A consultancy based role as a licensed property valuer and new business consultant. Working regular full time hours seeking and securing my own appointments to value and market licensed premises for sale. I am currently succeeding in securing 3-4 appointments per week resulting in one new pub for sale. I am forced to look for a longer term contract to replace this short term one.

In December 2004 I left full-time employment to start a business from home and to start a family. In May 2005 I started a small business which sells dog training equipment via dog trainers to customers who attend dog training schools. These are currently based in the Buckinghamshire area. Using contacts made in previous roles and a business partner who is an APDT (Association of Professional Dog Trainers) Dog Trainer our current annual turnover is £7’500.00 with a profit of £3’000.00. My business partner continues to run the company with me acting as a ‘silent partner’.

An open-ended contract with the fundamental objective to launch a new weight loss dog food into the UK pet specialist sector. This role is dependant on previous pet trade experience and understanding of the wholesale network together with nutritional knowledge. During this year with Formula K I gained and supported distribution through the UK’s second largest retailer, and Europe’s largest online pet pharmacy to name a few. Achieving distribution through various wholesalers and retailers, recruiting and establishing a team of representatives across the UK, and taking part in a seminar at GLEE with TV Vet Emma Milne were some of the highlights. The current economic downturn and the owner’s reluctance to continue to support the product led to the termination of my contract.

A consultancy based role to deliver health & safety training courses to a variety of customers on a group by group basis. Courses delivered included Basic Food Hygiene, Fire Safety, Manual Handling and First Aid. Groups were on average 15 delegates in various UK locations.

This role was designed with me in mind after being responsible for this customer’s account whilst with Nestle Purina. Core skills obtained include:

• Retail Sales - Consolidate my learned skills in a position that sees the pet trade from the ‘other’ side of the counter
• Managing Staff & Budgets - Responsible for a large retail store with a current turnover of £550,000 per annum (growing year on year), all staffing, ordering, promotional and customer issues
• Recruitment & Marketing - Troubleshooting some immediate staffing problems and put in place a promotional calendar to implement and evaluate the supplier funded promotions offered to us

As an Area Sales Manager in the specialist channel this role allowed me to work closely with direct independent stores and regional wholesalers. In addition I was further given responsibility for key accounts, including Wilsons Pet Centres and Jollyes. Whilst working for this major FMCG pet food manufacturer core skills obtained included:

• Marketing & Sales - Ensure delivery of effective Business Plans with key customers to include Key Brand growth Targets, Promotion plan, SWOT analysis, Profile.
• Manage Budgets - Manage the use of a local budget so that opportunities can be seized
• Maximise Sales - Drive growth in high value categories of strategic brands
• Maximise Distribution - Drive growth of distribution and in store presence
• Incentivise Customers - Specifically ensure that FOC stock is utilised by the retailer to generate promotional activity on NPPC brands for the consumer
• Manage Call Cycles - Continuously review customer call cycles, maximise efficiency of calls made, to create “new” selling time. This “new” time will be used to increase business in under developed groups.

It was and is extremely rare for an in-house marketer to take on a field sales role but I valued the challenge I was presented with. When offered a secondment to join the free trade sales team I was aware that the experience it would give me would prove invaluable. The role involved building profitable and long lasting client relationships with an existing customer base whilst identifying areas for expansion. Developing strategic activity and driving through promotional activity this role offered the responsibility of being ultimately charged with all aspects of the customer’s welfare and sales.

This role involved ensuring a comprehensive programme of promotional and marketing support activity. It involved working with Brand Managers, below the line agencies, and third party suppliers to ensure that the components of the activity were available to meet the needs of our customers, the sales force, and telesales. In addition to ensuring that all materials, communication briefs, and activities were delivered on time, a process of full post-activity evaluation was also developed whilst in this role. My most challenging role to date I was ultimately responsible for £8m of trade marketing spend reporting directly to the Marketing Director.