Area Sales Manager

REPORTING TO: Commercial Director

YOUR MISSION:

The Area Manager Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Other is fully accountable for the sales leadership and direction of the Vacheron Constantin business in Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and other emerging markets. She/he is responsible to laterally lead the partner business in the respective markets to drive excellent brand and retail execution across all channels with the aim of setting, meeting and exceeding the overall targets (financial & people). She/he is accountable for delivering exceptional client experience, brand visibility and operational excellence, thanks to the proper planning and implementation of the Vacheron Constantin Distribution, Retail and Training strategy.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Area Management

• Drive the achievement of annual sales target by delivering the expected sell-out and stock objectives.
• Support retailers to realise their full sell-out potential: annual action plan, merchandising, special allocations, training, incentives.
• Manage the analysis of stock, sell-in and sell-out to create proper sales forecasting (weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually) and adequate action plans; support local and HQ management with performance reports and insights.
• Manage the day-to-day relationship between Vacheron Constantin regional office and its network of authorised retailers, ensuring a high level of customer service and reactivity.
• By working closely with the retailers and with Vacheron Constantin teams, achieve the best brand visibility to support sales in line with allocated budget, brand expectations and retailers programmes.
• Support trade marketing activities, define commercial needs to determine the trade activation plan.
• Organise and conduct regular training sessions for retailer’s staff and nurture the relationship with sales ambassadors and key contacts.
• Monitor and stay informed on actions and plans of the competition.
• Coordinate with other functions, esp Retail Excellence, Training, CRM and Events to build brand equity and drive sales opportunities.
• By working closely with the External Partner, Retail Excellence, Training and CRM teams to acquire new clients, develop local clientele and nurture existing clientele to develop brand loyalty (REACT).
• Visit point of sales on a regular basis to ensure quality standards (visual, assortment, ad-hoc training etc.) and strong relationship with POS sales staff and management.
• Participate in retailers’ brand promotion activities (events, manufacture visits etc.), acting as a Brand Ambassador.
• Support all members of the regional team by giving regular updates on the distribution network.

Lateral Leadership

• Ensure high performing teams are in place across the network: develop and drive individual and team performance through an open feedback culture.
• Provide leadership and direction for the teams ensuring they have clarity and are enabled to successfully drive and support the overall company direction.

CANDIDATE PROFILE:

• Previous experience in luxury retail, ideally in the GCC.
• Experience in high-end client management.
• Proactive and qualitative result-oriented.
• Customer and service focus, great interpersonal skills, diplomacy.
• Excellent organisation and problem-solving skills.
• Enthusiastic team player.
• Fluency in English and Arabic.
• Computer literate (knowledge of SAP, Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Ability to travel extensively in the markets in scope and attend client activations.

SKILLS AND QUALITIES

• Influencing skills.
• Mindset = entrepreneurial/change driver.
• Retail experience (performance management/compliance).