JOB DESCRIPTION

Business Development Manager - Supermarket

Department: Business Development / Commercial
Reports To: General Manager / Managing Director
Employment Type: Full-Time
Industry: Supermarket / Grocery Retail / FMCG

Job Purpose

The Business Development Manager (BDM) is responsible for driving the supermarket's business growth, revenue, profitability, customer acquisition, supplier partnerships, and market expansion.

This is a critical commercial role that requires the incumbent to actively identify new revenue opportunities, negotiate commercially favourable arrangements, analyse sales and market trends, develop promotional strategies, and work closely with supermarket operations, purchasing, merchandising, marketing, and finance teams.

The BDM is expected to deliver measurable business results, rather than performing a purely administrative or coordination function.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

1. Business Growth & Revenue Development

• Develop and execute business development strategies to increase supermarket sales, gross profit, customer traffic, and market share.
• Identify new revenue streams, customer segments, product categories, services, and commercial opportunities.
• Conduct market and competitor analysis to identify changes in consumer demand, pricing, promotions, product assortment, and retail trends.
• Develop business proposals and commercial plans for new initiatives.
• Establish measurable sales and profitability targets and monitor performance against agreed objectives.
• Recommend corrective actions where sales, margins, or other commercial targets are not achieved.

2. Supplier & Commercial Partnership Development

• Identify and establish relationships with new suppliers, distributors, wholesalers, manufacturers, and strategic business partners.
• Negotiate pricing, trading terms, rebates, promotional support, listing arrangements, payment terms, and other commercial conditions.
• Develop mutually beneficial supplier partnerships to improve product availability, competitiveness, and profitability.
• Review supplier performance and identify opportunities to improve commercial terms or introduce alternative suppliers.
• Work with suppliers to develop joint promotions, product launches, seasonal campaigns, and other revenue-generating initiatives.

3. Product & Category Development

• Identify new products and categories based on customer demand, market trends, competitor activity, and sales performance.
• Evaluate the commercial viability of introducing new products, including expected demand, selling price, cost, margin, and stock movement.
• Work with purchasing and merchandising teams to improve the supermarket's product assortment and category performance.
• Identify slow-moving or underperforming categories and recommend strategies to improve sales or profitability.
• Support the development of private-label, exclusive, imported, or differentiated product offerings where commercially viable.

4. Sales, Pricing & Profitability Management

• Analyse sales, gross margins, product performance, customer purchasing patterns, and promotional results.
• Recommend competitive retail pricing strategies while protecting required profit margins.
• Identify opportunities to increase average transaction value, purchase frequency, and customer retention.
• Develop strategies for cross-selling, upselling, bundled offers, and targeted promotions.
• Monitor the commercial performance of new business initiatives and provide management with recommendations based on financial results.

5. Marketing & Customer Development

• Work with the marketing and operations teams to develop promotions and campaigns that increase customer traffic and sales.
• Identify opportunities to attract new customers, including corporate customers, institutions, restaurants, businesses, online customers, and community groups where relevant.
• Develop customer acquisition and retention initiatives, including loyalty programmes, partnerships, memberships, and targeted promotions.
• Gather and analyse customer feedback to identify unmet needs and business opportunities.
• Support festive, seasonal, and major promotional campaigns to maximise revenue opportunities.

6. New Channels & Market Expansion

• Evaluate opportunities for business expansion through additional outlets, e-commerce, delivery services, B2B sales, corporate accounts, wholesale arrangements, or other channels.
• Prepare feasibility studies and commercial assessments for proposed expansion initiatives.
• Identify potential locations, partnerships, or distribution opportunities where required.
• Coordinate the commercial implementation of approved business development projects.
• Track the performance of new channels and recommend improvements to achieve targeted returns.

7. Cross-Functional Management

• Work closely with supermarket operations, purchasing, merchandising, inventory, marketing, finance, and management teams.
• Ensure business development initiatives can be operationally implemented and adequately supported by inventory and manpower.
• Coordinate product launches, promotional campaigns, supplier programmes, and other commercial initiatives.
• Communicate commercial priorities and ensure relevant departments understand implementation requirements.
• Resolve commercial and operational issues that may affect the success of business development initiatives.

8. Business Analysis & Management Reporting

• Prepare regular business development and commercial performance reports for senior management.
• Monitor key indicators including sales growth, gross margin, customer growth, supplier performance, promotional effectiveness, and return on business initiatives.
• Prepare sales forecasts, business cases, budgets, and revenue projections.
• Use supermarket sales and operational data to identify opportunities, risks, and areas requiring management attention.
• Present recommendations and proposed action plans to senior management.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Performance may be measured against:

• Revenue and year-on-year sales growth
• Gross profit and gross-margin improvement
• New business revenue generated
• Number and value of new commercial partnerships
• Improvement in supplier trading terms
• New customer and corporate-account acquisition
• Performance of newly introduced products/categories
• Promotional sales and profitability
• Customer traffic and average transaction value
• Successful implementation of new business initiatives
• Achievement of agreed business development targets and budgets

Requirements

Education

• Diploma or Degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Retail Management, Commerce, or a related discipline.

Experience

• Relevant experience in business development, supermarket operations, grocery retail, FMCG, wholesale, distribution, sales, category management, or commercial management.
• Strong understanding of supermarket or retail business operations is highly preferred.
• Proven experience in developing business opportunities and achieving commercial targets.
• Experience in supplier negotiation and commercial partnership development is advantageous.

Critical Competencies

The successful candidate should demonstrate:

• Strong commercial and business acumen
• Strong negotiation and influencing skills
• Sales and revenue-growth orientation
• Ability to identify and develop new business opportunities
• Understanding of supermarket/FMCG products and consumer behaviour
• Strong numerical and analytical ability
• Knowledge of pricing, margins, promotions, and profitability
• Ability to interpret sales and market data
• Strong supplier and stakeholder management skills
• Ability to work independently and take ownership of commercial results
• Strong communication and presentation skills
• Problem-solving and decision-making ability
• Ability to work in a fast-paced supermarket environment

Authority & Accountability

The Business Development Manager will be expected to take ownership of business growth initiatives from identification through implementation and performance review.

The incumbent will be accountable for providing commercially sound recommendations to management and ensuring approved initiatives are executed effectively. Commercial negotiations and commitments must remain within the authority limits and approval procedures established by the company.

Critical Nature of the Position

This position is critical to the supermarket because it directly influences revenue growth, profitability, supplier competitiveness, customer acquisition, product development, and long-term business expansion.

The Business Development Manager is therefore expected to maintain a strong market focus, continuously identify commercial opportunities, and deliver measurable improvements to the supermarket's overall business performance