Trade Marketing Executive job description
A Trade Marketing Executive plans and checks in-store visibility, schemes and retailer programmes for consumer brands. The role helps the brand win shelf space and sell more at outlets.
Why the role exists
The executive plans and runs retail programmes that help a brand sell through at the shop: displays, shelf space, schemes, merchandising and retailer contests. The person works with the sales team, agencies and distributors and reports to the Trade Marketing Manager. The role links brand plans to what happens at the outlet.
What the person does
- Plan retail activations such as displays, shelf-talkers, posters and counter units for each channel and season.
- Brief and manage merchandising and promotion agencies, and check that materials reach the outlets on time.
- Design retailer and distributor schemes with the sales team, and work out cost and expected lift before launch.
- Visit outlets in key markets to audit display, share of shelf, price and stock against the plan.
- Run outlet audits through the app, and report visibility scores by area and channel.
- Track spend on trade programmes against budget and check that claims match proof of execution.
- Share competitor activity, scheme and pricing information from the market with the brand team.
- Prepare festival and seasonal plans for kirana, wholesale and modern trade outlets.
Skills and tools
- Retail visibility planning for kirana, wholesale and modern trade
- Scheme design and simple cost-benefit working
- Agency briefing and vendor follow-up
- Outlet audit methods and app-based store checks
- Excel and PowerPoint for programme reports
- Knowledge of channel types and shopper behaviour in India
- Budget tracking and claim verification
- Field communication with sales teams and retailers
Education and experience
Preferred, never a bar: equivalent experience counts.
- Graduate or management diploma in marketing or related field preferred, or equivalent experience.
- Prior experience in trade marketing, sales promotion or brand activation in FMCG is preferred.
- Comfort with field visits and market audits across towns is useful.
- Good Excel and presentation skills are preferred.
How the work is judged
- Execution of trade programmes against the plan, checked by audits
- Visibility scores such as display and share of shelf at outlets
- Return on trade spend and accuracy of scheme costing
- Agency delivery on time and quality of materials at outlets
- Quality of market insights shared with sales and brand teams
Where the role can lead
- Senior Trade Marketing Executive for a larger channel or region.
- Trade Marketing Manager owning plans and budgets.
- Moves into shopper marketing, category management or brand roles.
Interview questions to ask
Ask every candidate the same questions in the same order and score them against written anchors, so the decision rests on the work and not the impression.
- How do you decide which outlets deserve a premium display?
- A scheme is costing more than planned. How do you find out why and what do you do?
- Tell us how you checked that an agency really executed an activation.
- How would you plan a festival season programme across kirana and modern trade?
- What data would you use to judge if a trade programme worked?
- How do you work with a sales team that resists a new display plan?
Hiring tips for this role
- Ask for a short plan for a festival display programme, including how success would be checked at outlets.
- Look for field experience. Candidates who only worked on city modern trade may struggle with kirana and rural markets.
- Check how the person handled agency delays and poor execution, not only creative ideas.
- Clarify who owns the trade budget and who approves schemes, so the executive is not caught between sales and marketing.
Questions about hiring a trade marketing executive
The executive plans retail activations, schemes and displays, briefs agencies, audits outlets and tracks trade spend. The goal is better visibility and sales for the brand at the shop.
Brand marketing focuses on the consumer message. Trade marketing focuses on the shop, the retailer and the shelf, working closely with sales to make the brand easy to see and buy.
A marketing degree or diploma helps, but field exposure in FMCG sales or promotion counts. Prefer candidates who can show outlet-level results from earlier programmes.
GullyHR agrees the job description with you, finds and screens candidates with FMCG trade or activation experience and supports the offer for this permanent role. You decide the final hire.
Hiring a trade marketing executive?
GullyHR runs talent acquisition for permanent roles. We agree the job description with you, find and screen candidates against it, and support the offer through to joining. We recruit permanent employees. We do not supply contract or temporary staff.