Commercial Director - Plastics Packaging (FMCG/Pharma/Personal Care)

Job Description

Industry: Plastic Packaging (B2B, FMCG-focused)

Role Mandate

The Commercial Director will own the growth, profitability, and customer strategy for the packaging business. The mandate is clear: drive profitable growth, deepen key customer relationships, and build a world-class commercial organization tightly aligned with manufacturing execution.

This is a senior leadership role with full accountability for revenue, margins, pricing discipline, and commercial strategy, working closely with the plant leadership and regional stakeholders.

• Consistent top-line growth with margin improvement
• Strong, sticky relationships with key FMCG/food/dairy/pharma customers
• Disciplined pricing, forecasting, and pipeline management
• A high-performing, accountable sales and commercial team
• Tight alignment between commercial commitments and plant execution

Key Responsibilities

• Define and execute the commercial strategy for packaging in the UAE.
• Identify growth segments, key accounts, and portfolio opportunities.
• Drive long-term customer partnerships rather than transactional sales.

• Lead and develop the national sales organization.
• Personally manage and anchor strategic/top-tier customers.
• Lead complex negotiations, long-term contracts, and pricing frameworks.
• Own sales planning, forecasting accuracy, and pipeline discipline.

• Full ownership of pricing strategy, contribution margins, and discount governance.
• Work closely with Finance and Operations on costing, mix improvement, and profitability.
• Ensure commercial decisions are data-driven and margin-focused.

• Partner closely with Operations, Supply Chain, Planning, Quality, and NPD teams.
• Ensure sales commitments are executable and aligned with capacity and cost structures.
• Act as the single point of accountability between customers and the plant.

• Build, coach, and retain a strong commercial leadership bench.
• Drive a culture of accountability, performance, and customer obsession.
• Establish clear KPIs, cadence reviews, and succession plans.

Candidate Profile

• 1518+ years of B2B commercial experience in manufacturing.
• Strong preference for plastic packaging/plastics/FMCG/Personal Care.
• Proven track record of managing large key accounts and sales teams.
• Direct experience working with manufacturing plants (not pure trading).

• Strong commercial judgment and negotiation skills.
• Deep understanding of pricing, margins, and cost structures.
• Strategic thinker with hands-on execution capability.
• Comfortable operating at Board/CEO level and on the shop-floor.

• Direct, data-driven, and accountable.
• Customer-centric but operationally grounded.
• Able to challenge, align, and execute across functions.

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, or related field.
• MBA or equivalent preferred but not mandatory.