Sales Manager - leadership role in Bolton

We are working with a well-established, internationally operating specialty chemicals business that has built a global reputation for delivering high-integrity technical solutions to governments and regulated industries worldwide. Operating across 70+ countries, this organisation supports customers in areas including fuel marking, compliance, brand protection and speciality chemical technologies. The business combines deep technical expertise with long-standing customer relationships and is now looking to strengthen its commercial leadership capability.

This is a Sales Manager role with real leadership responsibility. You will lead and develop a small, experienced commercial team, translating business unit strategy into clear, actionable sales plans and ensuring consistent execution across accounts, markets and regions. The role is both strategic and hands-on: overseeing account management, driving pipeline growth, improving forecasting accuracy, and ensuring sales performance aligns with longer-term commercial objectives. You will also play a key role in shaping processes, reporting and market insight, helping the business maintain control, visibility and momentum as it continues to grow internationally.

Key Responsibilities

• Translate business unit commercial strategy into clear team plans, priorities and resource allocation
• Develop short- and medium-term sales plans aligned to budget (volume, revenue and profit)
• Ensure robust forecasting and pipeline management to support accurate reporting and decision-making
• Drive visibility of commercial plans across the wider organisation
• Act as the internal voice of the customer, ensuring customer needs inform business decisions
• Build and maintain strong external customer relationships and internal stakeholder alignment
• Work closely with Marketing to develop market understanding and structured customer feedback
• Full accountability for business unit sales objectives, targets and budgets
• Build, manage and convert a strong pipeline of new business opportunities
• Oversee sales administration, reporting and performance tracking
• Manage day-to-day operations of the commercial team
• Mentor, coach and develop team members to strengthen capability, engagement and retention
• Implement and maintain commercial processes, ensuring consistency and competence across the team
• Represent the business unit commercially, internally and externally

About You

• You will be a commercially mature sales leader, comfortable operating in an international, technically complex environment.
• Required:
• Degree educated (Business, Marketing, Chemistry or related discipline)
• Extensive international sales management experience, within chemicals IS A MUST HAVE
• Proven experience managing a sales team and influencing cross-functional stakeholders
• Strong customer relationship and key account management capability
• Willingness to travel internationally (c.25%)
• Desirable:
• Additional business-level language skills
• Project management experience
• Personal attributes:
• Strategic and conceptual thinker
• Calm, credible and persuasive communicator
• Adaptable, resilient and commercially disciplined
• Motivated to develop people and build sustainable performance

What’s on Offer

• Hybrid working model
• Competitive salary and profit-sharing scheme
• Strong pension and enhanced family benefits
• Health & wellbeing support
• A stable, values-led organisation with long-term global customers
• Opportunity to shape and lead a commercial function with real influence

This role is being handled on a strictly confidential basis. Further details about the organisation will be shared with shortlisted candidates. If you are a sales leader who values structure, integrity and long-term customer relationships, this is a compelling opportunity to make a meaningful impact.

For more information, please send your CV to this advert or email Abid Kanji on a.kanji@nonstopconsulting.com for further information.