Director, Sales - Walmart
Location: Bentonville, AR area preferred
Reports To: Vice President of Sales, Major Chains
Relocation Assistance: Provided
Position Summary
The Director, Sales - Walmart is responsible for developing and executing strategic sales initiatives that drive profitable growth, market share expansion, and customer satisfaction within the Walmart business. Reporting directly to the Vice President of Major Chains, this role serves as the primary leader and relationship manager for Walmart and Sam’s Club and will oversee a small team of National Account Managers while partnering closely with Marketing, R&D, Supply Chain, Operations, Finance, and other cross-functional teams to strategically drive this partnership.
The ideal candidate is an experienced sales leader with a proven track record of growing large national retail accounts, building executive-level customer relationships, and leading high-performing teams. Experience working directly with Walmart, managing others, and conducting top-to-top business reviews is strongly preferred.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Account Leadership
- Develop and execute comprehensive sales strategies aligned with company objectives for revenue growth, profitability, and market share expansion within Walmart and Sam’s Club.
- Own the overall Walmart relationship and serve as the primary point of contact or escalation for key customer stakeholders.
- Build and cultivate relationships at all levels of the organization, including merchant, replenishment, sourcing, operations, and executive leadership teams.
- Drive strategic business planning including diversification and margin management, annual joint business planning, and long-term growth initiatives with Walmart.
- Identify and pursue new business opportunities, category expansion, and product innovation opportunities.
Sales & Business Growth
- Deliver annual volume, revenue, profitability, and market share targets.
- Lead pricing strategy, contract negotiations, promotional planning, and product quotations, including capital investment requirements when applicable.
- Develop and drive pipeline opportunities that support sustainable growth and account diversification into additional whitespace.
- Monitor customer performance, market trends, competitive activity, and category insights, communicating findings and recommendations to leadership.
- Obtain the voice of the customer through regular customer engagement, industry events, and intelligence gathering.
Customer & Cross-Functional Leadership
- Lead cross-functional collaboration with Procurement, Product Development, Marketing, Quality, Finance, Category Management, Supply Chain, Forecasting, Operations, and Customer Service teams.
- Ensure customer requirements are effectively communicated and executed throughout the organization.
- Partner with forecasting and supply chain teams to develop accurate demand plans and inventory strategies.
- Resolve service, quality, and operational issues promptly while maintaining a high level of customer satisfaction. Be effective point of escalation as necessary.
- Collaborate with distribution and channel partners to maximize sales effectiveness and service levels.
Team Leadership
- Lead, coach, and develop a team of National Account Managers.
- Establish clear performance objectives, accountability measures, and development plans for team members.
- Foster a culture of customer focus, collaboration, continuous improvement, and results-oriented execution.
- Effectively delegate responsibilities while ensuring alignment with organizational goals and customer expectations.
Business Operations
- Maintain accurate forecasts, weekly customer activity updates, quarterly account reviews, and pipeline management through CRM tools.
- Prepare and present customer business reviews, growth strategies, and performance updates to executive leadership.
- Utilize data and analytics to support strategic decision-making and business planning.
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Sales, or a related discipline.
- 10+ years of progressive sales experience in packaging, consumer products, foodservice, retail, or related industries.
- Proven success managing large national accounts and delivering profitable sales growth.
- Experience leading and developing sales professionals.
- Demonstrated ability to build executive-level customer relationships and influence key decision-makers.
- Strong business acumen with expertise in sales strategy, negotiations, forecasting, and financial analysis.
- Excellent communication, presentation, and relationship management skills.
- Proficiency with CRM systems, SAP, Microsoft Excel, and PowerPoint.
- Ability to travel up to 25% as business needs require.
Preferred
- Direct experience managing the Walmart business is strongly preferred.
- Experience living and working within the Walmart supplier ecosystem.
Location Requirement
This role is preferably based in Bentonville, Arkansas or the surrounding area. Relocation assistance can also be provided for qualified candidates.
A reasonable estimate of the current range is $150,000 - $210,000 + bonus + benefits. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual payis determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. At Novolex, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the top of the range for their role and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case.
The benefits for this role include 401(k) plan with company match, comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance, flexible spending and health savings accounts, paid vacation, and sick days, paid parental leave, paid holidays and wellness program
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