National Sales Manager Traditional Trade

Our Client

Our client is an established global consumer goods business with a significant presence in Saudi Arabia, operating through a lean commercial structure supported by a large third-party distribution network.

The company is looking for an experienced National Sales Manager Traditional Trade to drive sales, distribution growth and channel performance across Saudi Arabia.

Your Role

You will lead the national Traditional Trade business, driving commercial growth, market penetration and distributor performance across the Kingdom.

This is a hands-on commercial leadership role requiring a strong understanding of the Saudi Traditional Trade landscape, distributor economics and route-to-market execution.

You will work closely with a large third-party distribution partner, influencing sales teams and driving accountability without direct reporting authority.

Key Responsibilities

• Own national Traditional Trade sales targets, market share and distribution growth.
• Develop channel strategies across wholesalers, traditional groceries, mini-markets and independent retailers.
• Expand numeric distribution, improve outlet productivity and strengthen market penetration.
• Manage the commercial relationship with the appointed distribution partner, ensuring accountability for sales targets, market coverage and execution.
• Improve route-to-market effectiveness across van sales, wholesale, direct coverage and sub-distribution.
• Monitor primary and secondary sales, inventory, stock availability and distributor performance.
• Develop annual business plans, sales forecasts and channel growth initiatives.
• Manage pricing, trade promotions and channel investments while protecting profitability.
• Drive new product launches, merchandising, visibility and distribution expansion.
• Conduct regular market visits and distributor business reviews to identify gaps and improve execution.
• Work closely with Marketing, Supply Chain, Finance and the Country Manager to deliver commercial priorities.

Must-Have

• 8–12 years of progressive FMCG sales experience, with substantial Saudi market exposure.
• Proven experience managing Traditional Trade at a national or significant regional level.
• Strong understanding of Saudi wholesale, independent retail, van sales, sub-distribution and route-to-market dynamics.
• Demonstrated success managing substantial sales volumes and delivering measurable revenue and distribution growth.
• Hands-on experience managing third-party distributors and influencing large sales organisations.
• Strong commercial understanding of pricing, margins, trade investments, inventory and distributor economics.
• Experience driving salesforce productivity, outlet coverage and channel execution.
• Strong negotiation and stakeholder-management skills across distributors, wholesalers and senior commercial leadership.

We are looking for a commercial leader who understands Saudi Traditional Trade from the ground up and can deliver results through a distributor-led operating model.

Next Steps

Upload your resume via our ATS platform and ensure all form details are complete. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted within 5–7 working days for a more detailed discussion about the role. Please note, due to high application volumes, we will only respond to shortlisted profiles.