Key Skills

Job Description

Location: Netherlands (Field Based / Home Based) Territory: Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg with scope to expand into other neighbouring European markets as the business develops. Company Description At Shoal Group, we’re more than just a business — we’re a team built on trust, commitment, and collaboration. Everything we do is driven by a passion for lasting relationships — with our customers, our partners, and most importantly, with each other. Our customers count on us for more than high-quality products — they rely on our expertise, reliability, and seamless service to keep the world powered and connected. Shoal Group was founded in late 2019 through the coming together of Cablecraft and FS Cables, with a shared vision of creating a platform for long-term, sustainable growth. We expanded further in 2021 with the acquisition of SWA, and today, we’re proud to be part of Diploma PLC — a FTSE 100-listed company with a global presence in Life Sciences, Seals, and Controls industries. Our headquarters are in Luton, Bedfordshire, with a sales office in Gloucestershire and a manufacturing facility in Plymouth, Devon. Across the organisation we have a vision of becoming a leading distributor of cables and cable accessories in the electrical industry; delivering value across multiple channels, including wholesale, contractors, and OEMs. We aim to serve a diverse industry across Europe and grow the business through both organic and inorganic growth strategies. We combine the agility, energy, and flexibility of an SME with the financial strength and resources of being part of Diploma PLC. This allows us to make significant investments and pursue strategic acquisitions to further enhance our offerings and expand our reach. Role Purpose We are seeking an ambitious, commercially driven and technically credible Business Development Manager to establish and accelerate our presence in the Netherlands and Benelux region, with longer-term responsibility for developing opportunities across neighbouring European markets. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced business developer who thrives on opening new doors, building customer relationships and creating sustainable, profitable growth within the electrical and engineering sectors. The successful candidate will bring a strong understanding of electrical or engineering products and applications, combined with broad B2B sales experience. Whilst cable and cable accessory industry knowledge would be advantageous, it is not essential. We are particularly interested in individuals with wider industry exposure who can identify opportunities across multiple sectors and introduce new perspectives to our commercial approach. As a field-based role, the position requires a highly autonomous, self-motivated individual who can take ownership of territory development, manage their own priorities and deliver results with minimal supervision. Importantly, we are looking for someone with long-term potential to grow with the business, contributing to our wider European expansion and potentially progressing into a regional commercial leadership role, including responsibility for developing and managing a team as the business scales. Key Responsibilities New Business Development & Market Expansion Develop and execute a targeted business development strategy for the Netherlands & Benelux Region, identifying and converting new customer opportunities. Proactively build relationships with distributors, OEMs, manufacturers, contractors and other relevant customers across the electrical and engineering markets. Identify opportunities across neighbouring European countries, supporting the development of a broader regional customer base. Build a strong, sustainable pipeline through proactive prospecting, networking and direct customer engagement. Negotiate pricing, commercial agreements and contractual terms to secure profitable, long-term business. Identify emerging markets, applications and sectors that support future European growth. Customer Relationships & Technical Sales Build trusted relationships with key decisionmakers, including commercial, procurement and technical stakeholders. Understand customer requirements and applications, working collaboratively with internal technical teams to develop appropriate solutions. Apply broad electrical and engineering industry knowledge to identify cross-sector opportunities. Represent the business at customer meetings, industry exhibitions and relevant networking events. Develop market intelligence on competitors, pricing, customer needs and emerging industry trends. Commercial Ownership & Performance Take full accountability for territory performance, new customer acquisition, pipeline development and gross margin growth. Develop and manage an effective territory plan, prioritising opportunities based on commercial potential. Maintain accurate CRM records, sales forecasts and opportunity tracking. Demonstrate persistence, resilience and commercial judgement when navigating complex sales cycles and overcoming objections. Work independently, making sound decisions and managing time effectively without requiring extensive day-to-day supervision. Collaborate with UK and wider European colleagues to ensure strong customer service and operational delivery. Future Regional Development & Leadership Contribute to the longer-term commercial development of the Netherlands and surrounding European markets. Identify opportunities to establish scalable sales processes and customer development strategies. Support future market-entry activities and regional business expansion. Demonstrate the capability to mentor colleagues and potentially lead a regional sales team as the business grows. Build the commercial foundations required to support a sustainable European sales presence. Skills, Experience & Attributes Essential Proven B2B business development experience within electrical, engineering, industrial or related technical sectors. Good technical understanding of electrical products, systems or applications. Demonstrable success in securing new customers, developing markets and delivering profitable sales growth. Strong commercial negotiation, influencing and relationship-building skills. Experience managing a geographical sales territory with a high degree of autonomy. A proactive, entrepreneurial mindset with the resilience, determination and commercial drive to develop business from the ground up. Ability to build relationships across a broad range of industries and customer types. Strong organisational skills, commercial judgement and personal accountability. Ability to work effectively with international colleagues and cross-functional teams. Professional fluency in Dutch and English and professional level in German. Based in the Netherlands, with flexibility to travel domestically and across neighbouring European markets. Ambition and potential to develop into a broader regional commercial leadership role. Desirable Existing customer networks within the Netherlands or wider Benelux electrical and engineering markets. Existing experience working with the Marine, Data Centre or Renewable market. Experience selling electrical components, connectivity products, industrial equipment, automation products or related technical solutions. Experience expanding into new European territories or establishing new customer markets. Previous mentoring, team leadership or wider commercial management experience. Wider language skills outside of Dutch, German and English. Knowledge of the cable and associated connectivity industries.

Core Responsibilities

Develop the Netherlands and Benelux territory by winning new customers, building relationships across electrical and engineering markets, and growing a profitable sales pipeline. Own territory performance and customer development while contributing to wider European expansion and the potential future leadership of a regional sales team.

Requirements

Candidates need proven B2B business development experience in electrical, engineering, industrial, or related technical sectors, along with technical product knowledge and a record of profitable growth. The role requires autonomous territory management, strong commercial and relationship-building skills, professional fluency in Dutch and English, professional-level German, and residence in the Netherlands.