Wholesale Manager - London

We’ve come a long way since 2004—and we’re just getting started.

As one of the longest-standing independent coffee roasters on UK shores, the love of coffee fuels everything we do. We work on challenging the expected, crafting tangible experiences and products that are impactful and progressive. We work hard and with integrity to shape and share exceptional coffee fairly with all. As a B Corp-accredited coffee roaster, we’re not here to jump on bandwagons. No greenwashing. No jargon: an inclusive, global community, listening and speaking up for the future we believe in.

We build, nurture, and champion relationships at the source, celebrating farmers, cooperatives, and producers. We support direct trade, traceability, and quality. From crop to cup, every step of our journey is considered; we’re proud to be held accountable, always striving for better ways to do business, placing people and the planet before profit.

Dedicated, curious, driven, and open-minded, we’re not afraid to push boundaries and shape positive change. With a growing team of award-winning coffee professionals, a world-class coffee programme, six coffee shops, and an ever-evolving product range, we continue to work hard to create inclusive spaces within Origin and everywhere we go where conversations can grow. We move fast yet stay grounded, cutting paths through the noise, and have a lot of fun along the way. We’re here for ideas, rolling our sleeves up, and sharing new perspectives. Opportunities are on the table—yours to shape, with full support.

Join us in pursuit of coffee excellence.

The role

This role will drive new wholesale business growth within London by forming new wholesale account partnerships. The focus will be opening high-quality wholesale accounts, emphasising independents and multi-sites, including independent café’s, hotels, restaurants, and high-end retail. Account retention is key, and time is spent supporting our existing customer base alongside our training and account management team to drive quality and consistency with each partner. The role is target driven; you will be demonstrating your natural ability to build rapport and create business growth through hard work and determination.

You will apply your strong coffee background for both product and equipment, with the ability to host tastings and cuppings for new or existing customers. You will be expected to take your customers from design to implementation, including coffee choices, equipment suggestions, bar design, workflow, and bespoke training plans. As a key stakeholder of Origin’s wholesale team, you will advise on new projects for Origin’s coffee programme.

You will have a key working relationship with our customer service team based in Cornwall, who provide an additional line of account management support, as well as our in-house technical team to diagnose minor technical issues whilst also ensuring equipment is being fully maintained. At times you will be the main point of contact with customers and know when best to triage or take responsibility for the situation.

And you like to travel. And not just going on holiday or away for the weekend but throughout your working week. You will split your time, working from one of our London offices and visiting new and existing accounts. And as part of our national sales team, you will visit our offices in Cornwall, Bristol, and London, as well as supporting trade shows and events.

Responsibilities

A customer-focused, sales-driven role with account acquisition, maintenance, and retention at the core of all activity.

• manage the full life cycle of new business accounts, including onboarding, account management and cross-department liaison and support
• direct responsibility for all London-based sales enquiries
• achieving monthly kpi’s and objectives to achieve quarterly sales targets meeting top-line commercial objectives
• applying a strong level of specialty coffee knowledge with the ability to train customers across a series of levels and organisation sizes from small coffee shops to multi-site restaurant and hotel groups
• relationship management, including exceptional customer service, networking and new relationship building
• accurate input of quality data using Origin’s wholesale CRM (Prospect Soft)
• adept at managing, problem-solving and resolving customer grievances, which often occur at the most inconvenient of time
• competent with all demands of a hybrid working role, including frequent travel around London, attending to multiple customers in specific timeframes across a broad geographical region
• ensure all customers’ feel their needs are met and prioritised above anyone else’s
• an ability to confidently educate customers of various levels through the specialty coffee journey
• analyse and develop own sales strategies to maximize sales
• a commitment to take full ownership of own personal and professional development with the support of Origin Coffee
• continue to develop a comprehensive knowledge of the UK and European coffee market, including our partners and external stakeholders, as well as our competitors, horizon news and trends
• develop new relationships, including cross-selling opportunities, maximising potential, and opportunities for the wholesale team and Origin.
• all activity is led by Origin and your core values and behaviours.

Requirements

About you

To be successful in this role, these are the things that matter the most:

• proven experience working in specialty coffee with a natural talent for creating connections in our industry
• building and maintaining relationships really matter to you as much as hitting sales targets does
• a natural ability to make all customers feel like they take priority without compromising on quality
• a flare for being the one that leads the conversation; with solid interpersonal skills, including the ability to coordinate and influence a wide range of cross-department stakeholders, built on a solid foundation of trust and reassurance, Origin can deliver

Skills and experience:

• educated to a degree level in the hospitality or business sector or equivalent level of experience
• proven experience within the coffee industry, including time spent in hospitality with a reputable business
• demonstrable experience in delivering against sales kpi’s and targets, self-led with a natural ability to manage and prioritise own workload
• proven experience using a CRM
• advanced barista skills, including brewing, espresso and latte art
• comfortable communicating in person, networking, training, and presenting to people and audiences or similar style social events
• demonstrable experience of working independently and as part of a team led by core values and striving towards business objectives
• experience of working for a B Corp accredited organisation or similar working space whose core focus is addressing our current climate crisis
• good working knowledge of all MO365 packages and digital systems, including CRM and stock inventory.

Essential behavioural competencies:

• passion for pursuing a successful career in specialty coffee through sales activity
• self-motivated with an aptitude to drive your own activity to deliver results
• excellent verbal and communication skills, including the ability to handle a broad customer base whilst presenting an energetic, proactive, and supportive mindset
• a drive to continuously move the goalposts, striving for new business in a way that keeps you wanting more
• confidence in your own ability to adapt and navigate your way through an industry in an evolving landscape
• comfortable with the idea of travel throughout a working week

Benefits

Salary

Up to £40,000 FTE per annum plus commission, paid quarterly

Holidays

29 days holiday, including bank holidays and your birthday off (pro-rata for part-time)

Pension

Employer (5%) and Employee (3%) pension contribution – employees can increase their contribution.

Mental Health and Physical First Aid Training

We provide our employees with a toolkit for preventing and addressing mental health crises in and out of work, providing genuine support, safety, and happiness in the workplace.

Enhanced Maternity, Paternity, Adoption, IVF Journey Leave and Pay

We recognise the importance of family and provide enhanced pay to support all parents and their journey to becoming one

Transitioning at Work Policy

We want everyone at Origin Coffee to feel comfortable being themselves at work. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and supporting our colleagues who identify as trans, and providing support through any transitioning process.

Financial Well-being Support

We have partnered with Wagestream, a financial well-being provider that offers financial coaching, money management, debt advice, and individually tailored advice.

Employee Assistant Programme

A comprehensive suite of support from our EAP Hospitality Action, including help with physical, mental, and financial wellness at work

Continued Professional Development

We invest in all our employees by supporting personal development and encouraging you to broaden your experience and learning potential, led by you.

SCA Training

Everyone who works for Origin can embark on the SCA training programme. Depending on your learning readiness, you can dip your toe in or immerse yourself fully. It’s pretty addictive!

An Employee Referral Scheme

Once you join Origin, you’ll want to introduce like-minded people to us. When you do, they settle in and pass their probation, and you earn £200

Other

Two days per year off for volunteering, cycle to work scheme, free coffee at work and to take home, discounts in all our cafes and on our merchandise and partners. And, of course, regular social and team events serve exceptional food, drink, and fantastic coffee!

Hiring Process

Initial phone screening call (30 mins) Capabilities and culture-t interview onsite or remote depending on location and availability (1-1.5 hours)

Support

If you have a medical condition or an individual need for an adjustment to our process, and you believe this may affect your ability to be at your best, please let us know so we can talk about how we can best support you and make any adjustments that may be needed.