Business Development Representative

Business Development Representative

Position Summary

The Business Development Representative is an individual-contributor sales role responsible for identifying, developing, and winning new restaurant and foodservice business throughout the Austin and Central Texas market. The position builds and manages a qualified sales pipeline, develops relationships with decision-makers, and coordinates the successful setup and launch of new customer accounts. This role does not supervise employees and is accountable for achieving defined new-business, revenue, package-growth, and profitability goals.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Prospect, identify, and qualify new restaurant, hospitality, school, institutional, and other foodservice opportunities throughout Austin and Central Texas.
• Build and maintain an active sales pipeline through cold calling, referrals, networking, market research, site visits, industry events, and community engagement.
• Meet with owners, chefs, operators, purchasing leaders, and other decision-makers to understand their business, menu, product, service, and delivery needs.
• Present BFS products, services, capabilities, and value proposition in a clear and compelling manner.
• Develop proposals, product recommendations, order guides, pricing solutions, and account plans that support customer needs and company profitability.
• Negotiate within approved pricing, credit, service, and contractual parameters and coordinate required approvals.
• Own the new-restaurant and new-account setup process, including customer documentation, credit coordination, product selection, order-guide development, pricing, delivery requirements, operational handoff, and launch follow-up.
• Partner with the Sales Manager and coordinate with purchasing, credit, customer service, operations, warehouse, and transportation to ensure new accounts are set up accurately and launched successfully.
• Monitor early account performance, resolve onboarding issues, and maintain customer relationships to support retention and continued growth.
• Identify opportunities to expand product mix, package volume, revenue, and profitability within newly developed accounts.
• Maintain accurate prospect, activity, opportunity, forecast, and account information in the company CRM and other required systems.
• Track sales activity and results and provide timely pipeline, forecast, new-account, and performance updates to the Sales Manager.
• Stay informed about restaurant openings, local market activity, competitor offerings, food trends, product availability, and produce-market conditions.
• Represent BFS professionally at customer meetings, tastings, trade shows, networking events, and company functions.
• Perform other duties as assigned based on business needs.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum of three years of restaurant or foodservice sales experience with a proven track record of developing new business and achieving sales goals.
• Demonstrated experience setting up and launching new restaurant or foodservice accounts, including coordinating customer onboarding, order guides, pricing, credit documentation, product needs, and operational handoff.
• Established knowledge of the Austin and Central Texas restaurant and foodservice market and the ability to identify and reach key decision-makers.
• Strong prospecting, consultative selling, negotiation, presentation, and closing skills.
• Ability to build relationships with restaurant owners, chefs, operators, purchasing leaders, and other stakeholders.
• Working knowledge of foodservice products, restaurant operations, fresh produce, specialty foods, or distribution is strongly preferred.
• Ability to analyze customer needs, pricing, volume, margin, and account potential while protecting company profitability.
• Strong organization, time management, follow-through, and written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficiency with CRM systems and Microsoft Outlook, Excel, and Word.
• Valid driver's license, reliable transportation, and the ability to travel throughout Austin and Central Texas and attend occasional after-hours or weekend customer events.
• High school diploma or GED required; bachelor's degree in business, marketing, hospitality, or a related field preferred.
• Bilingual English/Spanish skills are a plus but not required.

Core Competencies

New-business development and prospecting; relationship building and influence; restaurant and foodservice market knowledge; account setup and launch coordination; negotiation and closing; results orientation; cross-functional teamwork; and profitability awareness.

Physical and Work Environment

• Regularly works in office, customer, restaurant, warehouse, and field environments.
• Must be able to sit, stand, walk, drive, reach, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer and other standard business equipment.
• May occasionally enter warehouse or refrigerated areas and encounter varying temperatures, noise, and active material-handling equipment.
• Must be able to occasionally lift or move up to 20 pounds.
• The schedule may include early mornings, evenings, weekends, and local travel based on customer and business needs.

Position Benefits

• Commission opportunity in addition to base salary
• Company fuel card
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k)
• Supportive, team-oriented work environment

Additional Information

This description summarizes the general duties and expectations of the position and may be adjusted based on business needs. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.