Sales Market Manager – Eastern & Central

Finding the right place to grow your career isn’t (over) easy, so we’re here to help by sharing a few reasons why the grass is greener at Vital Farms. We think you’ll appreciate our focus on Conscious Capitalism, which drives business decisions that benefit all our stakeholders (leading to even better business results). You might be drawn to our innovative approach and refusal to settle for the “way things have always been done.” Or you could find it exciting to grow your skills while working for an industry-leading brand. Whether you’re into our values, our brand, or our egg-cellent puns, we hope you’ll join our Crew and help us change the world 108 square feet at a time! 

At Vital Farms, we’re proud of the diverse communities we serve and the stakeholders who help bring our purpose to life. We’re committed to fostering an inclusive and collaborative environment where every crew member feels valued. We see this as one of our greatest strengths - and your role is key to helping us build on it. 

Your Role:

Reporting to the Senior Regional Sales Manager, this individual will increase our Natural presence in the Central & Eastern U.S along with scaling our eComm business nationally. These regions feature unique retailers, diverse needs, and personalities, as well as strong competition. This role is focused on making HQ calls and managing a diverse-broker network to deliver our sales goals. This is a hybrid role which requires a 40/60 split of time, with 40% of time spent in the field visiting stores and managing calls at the headquarter level, and 60% of time spent in the home office, traveling for trade shows or team meetings. Our ideal candidate for the role is extroverted, competitive, and resourceful, as well as able to utilize syndicated data to help gain new distribution. This role will work independently and collaboratively with business development, trade management, and the category team to help Vital Farms succeed at regional accounts. 

What You'll Do:

• Visit regional & independent retailers to build relationships, earn trust, and provide customer-first solutions.
• Manage headquarter sales calls for key Eastern & Central regional existing/potential customers. 
• Oversee & build a fast-growing eComm business with a strategic national plan.
• Build and maintain rapport with key distributors and customers; identify new customer opportunities.
• Build a strategic and collaborative annual trade promotion calendar for key customers and execute distributor promotions for independent accounts.
• Develop, manage, and support a broker partner network, including setting standards, ensure execution, and conduct regular business reviews.
• Track weekly consumption, distribution, pricing, and sales to continuously achieve forecast accuracy.
• Create meaningful presentations for category reviews using category, brand, and item insights to capitalize on opportunities.
• Accurate and timely forecasts for expected demand, trade plan, and promotional trade spend.
• Manage category reviews across dairy and other categories to maximize and advance Vital Farms innovation and existing items in retail accounts.
• Perform retail level store checks in all markets as needed to ensure execution of initiatives and uncover opportunities.  
• Partner with marketing on impactful shopper programs at strategic accounts.  
• Attend trade shows to represent the brand and develop sales opportunities.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with key customers at the category manager level and engage in appropriate top to top interactions. 
• Management of Vital Farms entire portfolio of ethically produced products. 

What You Bring to the Table:

• Bachelor’s degree (BA/BS) preferred.
• 3+ years of grocery sales and account management experience in the food industry; Dairy or Refrigerated experience preferred.
• Candidates in CST and near a major airport preferred.
• Ability to travel as needed for customer appointments, trade shows, etc. Anticipate as much as up to 50% travel.
• Must have demonstrated experience calling on Key Accounts throughout the East, Central Regions & eComm. Preference given to candidates with experience working with the following accounts:
  • INFRA
  • MOMs Organic  
  • Earth Fare
  • Plum Market  
  • Healthy Edge Retail Group
  • eComm Customers – Fresh Direct, Thrive Market, Weee! Inc, Hungryroot, Imperfect Foods
• Previous Account Manager or Field Sales experience, with familiarity of planning trade and promotions. 
• Established relationships and demonstrated success working with key retailer accounts, and distributor relationships, including UNFI and KeHE.
• Working knowledge and keen understanding of SPINS, IRI, Nielsen and other syndicated data platforms.
• Broker management experience.
• Proven ability to work independently, as well as collaboratively.
• Highly adaptable & resourceful.
• Proven sales track record in a new product/new market environment.
• Proficient in Trade Analytics (selling price, margins, etc.)
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office (PowerPoint, Excel, and Word)
• Excellent skills in the following areas: listening, presentation, negotiation, analysis, customer service, selling, communication, organization.
• You’re no hero – You know the power of teamwork and celebrate the work of others before your own.
• You give a sh*t – You believe in acting like an owner and making Vital Farms a place to be proud of.
• You raise the standards – You know growth can be hard, but you strive to improve yourself and others each day.
• You can walk in someone else’s boots – You seek to understand other’s viewpoints and think that you get to better answers by sitting on the same side of the table.
• You don’t walk on eggshells – You’re not afraid to leave the bullsh*t behind and have honest conversations.
• We recognize that talent comes in many forms. Even if you don’t meet every requirement, we encourage you to apply. You may have strengths we haven’t yet considered! 

What We Bring to the Table:

• A fast-paced, energetic, remote environment with passionate people who are leading a movement to bring ethically produced food to the table.
• Competitive pay and benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision, and Paid Parental Leave, just to name a few).
• Generous retirement contributions: 401(k) + 3% Contribution from Day 1.
• Free eggs and butter (yes, really!), along with friends and family discounts. 
• Fun team SWAG that will make you the talk of the town.
• Professional development opportunities and an amazing team dedicated to your growth.

At Vital Farms, compensation decisions are dependent upon a variety of factors, which may include, but are not limited to, skill level, experience, education, training, market demands, and business needs. A reasonable estimate of the current starting annual base salary for this position is $125,000 - $147,000. Please keep in mind that hiring at the maximum end of the range would not be typical in order to allow for potential continued future salary growth.