Market Development Manager

Department: Sales

Reports To: Region Sales Director

Summary:  Join our family and share the story of D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc. (DGY) and what makes us unique as America’s Oldest Brewery. We are family owned and operated since 1829 and have a strong culture and history of perseverance and grit. We are seeking a strong champion of our company and our brands. We are looking for a Market Development Manager who will serve as the main point of contact for a specified group of distributors in opportunity markets. The Market Development Manager will serve as the main point of contact for a specified group of distributors in opportunity markets. The Market Development Manager position will help develop annual plans, increase lines of communication aimed at delivering business engagement with assigned distributors including inventory management, drive attainment of DGY Annual Business Plans, and execute tactical objectives. This role is also accountable for the day-to-day management of specified distributor markets including but not limited to pricing, invoice processing and reimbursement, inventory management, Strategic Account planning and execution, local marketing opportunities, and advancement of DGY share of mind in alignment with our Partnership Vision.  This candidate should live in the West Virginia or Pennsylvania market.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Drive support of Yuengling objectives with distributor management and our sales team to accomplish specific Yuengling sales goals.
• Provide direction and support to assigned distributors on Retail Execution Plans and activities for assigned markets. 
• Monitor and plan with distributors to maintain adequate product inventory levels and communicate DGY product quality standards and proper inventory rotation within DGY guidelines.
• Conduct monthly and trimester reviews against the Annual Business Plan. These will include, but are not limited to, distribution progress, YTD sales volume, pricing benchmarks, collection of local price surveys, Display Support Of Feature measure, merchandising and execution direction in alignment with DGY Retail Standards, competitive activity, top retailer and chain volume trends and co-op budget spending. Corrective action plans may be formulated if necessary. 
• Ensure alignment with Company direction on co-op budget allocations as driven down by Senior Management.
• Maintain periodic call frequency within assigned wholesalers to monitor retail on and off premise programming and maintain relationships with field sales managers in Key DMA’s as assigned and agreed upon with Region Sales Directors.
• Expectation of 3-4 days per month targeted at retail monitoring and driving improved execution against key objectives for our Yuengling portfolio and brands.
• Focus against modeling and improving execution of DGY brands in alignment with our Retail Standards in top volume independent and chain retail accounts.
• Participate in crew drive activity on a periodic basis within assigned territory.
• Serve as a mentor and resource to District Managers in Region on an as needed basis.
• Develop, recommend and, upon approval, execute the annual sales volume and net price plan to maximize market potential and sales volume within specified territory.
• Participate in the sales forecasting process and provide regional and statewide data to ensure that forecasting accuracy supports the demand planning process in the supply chain. 
• Collaborate with Strategic Account to develop strategies and tactics designed to maximize DGY opportunities across all channels of trade.  
• Develop plans to execute sales initiatives to capitalize on opportunities within key large format, small format and on-premise chain account base. 
• Develop local market plans to meet sales objectives driven by Region Sales Directors. 
• Help develop annual distribution targets by brand and by package for all wholesalers.
• Support creation of account target lists by wholesaler for key packages in order to improve distribution and generate new business for the brewery.
• Reinforce DGY company distribution, shelf sets and merchandising standards as driven down from Region Sales Directors and Zone Managers.
• Manage and direct local sampling plans of DGY portfolio through interaction with consumers and retailers at local retail samplings, retail work-withs, special events, trade shows, etc.
• Establish and monitor annual point-of-sale budgets with each wholesaler and verify spend versus budget.
• Manage and supervise the allocation of all point-of-sale materials with assigned distributors.
• Identify and ensure distributor support material is adequately maintained on a monthly basis. 
• Engage point-of-sale commitments and encourage merchandising efforts while in retail trade.
• Maintain regular communication frequency with wholesalers as assigned by Region Sales Directors and aligned with respective Zone Managers by using resources to communicate as needed.
• Annually conduct sales meeting presentations with our top 10 distributors’ sales teams.
• Periodically conduct face to face planning meetings with assigned distributor sales management. 
• Communicate clearly internally, both in written and verbal formats, to all key cross functional teams starting with the Strategic and Regional Account Managers and also including Marketing and Brewery Operations teams.
• Disciplined focus on providing written recaps of all meetings, retail days, progress against objectives, co-op budget balances and any other business or execution opportunities in the market. 
• Responsibly manage annual co-op budgets with distributors in compliance with all Yuengling policies and procedures. 
• Responsibly manage annual travel and expense budgets in compliance with D.G. Yuengling Travel and Expense Policy Guidelines.
• Treat all DGY Company resources in a very responsible manner that would be representative of how you would treat your own.
• Maintain accurate records of current market pricing for DGY products and competition. Must be maintained and updated along with an updated wholesaler file of current Yuengling price to retailer by package annually.
• Communicate current pricing information to management. 
• Request and verify price surveys with each distributor or specified chain and channel of trade. Compare Yuengling package pricing vs. defined competitive set. Complete price surveys and timelines specified by Region Sales Directors.
• Work with management to initiate corrective action to improve Yuengling pricing in all on and off premise accounts.
• Initiate interaction with consumers and retailers that may have a quality control issue.
• Perform basic troubleshooting and corrective actions on draft beer systems while at retail.
• Manage distributor bill back process to ensure alignment with Company policies and that all invoices are being processed on a monthly basis for distributor partners.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Strong presentation skills. 
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills. Must be able to speak clearly and persuasively in positive or negative situations. 
• Understanding of, and ability to perform, basic trade math as a part of doing business in a “fact based” selling culture.
• Attention to details. 
• Effective time management. 
• Calculated risk taker who is comfortable taking independent actions. 
• Creativity & original thinking.
• Team player that is passionate about selling beer and winning. 
• Valid driver’s license required with excellent driving record.
• Highly self-motivated and ability to work both traditional business hours as well as non-traditional business hours including, at times, nights, weekends, and holidays, as required. 
• Must be available for overnight travel for crew drives, meetings, training and occasional weekend events or distributor and retailer entertainment.
• Must have solid computer knowledge and skills in Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, as well as specific applications such as VIP, Circadia (IR), and Apple apps designed for DGY business purposes.
• Must be able to lift, carry, push and/or pull up to 35 pounds.
• May be asked to perform additional duties and responsibilities as requested, directed or assigned by Region Sales Directors or Zone Managers.

Required Education and/or Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree preferred with a minimum of 7-10 years of experience in Consumer Products Sales.
• Direct experience in the malt beverage industry and/or calling on regional/local key accounts is highly preferred.  
• Preferential treatment will be given to candidates who possess an expertise and passion for beer.