The Sofa & Chair Company - Jobs - 16 Trade Sales Associate

Trade Sales Associate

COMPANY PROFILE:

The Sofa and Chair Company was established in 2001 primarily to provide handmade, bespoke upholstered furniture to the interior design/architectural industry. The company has over the years developed its own brand offering now both retail and trade clients a quality, design-led range of furniture within its manufacturing and sales premises based in West London.

The company is now entering an exciting phase of growth which will see its sales, design and manufacturing capacity and processes develop and expand over the coming 12 month period.

The Sofa and Chair Company knows that the success of this strategy will depend upon its people. Each member of the team will be given the opportunity to take ownership and be rewarded for the success of the company.

OVERALL OBJECTIVE:

To promote and sell to trade and commercial clients The Sofa and Chair Companys standard and bespoke range of handmade upholstered furniture and extensive range of fabrics.

To create sales and business opportunities by targeting new trade clients and successfully converting these leads to a growing and diverse portfolio of active clients.

To nurture relationships with existing clients to achieve ongoing growth in sales, retain your customers loyalty and build an in-depth knowledge and understanding of their needs and procedures.

To successfully set your sales strategies on a weekly and monthly basis to ensure your targets are regular met and often surpassed.

Key Skills Required

• A strong sales background preferably gained within the furniture industry or high to luxury concept/lifestyle market. You should be able to illustrate past experience achieving targets set and outline your strategies used .
• A knowledge or experience within the interior design, architecture, property development field would be beneficial to this role in relating and understanding your target clientele.
• The candidate should be proficient with CRM and other data management methods.
• The candidate should be proficient in Microsoft Outlook, Excel (Sage or SAP may be useful too) and be able to compose sales correspondence effectively.
• A passion for furniture and/or design will be beneficial in understanding our product and should enhance your ability to sell effectively.
• You should be a confident communicator in all arenas of your day from talking to a client one to one to presenting a large project pitch to a number of clients.
• You should be a great team player and thrive on the family spirit that exists within The Sofa and Chair Company.
• You should be a highly organised, practical and logical individual who is able to time management and prioritise your day, week, monthly effectively.

Accountabilities

• To manage and enhance the sales potential with a small portfolio of existing Sofa & Chair clients. This will include undertaking an initial client familiarisation visit. Follow up S&C site tour. Regular follow ups and management of detailed CRM data on the clients quotations, orders and their general business and specific project needs.
• To undertake detailed client design briefs and write specifications which exactly match the clients criteria for design, budget, situation/use etc. To ensure you manage your clients expectations at all times by communicating the correct information and offering the right guidance when necessary. Additionally you must be able to translate the clients needs to our in-house design and production teams in an effective manner with attention always to detail.
• To generate leads and opportunities for new sales and target potential new clients. Your targets should be readily validated and researched and regularly discussed with the Sales and Marketing Manager. New business appointments will be targeted to all Trade Sales Associates and their progress and conversion will be monitored and targeted.
• To set agendas with all new clients to ensure repeat business is generated and our service is tailored to meet their needs as far as is possible. To ensure regular communication with your clients is maintained and you enhance your client loyalty and avoid competitor threats to your database.
• To assess, monitor and manage all client data efficiently and effectively use CRM database to report on client buying trends, average spends, discounting levels etc.
• To undertake intensive product, manufacturing process, sales and client care training as given by S&C and also under your own auspices to build a strong expertise in our industry and that of our clients.
• To efficiently manage all client data including opportunities management, client data capture, sales process management and credit control. To ensure all information is reported to Sales and Marketing Manager as required.
• To project manage each order with every client in a professional and time effective manner. This will include effective communication and liaison with all relevant departments within the company, creating quotations, proforma invoices, delivery notes for all enquiries and sales. All paperwork should be correctly filed, all data input onto Sage (or new CRM system when launched). All deliveries will need to scheduled on relevant calendars , fabrics ordered and delivery dates scheduled etc. Attention to detail and daily checklists are required for all orders to ensure delays and errors are minimised.

Benefits

• Basic Salary of 20-25K is offered depending upon experience. An attractive commission structure is offered and successful Associates should expect OTE of 30-35K within the first 12 months.

To Apply:

If you feel you would suite the role and enjoy a challenge then please send a covering letter and your CV to: jobs@thesofaandchair.co.uk or call on 02089934415 Ext 202.