FMCG sales: Positions and opportunities
FMCG, also known as Fast Moving Consumer Goods, includes everything from low-cost everyday items like toiletries to high-cost electronics. Working in FMCG sales is a varied and exciting career which includes roles across the spectrum of sales, from sales reps to directors and even business development specialists.
What positions are available in FMCG sales?
Most sales professionals starting out in FMCG sales roles will begin as sales representatives or sales executives. In these roles, you will be responsible for finding new customers and making sales. This can take place in person or over the phone. You also might have an opportunity at this point to specialise in a particular area of FMCG, and it’s a good idea to focus on products you’re enthusiastic about where possible.
As you climb through the ranks, your responsibilities will grow. Sales managers will be in charge of tracking sales trends and performance data across their team, while sales directors may supervise regional sales managers and work to improve international sales and overall business growth. Ensuring that you know your sector well is crucial to landing promotions and working your way up to managerial or higher roles in FMCG sales.
What are FMCG sales salaries like?
The salary range in FMCG sales is quite wide; it’s a profitable sector, which means salaries for senior managers and directors can be comparatively very good. However, the number of jobs available at lower levels in FMCG sales often mean that starting salaries can be quite basic.
Basic starting salaries in FMCG sales could be in the region of £15,000 to £20,000, and this can rise up to as high as £40,000 with growing experience. Salary will rise both with experience and higher levels of responsibility, topping out upwards of £100,000 for sales director roles in the sector. Depending on the role, some of these salaries may benefit from additional commission.
Why work in FMCG sales?
FMCG can be an attractive sector to work in, especially because of the variety of products sold. Sales professionals with a particular interest or enthusiasm for cosmetics, beauty, technology, or other branches of FMCG can specialise in products they’re passionate about without usually needing further qualifications or expertise, as is often the case in more niche sales fields like pharma sales.
It’s easy to climb through the ranks in FMCG sales without having any particular qualifications, though to begin your career in sales you might need some preliminary qualifications such as GCSEs in English and Maths, and sales qualifications will always help. Generally speaking, experience and results will go far in FMCG sales, which is why it’s the perfect career path for professionals looking for a career which offers rewards based on merit.
Is a career in FMCG sales for you?
If you’re a hardworking, motivated, and confident professional with good people skills and an enthusiasm for any branch of FMCG, this could be the perfect career for you. There’s a reasonable amount of competition for roles, especially in higher positions, so it’s crucial that you can make yourself stand out from the crowd with superior product knowledge and an excellent sales record to excel in this industry.
If you’re interested in browsing the latest sales roles, check out our jobs board and search for your perfect job in FMCG sales (https://www.salesroles.com/job-category/fmcg-sales-jobs/).