, performance managing the team
•    Overall ‘toolkit planning’ to give direction and support to sales team members including thoughtful promotional activity by market, partnering with country Account Managers to align goals
•    Coordination with Ecommerce team locally to manage third party sellers
•    Drive continuous improvement in selling and order processes and drive changes working with internal business partners
•    Accountable for driving the top and bottom-line growth
•    Show evaluation and support
•    Working closely with the marketing team to drive in store branding presence and grass roots marketing across the key markets

Business Management 

•    Overall management of the independent channels across Europe 
•    Working closely with the Managing Director (MD) to align on clear goals for the Independent channel and associated sales team
•    Working with the MD and the country account managers to align and implement effective selling programmes to enhance productivity and effectiveness
o    Gap analysis: working with the team analyst to bring insights to the wider management team, sharing \ideas for new or expanded revenue opportunities
o    Partnering with marketing for in store activation and creation of selling materials for shows/store visits  

Independent Team Management

•    Support Talent Acquisition Manager with the recruitment of your team 
•    Collaboratively partner with the country based Key Account Manager’s and Managing Director to solidify/finalize the country commercial plans
•    Help to design & establish the KPI’s / Incentives / Rewards for the team
•    Tracking and communication of country performance 
•    Pricing and terms agreements working with country Account Managers 
o    Review of each country
•    Effective management of third-party sellers

Trade Marketing 

•    Support and help create a programme to build brand awareness across markets
•    Planning of what, who and where we want to get our brand into stores – tiered approach
o    Key markets and largest customers
o    Partnership approach with prestige customers
o    Budget management
o    Support creative ideas and help with implementation
o    Plan the ‘sell in’ to gain more than fair share of space 
•    Work with team analyst to measure the ROI in key retailers and across programmes and campaigns

Toy Fairs / Show Management
•    Ensuring the preservation of the unique and playful approach to creating an exceptional customer experience and interaction with our products and people 
•    Continual review of viability of shows attended
•    Targets for shows
•    Show deals
•    Staffing requirements 

REQUIREMENTS

•    Educated to a degree level from an accredited university or equivalent
•    Direct sales / Sales Representative experience coupled with Sales Management (leading a team) experience, throughout Europe 
•    Proven track record of successful sales/product management/business development as well as ideally leading and directing a high-performance (telephone) sales team
•    Deep experience leveraging Emotional Intelligence to build organizational sense, develop strong relationships (internally and externally), and show balanced self and social awareness 
•    Outstanding business and financial acumen
•    Excellent negotiator
•    Ability to think strategically and execute tactically
•    Strong work ethic, resilient
•    High integrity and ability to work effectively and deliver in a fast paced, entrepreneurial environment
•    Committed team player with a collaborative management style
•    Outstanding leadership capabilities with strong results orientation
•    Entrepreneurial, intellectually curious mindset with excellent decision making and problem-solving skills
•    Market / customer oriented
•    Excellent communication, presentation and interpersonal skills
•    Proactive, highly motived and detail oriented 
•    Ability to work flexibly as and when required.
•    Ability to quickly learn, multi-task and broad-minded attitude
•    Strong computer skills including proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook, and web-browsers
•    Travel to shows and congresses as needed, as well as to our global Headquarters based in Wilton, CT (just outside of New York City, USA)  

WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU:

•    Salary: Competitive, dependent on experience 
•    Company bonus and car cash allowance
•    Company Pension Plan
•    25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays 
•    Flexible working hours; start and finish time
•    Employee discount on Melissa & Doug Toys 
•    An opportunity to work in a fast paced, fun, friendly environment and make an impact

OUR STORY

Melissa and Doug began working out of a garage in 1988 making toys that ignite imagination and inspire our children. While the company has grown to include thousands of products and more than 600 employees, it still has the heart of a start-up! Today our toys are distributed in more than 100 countries, enjoyed by more than 60m families and we are the #1 parent recommended toy brand for creativity and learning.  We are approaching $1BB at retail annually yet the quality of every toy, the experience of every child, and the trust of every parent remains at the center of everything we do.  To learn even more about our mission, our history and our movement to Take Back Childhood, go to www.MelissaAndDoug.com

Melissa & Doug is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability status.