General Manager

Job Description

General ManagerBuckfastleigh, Devon c£45,000 per annum DOE Plus BenefitsWhy RiverfordEvery week, Riverford delivers organic food to around 80,000 homes and businesses across the UK. This takes loads of brilliant people, from growers to IT experts, and more besides! We’re a friendly, forward-thinking bunch, and our three core values - Stronger Together, Do Things Well and Independence - run through everything we do. We celebrate diversity, valuing, supporting and developing the whole person as an equal opportunities employer. In 2018, Riverford became employee owned. Working here makes you a co-owner’, our way of saying employee’. It’s not just a name - every co-owner can play a part in shaping Riverford. Success means much more than just profits; we want this to be a place people enjoy coming to work, and a business our co-owners feel proud of. We’re also proud to be a B Corp - a certification for ethical businesses who work not just for profit, but also to benefit people and the planet. What you’ll be doing The Wholesale business unit is a growing part of Riverford’s overall business; we have an established customer base in the West/South West of England, but we know this could go further. We’re looking for a talented, ambitious individual to lead this area forwards; developing the team, driving growth, increasing turnover, and turning the Wholesale Department into the major contributor that we know it can be.To support this growth, the Devon operation moved to a new facility in October, where for the first time it will be autonomous from our main site. That means you’ll get to lead your business unit across two dedicated locations, but with the resources of a larger business behind you.It’s a very varied and challenging opportunity - with everything from strategic business development to supporting day-to-day activities, you’ll never get bored! Alongside the commercial responsibilities, you’ll need to develop your team, nurturing talent and developing new capabilities to enable the business to grow. You’ll also be planning what crops are needed, working with our Procurement Team to bring those plans to life, and ensuring that the business systems continuously improve.We’re less concerned about specifics and decades of experience than we are about cultural fit, ambition, and passion for this great opportunity. What we are looking for is someone who is able to lead the team, providing leadership to encourage them to achieve the best they can. Ideally, you will have a background in food to enable you to successfully grow the business and understand the supply chain challenges that come with fresh produce!Your responsibilities - Customer relationship and commercial management - this will include new business, proposition, service, and debt- Develop your team’s capability and support their career progression and development within Riverford - Line manage three co-owners and have departmental leadership of 20 co-owners- Agreement of weekly selling prices and management of the published price list we send to customers. This will cover the format, tone and weekly ranges and margins - Identify what your customers are looking for and ensure that the Procurement Team orders to this. This will happen on a weekly basis and will also be required on a yearly basis for our long-term planning process- Full P&L and business planning responsibility for the wholesale operation in Devon and Herefordshire - you will need to detail what is business your vision for the business and clear business plans- Develop the required systems and process to ensure the business and team are set up to succeed - Develop strong relationships with all relevant company departments to maximise sales and goodwillSkills & experience - Ideally from a produce/food background - You are interested in our product, supply chain and business- You will have a proven track record of sales development - Working knowledge of a commercial approach including category management, customer portfolio, range, revenue, and profit management - Sales and customer-focused background in delivering results - Previous P&L experience and understanding of margins and costings - Ability to build relationships that offer value for the customer and for Riverford - Able to work under your own initiative Other organisations may call this role Wholesale Manager, Produce Wholesale Manager, Head of Wholesale Operations, or Wholesale Development Manager. Co-owner benefits - 33 days’ holiday per annum (including bank holidays) - Generous company pension scheme - Annual profit share; 10% of all our profits are split equally between all co-owners - 25% off everything we sell - Heavily discounted organic breakfasts and lunches, home-cooked by our canteen chefs, at our two biggest sites - Free organic fruit and veg! - Enhanced maternity / paternity pay (plus six months of free veg boxes) - An annual allowance to spend on Riverford branded clothing - Lots of free co-owner events, including two massive parties a year - Flexible working options - Life assurance cover Please note, the official job title for this position is Head of Wholesale, with General Manager being used for advertising purposes. This vacancy is being advertised by Webrecruit. The services advertised by Webrecruit are those of an Employment Agency.