Trade Marketing Manager

The company is a high-growth premium spirits brand and the world’s largest independent mezcal brand, with operations spanning agave cultivation, mezcal production, bottling, and commercialization across more than 25 countries. The U.S. Trade Marketing Manager will translate brand strategy into channel-specific trade programs, sales tools, merchandising solutions, and retailer-facing materials. The role partners with Sales, Brand Marketing, distributors, agencies, and retailers to drive distribution, visibility, conversion, and measurable in-market execution.

Responsibilities:

• Develop channel-specific trade plans and selling stories that support distribution growth, POD expansion, shelf presence, display activity, and retailer engagement for the Mezcal portfolio
• Translate brand and portfolio strategies into trade-facing materials, including sell sheets, customer presentations, Buy Book content, retailer decks, program guides, and digital trade tools. Support the sales team by developing a new Commercial planning process for the business, building annual, seasonal, and customer-specific planning cycles in partnership with key Sales team members
• Ensure alignment across planning timelines, pricing strategy, promotional priorities, forecasting inputs, retailer needs, and executional requirements
• Ensure trade programs are commercially grounded, easy to execute, and tailored to the realities of each channel, including On-Premise, Grocery, National Accounts (on and off), and large format Liquor stores (Total etc)
• Lead the development of POS, merchandising, and display solutions that drive visibility and conversion across priority channels. Develop tools and assets that may include shelf talkers, case cards, display materials, shelf violators, menu support, bartender education materials, incentive trips and on-premise activation materials
• Partner with Sales teams in key markets to support shelf placement, display execution, merchandising compliance, menu placement, account activation, and retailer alignment
• Support national, regional, and account-specific activation programs tied to key selling periods, innovation launches, seasonal moments, and portfolio priorities
• Specific to the off-premise, manage the brand/customer needs from a merchandising perspective by selecting the right agencies, managing the implementation and evaluating the results
• Use syndicated data, customer data, internal sales reporting, and market-level insights to inform trade strategy, programming, and prioritisation. Track the effectiveness of trade programs, merchandising initiatives, display activity, and channel activations against key metrics including distribution, velocity, PODs, retail visibility, display compliance, menu placements, and ROI. Develop clear post-program recaps, learnings, and recommendations to improve future execution. Identify best practices across markets and channels, and share learnings with Sales, distributor partners, and internal stakeholders
• Own and manage key trade communication tools, including Buy Book content, program calendars, execution guides, selling materials, and trade-facing documentation
• Cascade program priorities, execution standards, launch details, and merchandising guidance to Sales and distributor partners. Ensure field teams have clear, consistent, and actionable materials that support retailer, distributor, and account conversations. Maintain strong communication across internal and external stakeholders to ensure alignment from planning through execution
• Serve as a commercial lead for Mezcal trade execution, bringing a strong understanding of the category, consumer occasions, shopper behavior, price positioning, competitive dynamics, and retailer expectations
• Develop trade programs that reinforce the brand’s taste profile, quality credentials, authenticity, craft, premium positioning, and differentiation within the Mezcal category
• Provide category guidance and practical selling support to Sales and distributor teams to improve sell-in effectiveness and retail execution. Identify opportunities to improve visibility, education, shopper engagement, and conversion across key channels and markets

Requirements:

• 7+ years of experience in Trade Marketing, Commercial Activation, Shopper Marketing, Commercial Planning, Division Marketing, or a related commercial role
• Proven experience developing trade programs that drive distribution, display activity, retail visibility, menu placement, account activation, and in-market execution
• Experience developing retailer-facing materials, sales tools, POS, merchandising solutions, commercial selling stories, and account activation programs
• Strong working knowledge of syndicated data, customer data, and retail performance tools such as Nielsen, IRI / Circana, VIP, Tableau, or similar platforms
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel
• Strong commercial experience in Mezcal, agave spirits, premium spirits, or other fast-moving beverage alcohol categories
• Clear understanding of how premium spirits brands compete across On-Premise, Off-Premise, National Accounts, Grocery, Convenience, and Liquor channels
• Ability to balance brand-building objectives with practical commercial execution
• Strong understanding of display-driven retail environments, account activation, merchandising, and field execution
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to translate data and insights into actionable trade strategies
• Excellent communication, storytelling, and presentation skills
• Ability to influence Sales, distributor teams, retailers, agencies, and internal stakeholders
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, timelines, and cross-functional inputs
• Comfort operating in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial, and commercially driven environment
• Experience within Mezcal, tequila, agave spirits, premium spirits, beverage alcohol, or other fast-moving consumer categories preferred
• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, or a related field would also be excellent