Summary

The Company is seeking an experienced Exports Manager to lead sales growth across African markets. This role is responsible for identifying opportunities, managing distributor relationships, driving volume and visibility, and ensuring strong route-to-market execution in each country. The Exports Manager must have hands-on experience working in African markets and a strong understanding of regional trade dynamics, compliance, pricing, logistics, and in-market execution. Responsible for recruitment and training of the team.

Key Responsibilities

Market Development and Sales Growth

• Drive sales expansion across target African countries through structured planning and execution.
• Identify new distributors, evaluate potential partners, and support onboarding and performance management.
• Develop joint business plans, pricing strategies, route-to-market models, and annual targets for each market.
• Conduct regular market visits to assess brand presence, visibility, and compliance with agreed standards.

Distributor and Customer Management

• Build strong relationships with distributors, wholesalers, and key accounts across African markets.
• Monitor sell-in and sell-out performance, stock levels, and order cycles.
• Ensure timely communication of promotions, pricing, forecasts, and order requirements.
• Support distributors with sales training, merchandising standards, and market activation plans.

Commercial Execution

• Prepare sales budgets, forecasts, distributor scorecards, and market performance reports.
• Track competitor activity, pricing movements, and category trends in each market.
• Work with Marketing on localised campaigns, product launches, and visibility materials.
• Collaborate with Supply Chain and Logistics to ensure accurate documentation, timely shipments, and export compliance.

Market Knowledge and Compliance

• Maintain up-to-date understanding of regulatory requirements, standards, and import procedures in each country.
• Ensure product registration, labels, and documentation meet market rules.
• Monitor currency, duty structures, and trade barriers and adjust plans accordingly.

People Leadership

• Provide leadership to export sales teams and distributor sales representatives.
• Responsible for recruitment and training of the team.
• Conduct performance reviews, coaching, and capability building to strengthen in-market execution.
• Promote a disciplined, target-driven, and customer-focused culture.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, International Trade, or related field.
• Minimum five to eight years’ export sales experience, with proven success in African markets.
• Strong understanding of distributor management, route-to-market planning, and commercial execution.
• Experience in FMCG preferred, especially food or consumer goods.
• Strong negotiation, communication, and relationship management skills.
• Ability to travel extensively across African markets.

Personal Attributes

• Professional, dependable, and committed to strong commercial discipline.
• Energetic, proactive, and driven to deliver results.
• High attention to detail, accuracy, and structured planning.
• Organised, disciplined, and consistent in follow-through.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work across cultures.
• Calm under pressure, solutions-oriented, and adaptable to different markets.
• Continuous improvement mindset with strong commercial awareness.

• Drive sales expansion across target African countries through structured planning and execution.
• Identify new distributors, evaluate potential partners, and support onboarding and performance management.
• Develop joint business plans, pricing strategies, route-to-market models, and annual targets for each market.
• Conduct regular market visits to assess brand presence, visibility, and compliance with agreed standards.
• Build strong relationships with distributors, wholesalers, and key accounts across African markets.
• Monitor sell-in and sell-out performance, stock levels, and order cycles.
• Ensure timely communication of promotions, pricing, forecasts, and order requirements.
• Support distributors with sales training, merchandising standards, and market activation plans.
• Prepare sales budgets, forecasts, distributor scorecards, and market performance reports.
• Track competitor activity, pricing movements, and category trends in each market.
• Work with Marketing on localised campaigns, product launches, and visibility materials.
• Collaborate with Supply Chain and Logistics to ensure accurate documentation, timely shipments, and export compliance.
• Maintain up-to-date understanding of regulatory requirements, standards, and import procedures in each country.
• Ensure product registration, labels, and documentation meet market rules.
• Monitor currency, duty structures, and trade barriers and adjust plans accordingly.
• Provide leadership to export sales teams and distributor sales representatives.
• Responsible for recruitment and training of the team.
• Conduct performance reviews, coaching, and capability building to strengthen in-market execution.
• Promote a disciplined, target-driven, and customer-focused culture.

• International market expansion
• Export compliance
• Distributor management
• Global sales strategy
• Route-to-market execution
• Negotiation
• Communication
• Relationship management
• Sales training
• Merchandising standards
• Market activation plans
• Sales budgets
• Forecasts
• Competitor analysis
• Product launches
• Export compliance
• Regulatory understanding
• Import procedures
• Team leadership
• Recruitment
• Training
• Performance reviews
• Coaching
• Capability building

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, International Trade, or related field.
• Minimum five to eight years’ export sales experience, with proven success in African markets.
• Strong understanding of distributor management, route-to-market planning, and commercial execution.
• Experience in FMCG preferred, especially food or consumer goods.
• Strong negotiation, communication, and relationship management skills.
• Ability to travel extensively across African markets.
• Professional, dependable, and committed to strong commercial discipline.
• Energetic, proactive, and driven to deliver results.
• High attention to detail, accuracy, and structured planning.
• Organised, disciplined, and consistent in follow-through.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work across cultures.
• Calm under pressure, solutions-oriented, and adaptable to different markets.
• Continuous improvement mindset with strong commercial awareness.