Business Development Specialist - Industrial, Laboratory & Healthcare Seating

Job Description

E Com Seating | Industrial, Laboratory & Healthcare Seating

Location: Hybrid, home-based within the Northeast Territory. Pittsburgh, PA preferred; flexible for the right candidate. Requires regular travel throughout the territory and monthly visits to E Com Seating headquarters in Cookeville, TN.

Travel: 75% or more

Territory: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Washington, D.C.

Employment Type: Full-time

Compensation: $60,000–$70,000 starting base salary, depending on qualifications and experience, plus performance-based commission

Reports To: Director of Sales

About E Com Seating

Every day, people in labs, hospitals, cleanrooms, and research centers work toward discoveries that can improve our lives. We make the chairs they sit in.

Since 1993, E Com Seating has designed and built high-quality seating for scientists, clinicians, engineers, technicians, and educators. Our chairs are made in the USA at our facility in Cookeville, Tennessee, and serve laboratory, healthcare, cleanroom, industrial, education, and commercial settings.

We sell through a nationwide network of distribution partners who count on us to be responsive, reliable, and ready to help them win. We’re investing in our sales organization, strengthening distributor partnerships, entering new markets, and building a high-performance sales culture.

About the Role

E Com Seating is looking for a driven, entrepreneurial Business Development Specialist to grow revenue through new distributor acquisition and strategic account development.

This is a hunter-first sales role for someone who enjoys opening doors, building relationships, identifying opportunities, and turning prospects into long-term customers. You’ll develop relationships with distributor leaders, category managers, purchasing teams, and field sales representatives. You’ll also support and grow selected existing distributor relationships.

This highly visible role requires extensive travel, personal initiative, disciplined CRM use, and a focus on measurable results.

What You Will Do

Develop new business

• Identify, prospect, and secure new national, regional, and specialty distributor relationships.
• Build account-specific business development plans aligned with company growth objectives.
• Establish relationships with distributor decision-makers, including purchasing, category management, sales leadership, and executive teams.
• Find opportunities to introduce E Com Seating products into new distributor programs, catalogs, and customer segments.
• Build relationships with select end-user organizations to generate demand and create opportunities through distribution partners.
• Manage the business development cycle from prospecting and qualification through presentation, negotiation, and account activation.
• Build a qualified pipeline that can support assigned revenue goals.

Develop distributor and strategic accounts

• Manage assigned distributor relationships and strategic prospects within the Northeast Territory.
• Identify opportunities to increase product penetration and E Com Seating’s share of distributor business.
• Work with distributor sales representatives to identify and develop end-user opportunities.
• Conduct product training, joint sales calls, and account development meetings.
• Support existing accounts as needed while keeping new business acquisition as the primary focus.
• Pursue opportunities in industrial, laboratory, healthcare, manufacturing, education, and related markets.

Travel and represent E Com Seating in the field

• Travel 75% or more to meet distributor partners, develop new accounts, and support business development.
• Conduct in-person meetings, product presentations, distributor training, and customer visits.
• Attend industry conferences, trade shows, and distributor events.
• Build strong working relationships with customers and distributor sales teams.
• Plan travel efficiently to maximize customer engagement and revenue-producing activity.

Manage the sales process and results

• Use CRM to manage prospecting, account information, opportunities, and forecasts.
• Keep timely, accurate records of customer interactions, pipeline stages, next steps, and projected revenue.
• Follow established sales processes and consistently prospect, follow up, and manage opportunities.
• Meet agreed weekly and monthly activity expectations, including outbound calls, emails, meetings, and new opportunity creation.
• Participate in weekly pipeline reviews, forecasting discussions, and performance accountability meetings.
• Maintain a qualified pipeline aligned with revenue targets.
• Take ownership of sales results, commitments, and performance improvement.

Collaborate internally

• Work with sales leadership, customer service, operations, and product teams to support successful account development.
• Share customer feedback, competitive information, and market opportunities with leadership.
• Coordinate product specifications, pricing requests, and customer requirements with internal stakeholders.
• Support onboarding and activation of new distributor relationships.
  

What You'll Bring

Required

• At least three years of successful B2B sales or business development experience.
• Experience working within a distributor-based or indirect sales model.
• A track record of generating new business through proactive prospecting and relationship development.
• Understanding of distributor relationships, channel sales strategies, and account development.
• Experience using CRM software to manage sales activity, opportunities, and forecasting.
• Ability to work independently and consistently achieve sales objectives.
• Strong communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-building skills.
• Strong organization, time management, and follow-through.
• Ability and willingness to travel 75% or more.
• Residence centrally located within the Northeast Territory. Pittsburgh, PA is preferred, but the location is flexible for the right candidate.
• Willingness to train onsite at E Com Seating headquarters in Cookeville, TN for the first three weeks of employment and visit headquarters monthly.

Preferred

• Experience selling manufactured products through industrial, laboratory, medical, healthcare, or commercial distribution channels.
• Existing relationships with national or regional distributors such as Grainger, Fisher Scientific, VWR, Medline, Uline, or similar organizations.
• Experience using Pipedrive CRM.
• Experience launching products, developing distributor programs, or expanding sales territories.
• Familiarity with generating end-user demand through distribution partners.
• Experience managing strategic accounts while maintaining an active new business pipeline.

How Success is Measured

Performance is measured through sales activity, pipeline development, new account acquisition, and revenue growth. Key indicators may include:

• New qualified distributor opportunities and new distributor relationships established and activated.
• Revenue generated from new accounts and growth within assigned existing distributor accounts.
• Qualified pipeline value and opportunity progression.
• Prospecting activity, customer meetings, and conversion rates.
• CRM accuracy, forecast reliability, and adherence to sales processes.

The Business Development Specialist is expected to maintain a consistent rhythm of prospecting, customer engagement, and follow-up that produces measurable business results.

The Ideal Candidate

You enjoy pursuing new business and building relationships from the ground up. You take initiative, manage priorities independently, and own your commitments, activity, forecasts, and results. You’re organized and disciplined about prospecting, CRM management, and the sales process. You build trust with distributors, customers, and internal teams, welcome feedback and training, and are comfortable with extensive travel and face-to-face selling. You’re confident managing the logistics of business travel and understand that success is measured by business generated.

Compensation & Benefits

• Starting base salary of $60,000–$70,000, depending on qualifications and experience.
• Performance-based commission rewarding new business development and profitable revenue growth.
• Business travel expenses reimbursed in accordance with company policy.
• Employee benefits provided in accordance with company plans and eligibility requirements.
  

Why Join E Com?

For more than 30 years, E Com Seating has built American-made seating for the researchers, clinicians, and innovators working toward tomorrow’s discoveries. As we enter our next phase of growth, you’ll have the opportunity to develop new markets, build lasting distributor relationships, and contribute ideas that directly influence company performance.

We’re building a sales organization grounded in initiative, accountability, teamwork, and results. If you’re a motivated sales hunter with an entrepreneurial mindset and a desire to make a meaningful impact, we encourage you to apply.

E Com Seating is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.