Head of Sales – Starch & Food Ingredients

Location: Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Industry: Corn Wet Milling | Starch & Food Ingredients
Department: Sales & Business Development
Position Type: Full-time | Senior Leadership

An established corn wet-milling manufacturer in Punjab with a processing capacity of 100 tons of corn per day is seeking an experienced Head of Sales to drive commercial growth. The company produces local maize starch, thin-boiling starches (Grades 820 and 850), gluten, corn oil, and feed by-products, supported by Halal, ISO 9001, and ISO 22000 certifications. The role focuses on expanding direct customer relationships, strengthening sales operations, and building a high-performing sales team to double starch sales volume from 20,000 to 40,000 bags per month. This senior leadership position requires a hands-on commercial leader who will manage pricing, customer development, receivables, and sales-team performance while collaborating closely with production, quality control, and other departments.

Key Responsibilities

Sales Growth & Strategic Account Development
Develop and implement a sales strategy to increase starch sales volume to 40,000 bags monthly. Build direct relationships with end-user customers, reducing reliance on intermediaries where appropriate. Focus on the food manufacturing sector, including confectionery, biscuits, dairy, beverages, sauces, noodles, and pharmaceuticals. Expand business with textile mills for starch sizing, as well as paper, board, and corrugation manufacturers. Strengthen existing accounts and develop new ones, maintaining a qualified pipeline of prospects, trials, approvals, and commercial opportunities.

Pricing & Commercial Management
Manage starch pricing aligned with the company’s corn-linked pricing framework and commercial policies. Monitor corn cost fluctuations and recommend timely price adjustments to protect margins. Ensure pricing compliance with approved limits and negotiate commercial terms balancing customer needs, profitability, service quality, and long-term value.

Receivables & Collections
Oversee customer credit exposure, collections, and outstanding receivables. Manage accounts within standard 30-day payment terms, with extensions up to 60 days subject to approval. Establish follow-up and escalation processes for overdue payments, maintaining disciplined credit practices to minimize bad debt.

Sales Team Leadership & Development
Evaluate the current sales team’s capabilities and recommend roles and development plans within the first 90 days. Identify staffing needs and recruit additional talent, including a Food Key Account Manager and field sales representatives. Set clear sales targets, customer-call plans, and performance expectations. Conduct weekly sales reviews and coaching to enhance productivity, accountability, and customer engagement. Foster a results-driven sales culture focused on profitable growth, customer retention, service reliability, and collections.

Production Planning & Quality Coordination
Prepare monthly sales forecasts by product grade to support procurement and production planning. Coordinate with production and supply chain teams to align demand with manufacturing capacity and delivery schedules. Collaborate with Quality Control on product trials, technical evaluations, specifications, and approvals. Address customer concerns related to product quality and application performance.

Export Business Development & Industry Representation
Follow up on export inquiries and develop international customer relationships. Represent the company at relevant industry exhibitions and trade events such as FoodAg Karachi, Gulfood Dubai, and IFTECH Lahore. Identify export market opportunities, customer requirements, and potential distribution or direct-sales channels. Provide weekly reports on sales orders, volumes, pricing compliance, receivables, pipeline performance, and team productivity. Deliver actionable market intelligence, customer feedback, competitor insights, and growth opportunities to management.

Required Qualifications
Minimum 12 years of B2B sales experience in starch, food ingredients, or sizing/process chemicals, with significant exposure to the Pakistan market. At least 6–8 years in sales leadership, managing team performance and business development. Proven success in acquiring major accounts, growing sales volumes, and fostering long-term customer relationships. Established contacts with purchasing, R&D, technical, or sizing decision-makers across target industries, especially in the food sector. Experience in hiring, training, coaching, and developing sales teams, including managing underperformance. Practical knowledge of starch applications, viscosity, sizing performance, and food-grade product specifications. Strong commercial judgment with experience managing pricing, credit, collections, and receivables. Consultative sales approach focused on product performance and long-term value rather than discounting.

A minimum of 16 years of formal education is required, such as a BS, BE, or MSc. Preferred technical qualifications include Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Food Science and Technology, or Textile Engineering from recognized institutions. An MBA in Marketing or Sales is an advantage.

Preferred Qualifications and Benefits
Experience with multinational or large local starch, chemical, or food-ingredients manufacturers is preferred. Familiarity with customer and supplier audits, Halal requirements, ISO 22000, or FSSC standards is advantageous. Exposure to export sales, international customer development, and industry trade exhibitions is beneficial. A stable employment history with at least three years per employer and satisfactory professional references is desirable. The candidate must be able to meet contractual obligations and employment restrictions.

Key Performance Expectations include achieving the target of 40,000 bags per month in starch sales, acquiring and retaining direct end-user accounts, maintaining pricing discipline and margin protection, ensuring timely collections, enhancing sales team productivity, delivering accurate forecasts, and supporting customer satisfaction and sustainable business growth.