Job Description:

Graduate Trainee Area Sales Manager

Location: Bristol / Avonmouth
Salary: £30,000–£32,000 + Annual Profit Share + Company Car 
Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00am–5:00pm

An excellent opportunity to join a successful and growing business, gain broad commercial experience and develop into a field-based sales role.

Our client is a leading specialist distributor supplying well-known brands and products to customers across the UK. The Bristol operation is growing and investing in its external sales team, creating an excellent opportunity for someone to join the business, develop commercially and progress into a customer-facing Area Sales Manager position.

You’ll initially spend around three months based at the company’s Avonmouth operation, developing a strong understanding of the business, its products, customers and suppliers before progressing into field sales.

The Role

Your training and development will include:

• Product and systems training
• Exposure to the day-to-day commercial operation of the business
• Developing sales, account management and commercial skills
• Spending time with key manufacturers and suppliers
• Visiting other businesses within the wider group
• Shadowing experienced Area Sales Managers
• Ongoing mentoring and support

As your knowledge and confidence develop, you’ll progress into a field-based Area Sales role covering customers across the M5 and M4 corridors, from Somerset through Bristol and across towards Swindon.

You’ll be responsible for:

• Developing relationships with existing customers
• Identifying and winning new business
• Building your own customer base and territory
• Visiting customers across the region
• Developing your commercial and account management skills

There is excellent scope to continue progressing beyond this, with longer-term opportunities across sales, business development and management.

About You

We’re looking for an ambitious and commercially minded individual with strong communication skills and a genuine interest in building a career in B2B sales.

You should be:

• Educated to degree level or similar, or able to demonstrate equivalent commercial potential and experience
• Confident, personable and comfortable speaking with different people
• Commercially minded with strong relationship-building skills
• Self-motivated and keen to progress
• Organised and able to work independently
• Interested in developing into a field-based sales position
• A full UK driving licence holder

Previous experience within sales, customer service, retail, hospitality or another customer-facing environment would be beneficial, although industry experience is not required.

Your attitude, communication skills and potential are more important than having followed a particular career or educational path.

What’s on Offer?

• £30,000–£32,000 starting salary
• Annual profit share bonus
• Around three months of structured commercial training
• Fast-track progression into field sales
• Company car once progressing into the Area Sales Manager role
• Regular salary reviews
• Ongoing mentoring and development
• Genuine long-term progression opportunities
• Monday to Friday working hours, 8:00am–5:00pm

If you’re ambitious, commercially minded and looking for an opportunity to develop into a successful field-based sales role, apply today.