Head of Commercial Development

The organisation

Action is the largest, fastest growing non-food discount retailer in Europe and 'Retailer of the Year Europe 2014-2015' with a turnover of €1.5 billion in 2014. Already located in The Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany, Action has great international ambition. The secret of its success so far? Since its establishment in 1993, Action has kept surprising customers again and again with new, diverse products at an extremely competitive price. Because the customer is king.  

The name Action is well-chosen. The full range of 5,000 to 10.000 SKU's is managed by a team of buyers, adding 150 new products to the assortment every week. Action has a strong permanent offering, while 65% of its range is dynamic with exciting new items and seasonal products. Customers can buy these products at competitive prices while stocks last.  

Rapid growth

The retailer has a consistent 30%+ growth track record through opening new stores (108 in 2014) as well as a continued strong foundation in existing ones. Over the last twenty years, Action has grown from a 60 m2 store in Enkhuizen to an international chain with nearly 600 stores across five countries, which are stocked daily from two distribution centers equaling the size of 26 football fields. Expansion truly is part of the DNA of the organization. 

Action is gearing up for further professionalization under the guidance of the new CEO Sander van der Laan, who joined Action in October 2015. Van der Laan's previous positions at Ahold include CEO Giant Carlisle (USA), COO Ahold Europe and CEO Albert Heijn.

The position 

The Head of Commercial Development will make proactive commercial decisions and spur on professionalization, so that Action will double in size again over the next two years. This can achieved by focussing on projects such as international expansion, formula management, the overall category strategy and further developing the sourcing model. The success formula will always be the same: maximum impact through minimum complexity.  

The Head of Commercial Development will work closely with the Commercial Director Simon Hathway and lead a team of five: a pricing manager, commercial project manager, two commercial analysts and a commercial controller.  

The Head of Commercial Development will drive growth in current markets by identifying new categories to enter and improving performance of existing categories by optimizing all levers (price, promotion, assortment, brand, merchandising, presentation, quality). This role will also drive international growth by analysing new markets and using insights to develop market-entry plans.  

Candidate profile 

This is an opportunity for commercial professionals with at least ten years experience with FMCG/Retail to be at the commercial heart of the organisation, operating both at a strategic and tactical level. Influencer and people skills are key to motivate others; international experience is an advantage. And last but not least: candidates need to have the ambition and potential to grow into a senior leadership position.

Interested?

You can apply to this position by using the form below.