Food Service Sales Manager

Our founders, food industry veterans Mike and Tisha, knew that food wasn't what it used to be. They wanted to make it better-by creating a new kind of farm. A farm that can grow up to 300 times more food than an open-field farm on a smaller footprint, without use of herbicides, pesticides, or other chemicals that you don't want in your food. A farm powered with 100% renewable energy, growing with 95% less water and delivering food within 48 hours, for longer freshness for our customers and less food waste.

80 Acres Farms is a vertical farming leader, operating commercial farms in Ohio, Kentucky, and soon Georgia in addition to research and development farms in Arkansas and The Hague, Netherlands. All farms utilize state-of-the-art technology and analytics developed by the company's subsidiary, Infinite Acres.

80 Acres Farms-branded salads, microgreens, herbs, and tomatoes are available at retailers and food service distributors from Michigan to Florida, including Kroger, Whole Foods, The Fresh Market, Dorothy Lane Markets, Sysco, and US Foods. 80 Acres Farms is supported by world-class investors and partners, including General Atlantic, Siemens, Barclays, Ocado, and Signify Philips.

If you're interested in making a difference, join our team and help us change how the world eats.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Senior Food Service Sales Manager plays a pivotal role in driving sales growth and expanding market share within the food service sector. This position requires a highly motivated, strategic thinker who can lead sales initiatives, build strong relationships with clients, and collaborate closely with internal teams to deliver innovative solutions. The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of the food service industry, a proven track record in sales leadership, and the ability to navigate complex market dynamics to achieve business objectives.

RESPONSIBILITIES & DUTIES

• Develop and implement sales strategies tailored to the food service industry, identifying growth opportunities and aligning efforts with company goals.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with key accounts, including distributors, operators, and food service providers, to ensure high levels of satisfaction and loyalty.
• Strengthen customer relationships by driving growth and profitability through an optimized product mix, leading contract negotiations that balance profitability with client needs, and providing continuous client product knowledge and training
• Meet and exceed sales targets by effectively managing sales pipelines, forecasting, and budgeting, ensuring the profitable growth of the food service sales portfolio.
• Utilize internal and external data to develop business reviews to present to customers with specific objectives to grow and expand business.
• Work with marketing and operations to support sales opportunities as well as determine customer needs to enhance the achievement of overall sales efforts
• Maintain and develop a portfolio of priority and assigned accounts through in-person field and sales calls
• Assist and participate in marketing events, vendor fairs, distributor sales meetings, food shows and industry trade events
• Troubleshoot and respond to product complaints and customer issues
• Maintain competitive pricing and new/discontinued item information and communicate trends/pricing issues and other unique issues as it relates to sales.

Qualifications:

• 7+ years' experience in sales, with a strong background in the food service or food production industry
• Bachelor's degree in business, marketing, or related field (MBA preferred).
• Strong familiarity with distributor landscape within food service
• Proven track record of building strategic plans that support company sales targets
• Ability to drive cross-functional agreement
• A strong CUSTOMER FIRST mentality
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced work environment; can pivot and accept change in real time
• Nimble and self-driven; able to prioritize and make decisive judgement calls
• Excellent planner, strong follow up skills, and problem solver
• Skillful communicator - written and verbal

BENEFITS WE OFFER YOU

• Health, dental, and vision insurance starting day one of employment-- health insurance plans start at just $25/month
• Paid Time Off- Minimum of 4 weeks
• 1-week paid health & wellness time
• 10 paid holidays
• Parental leave
• Annual Tuition Reimbursement
• 401k with up to 4% company match
• Company-paid life insurance
• Short and long-term disability insurance

ABOUT OUR HIRING PRACTICES

Statistics show that underrepresented communities don't apply for a job unless they meet 100% of the qualifications. Don't worry if you think you can't check every box on the list; we'll provide all the on-the-job training you need.

80 Acres Farms is an equal opportunity employer. You're defined by more than just your job title, and we want you to feel comfortable bringing your true self to work. We value your talents, your traditions, your take on the world, and everything else that makes you unique. We strive to be to be a place where a diverse mix of talented people want to come, to stay, and to do their best work.