Job Description

About the Company

Panelto Foods is an Irish Food company based in Longford and established in 2004. Panelto produces a range of high quality contemporary sandwich breads for the UK and Irish and food service markets, from a highly automated world class bakery. Panelto has recently experienced a successful major expansion, doubling the size of the existing factory and workforce.

About the role

Leading the Commercial strategy for Asda, Morrisons and New UK Customers, leading the Customer Relationship Management at every touch point, and delivering commercial performance goals in line with the with Panelto Foods' and our European Bakery Group Sister Company Coolback's broader strategic goals for market expansion and category leadership.

Reporting to:

Commercial Director, Panelto Foods.

Role and Responsibilities:

Strategic Commercial Leadership:

Develop and execute a commercially sound strategy for selected accounts in alignment with the broader company objectives and the evolving UK market.

Customer & Market Development:

Lead customer-specific joint business planning across selected UK retail, wholesale, and convenience sectors. Propose and deliver strategic growth plans including NPD, promotional programmes, and category development initiatives.

UK Team Leadership:

Manage and develop the UK Field Sales team, setting clear commercial KPIs, leading communications with HQ functions, and ensuring alignment with Panelto's and Coolback's category and brand objectives.

Revenue and Margin Ownership & Forecasting:

Full P&L responsibility for the selected UK accounts, current and future. Present and agree 12-month rolling forecasts by product/customer and collaborate with finance and supply chain to manage budgets and service levels.

Strategic Customer Engagement:

Build and lead collaborative partnerships commercially at buyer/senior buyer/category director level, and with the key decision makers / influencers across NPD, Technical and Finance. Translate commercial strategy and CRM strategy into tangible wins across Panelto Propositions.

Insights & Market Trends:

Lead market intelligence efforts in the UK, in order to fuel the innovation and proposition pipeline. Analyse market performance, key competitor performance (UK and Europe) and identify opportunities and inform strategy from the UK market place. Present regular performance reviews to internal and external stakeholders.

New Business, Innovation and Propositions:

Immerse yourself in the innovation and proposition process. Through a combination of market intelligence and Panelto Manufacturing capability, play a core role in future innovation and propositions, that strengthen Panelto's market positioning and market share.

Cost Efficiency

Drive initiatives for process improvement, cost efficiencies, and innovation-led factory simplification.

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

Work with NPD, technical, finance, category, operations, and marketing to ensure effective delivery of product launches and commercial initiatives.

Key Experience & Skills

Personal Attributes:

Strategic, entrepreneurial, and outcome-driven. A proven leader with excellent commercial acumen and communication skills. A skilled influencer who builds trust with both internal teams and customers. Comfortable navigating ambiguity and managing change in a growing business. Analytical and data-literate, with an eye for identifying and acting on opportunity. Passionate about food, innovation, and winning in a competitive market.

Technical Attributes:

Degree-qualified in Business, Sales, or Marketing (or equivalent). Minimum 7-10 years' experience in a senior commercial FMCG role. Demonstrated ability to manage national retail accounts at senior level. Strong understanding of chilled/frozen grocery categories. Solid financial and P&L capability. * Experience in cross-functional team leadership and performance delivery.