Strategic Account Manager

Strategic Account Manager

Location: Stoke-on-Trent, UK (Office / Field-based)
Reports to: Commercial Director
Department: Commercial

Role Purpose

The Strategic Account Manager is responsible for the ownership, development and profitable growth of a portfolio of Nemesis Now’s strategically important customers.

This is a commercially focused role for someone who sees an account as a business to be developed, not simply a customer to be serviced. You will be expected to understand the full potential of each account, build a clear strategy to unlock that potential and take accountability for delivering the resulting revenue and profitability.

You will develop strong, multi-level relationships within your customers, combining those relationships with data, insight and commercial thinking to identify where opportunities exist. This could include increasing range penetration, introducing new categories or licences, expanding into additional departments or channels, improving product performance or developing new commercial solutions.

You will own the customer relationship from strategy through to execution, working cross-functionally across Nemesis Now to maximise every appropriate opportunity while delivering commercially sustainable growth.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Account Ownership

• Take full commercial ownership of an agreed portfolio of strategically important customers.

• Create, own and deliver strategic account plans that clearly identify how each customer will grow.

• Understand each customer’s business, strategy, structure, consumer, channels, commercial priorities and future direction.

• Establish the current position and full potential of each account and build a clear plan to close the gap between the two.

• Develop strong relationships with key decision-makers and influencers at multiple levels within the customer organisation.

• Ensure customer relationships are broad and sustainable and are not dependent upon a single contact.

• Lead regular customer meetings, account reviews and joint business planning.

• Build long-term partnerships that align Nemesis Now’s objectives with those of the customer.

Revenue, Margin & Profitable Growth

• Deliver agreed revenue, margin and profitability targets across the account portfolio.

• Take accountability for the performance of each account and act quickly where performance is behind plan.

• Grow revenue through increased penetration, distribution, ranging and commercial activity.

• Identify opportunities across new categories, licences, products, departments, channels and locations.

• Continually assess where Nemesis Now is underrepresented within an account and create plans to address this.

• Protect existing business while proactively developing incremental growth.

• Negotiate pricing, promotions, commercial terms and customer agreements within agreed business parameters.

• Develop creative commercial solutions that deliver value for both Nemesis Now and the customer.

• Ensure growth is commercially sustainable and contributes positively to the overall profitability of the business.

Data-Led Opportunity Identification

• Use internal and external data to identify and exploit commercial opportunities.

• Analyse customer performance at account, category, licence and SKU level to understand what is driving growth or decline.

• Understand what customers are buying from us, what they are not buying from us and why.

• Identify gaps in range penetration and areas of untapped potential.

• Use customer, consumer, competitor and market insight to build compelling commercial proposals.

• Work with Commercial Data/Analytics resource to identify targeted opportunities and campaigns within the customer base.

• Translate insight into clear actions and measurable commercial outcomes.

• Use evidence and data to support customer conversations, negotiations and internal recommendations.

Forecasting & Commercial Planning

• Own the sales forecast for assigned accounts and ensure it is accurate, current and evidence-based.

• Forecast at the appropriate customer and product level to provide clear visibility of expected performance.

• Understand and communicate the opportunities, assumptions and risks underpinning the forecast.

• Maintain sufficient pipeline and commercial activity to support delivery of agreed targets.

• Identify potential gaps against target early and create clear plans to address them.

• Take accountability for closing performance gaps rather than simply reporting them.

• Contribute to annual budgeting, forecasting and reforecasting processes.

• Maintain clear visibility of future opportunities and their expected timing and value.

Product, Range & Licence Development

• Maximise the commercial opportunity presented by Nemesis Now’s new product launches.

• Ensure customers have strong and timely visibility of relevant newness.

• Identify opportunities to introduce additional product categories, brands and licences into existing customers.

• Work closely with Product and Licensing teams to identify opportunities based on customer and market insight.

• Provide meaningful customer feedback to support future product, range and licence decisions.

• Identify opportunities for customer-specific or bespoke development where commercially appropriate.

• Understand why products or ranges have not been selected and use that insight to identify alternative opportunities.

• Build clear customer launch plans designed to maximise the revenue potential of new products.

CRM & Opportunity Management

• Fully adopt and champion the CRM as the central source of customer and commercial information.

• Maintain accurate and current records of customer meetings, opportunities, actions and next steps.

• Manage commercial opportunities through clearly defined pipeline stages.

• Ensure meaningful opportunities have clear ownership, next actions and timescales.

• Use CRM proactively to manage the account portfolio rather than simply as an administrative reporting tool.

• Maintain clear visibility of pipeline value, probability, timing and risk.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Product, Licensing, Marketing, Puchasing, Finance, Customer Service and Operations to deliver customer plans.

• Communicate customer requirements clearly and early to relevant internal teams.

• Ensure commitments made to customers are commercially viable and operationally achievable.

• Represent the commercial voice of the customer internally while balancing this with the needs of Nemesis Now.

• Provide customer and market insight back into the business to support improvements in products, processes and customer experience.

• Influence and engage internal stakeholders to support delivery of agreed commercial objectives.

Customer & Market Engagement

• Maintain regular, meaningful engagement with strategic customers through face-to-face meetings, video calls and telephone conversations.

• Be visible within customer organisations and understand developments within their businesses.

• Attend relevant trade shows, exhibitions, customer events and industry meetings.

• Represent Nemesis Now professionally and commercially in all external interactions.

• Travel throughout the UK and internationally where required.

Measures of Success

Success in this role will include:

• Revenue performance against budget and target.

• Margin and account profitability.

• Year-on-year growth within strategic accounts.

• Increased customer penetration and share of opportunity.

• Growth from new products, categories and licences.

• Forecast accuracy.

• Pipeline value and conversion.

• Customer retention.

• Quality and delivery of strategic account plans.

• CRM adoption and quality of commercial information.

• Strength and breadth of customer relationships.

Skills & Experience

• Proven experience managing significant national, key or strategic accounts.

• Demonstrable track record of delivering profitable revenue growth.

• Strong commercial and financial understanding.

• Experience developing existing customers rather than simply maintaining relationships.

• Strong negotiation, influencing and closing skills.

• Ability to interpret sales and customer data and turn insight into action.

• Strong forecasting and strategic account planning capability.

• Experience dealing with senior customer stakeholders and decision-makers.

• Confident presentation and communication skills.

• Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple commercial priorities.

• Strong personal accountability and ownership of results.

• Comfortable constructively challenging both customers and internal stakeholders.

• Experience within consumer products, retail, giftware, collectibles or licensing would be advantageous.

• Full UK driving licence and willingness to travel.

Behaviours & Mindset

We are looking for someone who:

• Thinks strategically – sees where an account could go, not simply where it is today.

• Is commercially curious – continually looks for the next opportunity.

• Owns the number – takes personal accountability for delivering revenue and profitability.

• Uses data intelligently – combines strong relationships and commercial instinct with evidence.

• Creates opportunities – does not wait for customers to tell us what they want.

• Builds relationships broadly – develops multiple relationships across customer organisations.

• Acts with pace – progresses opportunities and removes unnecessary delay.

• Challenges constructively – is prepared to have difficult commercial conversations where required.

• Collaborates effectively – recognises that delivering for strategic customers requires strong internal teamwork.

• Has a growth mindset – continually looks for ways to grow the account and the wider business.

About Nemesis Now

Nemesis Now creates and supplies original pop culture merchandise, giftware and collectibles across the UK, USA and Europe.

Our products are built around our brand DNA of Imagination Realised, brought to life by our in-house creative team alongside an extensive portfolio of globally recognised licensed properties.

We are an ambitious, growing business and expect our commercial team to combine strong customer relationships with commercial discipline, data and a genuine drive to identify and convert opportunity.

How To Apply:

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