National Account Manager (Retail) Full Time

About Islands Chocolate

At Islands, we were founded with a simple but uncompromising mission: to create exceptional chocolate that delivers genuine positive impact at source.

Born from growing cocoa ourselves in St Vincent, we set out to prove that flavour, fairness and transparency can and should  go hand in hand. Today, we work directly with farming partners who share our commitment to growing cocoa The Islands Way: with respect for people, place and craft.

Farmed, fermented and crafted with a flavour-first approach, our chocolate is trusted by the UK’s leading baristas, bakers, chefs and connoisseurs. Every product is rooted in transparency, craftsmanship and strong ethics.

Tastes Good. Does Good.

Role Overview

The National Account Manager will take full ownership of Islands Chocolate’s retail channel, managing and growing relationships across key accounts including major grocers, online retailers, and independent outlets.

This is a highly commercial role focused on driving sales, increasing brand presence, and building strong, long-term partnerships. You’ll combine strategic thinking with hands-on execution to deliver growth across all retail formats.

Key Goals:

• Fully own and proactively manage all retail accounts across grocery, online and wholesale.
• Build strong, cross-functional relationships with key customer contacts (buying, supply chain, category, marketing, e-commerce)
• Expand distribution and product range across all formats (main estate, convenience, online, cafés, front of store)
• Maximise sales performance through effective use of customer systems (availability, compliance, promotions, ranging)
• Deliver standout in-store and online visibility through activation (POS, secondary displays, sampling, digital placements)

Key Responsibilities:

Account Management & Commercial Growth

• Develop and execute joint business plans with key retail customers to deliver sustainable growth
• Identify opportunities to increase distribution, product range, and brand visibility across all retail channels
• Lead commercial discussions and support negotiations relating to pricing, promotional activity, and trading terms
• Relationship building – build trusted, long-term partnerships with key stakeholders across customer organisations
• Take full ownership of the retail channel P&L
• Deliver against revenue, volume, and gross margin targets
• Own forecasting and demand planning processes in collaboration with internal stakeholders
• Monitor performance against targets and implement corrective actions where required
• Monitor competitor activity, category trends, and retailer performance to inform strategy

Promotions & Shopper Marketing

• Build and execute commercially effective promotional plans aligned to key trading periods
• Collaborate with marketing teams to deliver compelling shopper marketing initiatives both in-store and online
• Analyse campaign and promotional performance to optimise future activity and ROI

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with marketing, supply chain, finance, and operations teams to ensure seamless execution across accounts
• Support successful product launches and new product development initiatives with retail partners
• Champion strong communication and collaboration internally and externally

Experience & Skills

• Proven experience managing and growing national retail or FMCG accounts
• Strong commercial acumen with experience owning or influencing P&L performance
• Demonstrated track record of delivering measurable sales and margin growth
• Confident negotiator with resilience, credibility, and strong relationship management skills
• Strong analytical capability with the ability to turn data into actionable insights
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
• Highly organised, proactive, and comfortable operating in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment
• Passion for premium food brands and building exceptional customer partnerships