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Client Development Manager

Posted Date 21 hours ago(17/09/2025 09:58)
ID
2025-7577
# of Openings
1
Job Locations
UK-Home Based
Department
Care Homes

Overview

We are looking for a Client Development Manager/Customer Retention Manager, to be the key link between our customers and apetito.
Customers see their CDM as the face of apetito – they are an instrumental part of the success of apetito partnerships.
You will be an enthusiastic self-starter, who can develop long-term partnerships with customers and achieve commercial targets including high levels of customer retention and loyalty.
You'll manage your own customers whilst having a team of apetito colleagues to support them. This is an important role and gives us a real point of difference in the market. 
The Care Homes Team are:
  1. Dedicated experts in the provision of food for older people
  2. We are genuine partners to Care Homes and their teams
  3. We are proud to create food that is enjoyed and shared.Our Care Homes team have a very forward thinking culture that will really help us to accelerate growth over the next 5 years. We have a mix of experienced managers, food professionals and graduates who are positive and passionate about what we do. We make a real difference.
For further information on the CDM role please view the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcvAr9BrwDw&feature=youtu.be
Please note this is a home based role covering Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. Regular travel to these areas is required.

Who we are

apetito is the UK’s leading food supplier to the health and social care sectors serving more than 1,300 care homes, health care and education settings.
 
Our meals are expertly crafted by our dieticians and chefs, and then frozen to lock in the goodness.
 
Wiltshire Farm Foods, our sister company, is the UK’s largest ready meal supplier cooking and delivering over 330 different delicious frozen ready meals across the UK.

Responsibilities

Retention
  • Customer retention is the key challenge of the CDM role. Targets set are to achieve 95% retention (account volume & value) on existing accounts.
Mobilisations
  • A key element of this role is to ensure that we mobilise our service excellently. This will involve introducing our system and it's benefits, training staff and ensuring that they are appropriately skilled to continue the service.
Business Development
  • To work closely with and support KAM’s to develop group opportunities for further business development. apetito target Groups as opposed to Independents and the development of on-going business is often as a direct result of a successful mobilisation and high level customer engagement.
Relationships
  • External relationships are obviously key to the success of this role, but CDM’s are required to work closely and collaborate with other divisions, to include Marketing, CS&D and Product Development, Healthcare, LA and WFF.
The CDM would typically manage a portfolio of around 40 customers with a key focus on budget control, delivering training needs, product presentations and dispute resolution.
The role will also be expected to promote apetito throughout the Care Homes marketplace through extensive networking.

Qualifications/Personal Qualities

Essential:
  • Proven experience of achieving and exceeding targets from an Account Management perspective.
  • Consultative, Solutions-led Sales experience, not hard product sell.
  • Strong Commercial experience – be able to justify a business-case.
  • Objections handling focused around financial issues.
  • Good O Levels / GCSEs to support a high standard of business communication skills and numerical analysis.
Desirable: 
  • Catering experience
  • Training experience.
  • Experience of food/nutritional/technical standards
  • Experience of the Care sector
  • Customer Service experience
  • Good A Levels/First Degree
  • Advanced Food Hygiene Training
  • Intermediate Food hygiene qualification
Personal Qualities:
We are looking for a self-motivated individual with proven organisational and training skills. Whilst a significant amount of their time will involve working alone they must be a team player who is happy to work within the team to meet joint objectives. The candidate will need to be able to work with and most crucially influence people at all levels within the Care Homes sector.
  • Passion – Must display a passion for this role
  • Gravitas- Credibility with Group Owners/Management Boards
  • Compassionate and able to show empathy with the customer – able to deliver through others
  • Constantly looking to improve existing practices; strives for excellence
  • Resilient & determined
  • Excellent influencing and interpersonal skills
  • Approachable & presentable
  • Extremely attentive
  • Methodical and analytical in approach, but with a results focus
  • Prepared to work flexible hours
  • Able to stay away overnight as needed. Typically no more than 1/night per week
  • Role will include a significant amount of regional travel depending on location.
  • Clean driving licence essential.
  • Lives or willing to relocate within reasonable distance of work location
As this role involves working with elderly and vulnerable customers, it is exempt from The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and requires an Standard DBS Disclosure.
The amendments to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (2013 and 2020) provides that when applying for certain jobs and activities, certain convictions and cautions are considered ‘protected’. This means that they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. Guidance about whether a conviction or caution should be disclosed can be found on the Ministry of Justice website.

Company Benefits

  • Competitive salary – accredited Living Wage employer
  • Company car
  • 25 days holiday per year, plus bank holidays
  • Option to purchase up to 5 additional days holiday per year
  • Generous annual bonus scheme
  • Pension scheme - employer matched contributions up to 5%
  • Life assurance scheme worth 2x annual salary
  • Free turkey or voucher at Christmas
  • apetito perks scheme including salary sacrifice options and retail discounts

Our Values

As a family-owned business, we take great pride in being a company that makes a real difference and is dedicated to creating outstanding meals to be proud of.

 

We develop a range of products designed to enhance health and well-being for all our customers.

 

We are driven by a passion for service and dedicated to feeding some of the UK’s most vulnerable people.

 

We proudly support British food and farming, focusing on using the best ethical and sustainable produce in alignment with our goal to reach Net Zero by 2040.

Our ethical standards are recognised by the ETI and we are an accredited Living Wage employer.
Learn more about apetito’s commitment to a more sustainable future.

 

We embrace inclusion, empowering individuals from diverse backgrounds.

Our commitment to making a real difference extends to customers, communities, and staff and we're on a mission to build an inclusive workplace where everyone reaches their full potential.

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