As the business continues to grow, we are looking for an experienced, highly hands-on Sales Director.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

As Sales Director, you will take full ownership of shaping the publisher’s sales and logistics processes. This includes, among other things:

• Designing and implementing a presence strategy across all key distribution channels (retail chains such as Empik and Świat Książki, wholesalers, own e-commerce, and e-book/audiobook subscription platforms).
• Actively leveraging and developing your own established relationships with key business partners and buyers in the market.
• Creating and enforcing pricing and discount policies that maximise the publisher’s margin.
• Managing promotional and trade marketing budgets across individual chains.
• Taking an active part in planning new releases – setting optimal market dates in line with the sales calendar.
• Working closely with the marketing team to design dedicated sales support for titles, ensuring a high shelf rotation (sell-out) rate.
• Working closely with the production team on planning reprints and print runs
• Preparing short- and long-term sales forecasts (volume and value) as the basis for business planning.
• Creating, delivering and fully controlling the publisher’s annual sales budget.
• Continuously and analytically assessing the publishing portfolio – making strategic decisions on what to push hard and which titles/imprints to withdraw from the market as unprofitable.
• Monitoring competitor activity and market trends and recommending sales actions.
• Defining, monitoring and delivering sales KPIs for individual distribution channels
• Continuing and further developing cooperation with alternative sales channels, including Poczta Polska (Polish Post), discount chains, supermarket chains, the convenience channel and partners outside the traditional book trade.
• Continuously controlling product availability in the market – eliminating out-of-stock situations while avoiding overproduction.
• Designing and enforcing a returns management strategy – one of the most important foundations of the publisher’s profitability.
• Overseeing the correct calculation and settlement of author and licence royalties (domestic and foreign) in cooperation with accounting.
• Managing, motivating and developing the sales team

OUR REQUIREMENTS

We are looking for a manager with strong analytical skills who combines in-depth knowledge of the publishing industry with a hard-nosed approach to numbers.

• At least 5 years of experience in a managerial role (Sales Director, Sales Manager, Head of Sales or Senior KAM) in the publishing industry (commercial fiction and non-fiction).
• Established business relationships with key decision-makers at wholesalers (Azymut, Platon, Dressler, etc.) and retail chains (Empik, Świat Książki), Poczta Polska, discount chains (Biedronka, Lidl, etc.) and supermarkets.
• Outstanding skills in sales forecasting, print-run planning and range profitability analysis (title P&L). Proficiency in working with large databases and Excel.
• A proven track record of controlling and optimising book return rates – the candidate must understand the mechanisms for limiting the risk of excessive returns.
• Ability to manage multichannel (omnichannel) sales
• Practical knowledge of royalty settlement rules (including tiered rates, advances and subscription models such as Legimi/Empik Go/Storytel).
• Experience in leading tough trade negotiations (setting distribution terms, pricing policy and chain discounts), backed by concrete business results.
• Experience in managing a sales team and developing employees’ competencies.