Field Sales Representative (Chicago)

Sales Representative, North and West Suburbs Candid Wines, Chicago · Full time · Field sales, on- and off-premise

Candid Wines imports and distributes wine from family estates in France, Italy, Austria, Oregon, California and Michigan, and we sell it to the restaurants, wine shops and clubs of Chicagoland. We are hiring one representative for the North Shore, the northwest suburbs and the western suburbs: roughly Evanston to Lake Forest, and Oak Park out to Naperville.

Our expectations are high and our training is hands-on. Candid's Director of Wine, Alex McNeely, a longtime sommelier and now the winemaker at Poetson in Michigan, leads education about our book and our service-first approach.

Every week the team tastes together and plans the week's selling. When winemakers come to Chicago, you sit at the table with them. Exceptional reps have received stipends for WSET courses and travelled to Europe within their first 18 months.

What you will sell. About 560 bottlings, and soon to be significantly more as we welcome in a major importing partner, North Berkeley Imports, bolstering our twenty years of direct partnerships with some of the best in Europe and the US.

Candid Wines is one of the only independent, family-owned importer-distributors in Illinois with its own warehouse and delivery team in Chicago. Experienced reps tired of driving to Bolingbrook to salvage a missed order on a Friday afternoon will know why this is an incredible benefit.

What the job is.

• Look after 60+ existing accounts across the territory and grow what they buy.
• Open new ones: restaurants, independent shops, country clubs and regional chains.
• Run staff trainings and in-store tastings, so a bottle you placed actually sells.
• Plan your week, work your plan. We've built a custom tool for our reps that puts everything you need on your phone: our portfolio, every account's history, visit notes, route mapping, sales progress and study guides.

You will spend more of the week in your car than at a desk, which is why we put the desk on your phone.

Who you are. You have sold wine in Chicago for at least two years, or bought it for a restaurant or shop and want to move to the other side of the table. You can talk about soil and vintage with a sommelier, then talk margin and turns with a store owner the same afternoon. You follow up in writing. You have a car, a valid Illinois license and a clean record. WSET or Court of Master Sommeliers study is welcome but not required.

Pay.

• Base salary of 55,000–65,000 dollars a year. It rises as your trailing sales grow, so the base you earn in year two reflects the book you built in year one.
• A quarterly bonus, paid on sales and on learning goals we set together.
• Medical, dental and vision insurance, with Candid paying 300 dollars a month toward it once you are eligible, and a 401(k) after your first year.
• Up to 500 dollars a month for mileage and parking, and up to 350 a month for customer spend and samples.

How to apply. Send a short note to about the best wine you sold this year and why the buyer said yes.

Candid Wines is an equal opportunity employer.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $55,000.00 - $90,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Flexible schedule
• Health insurance
• Vision insurance

Application Question(s):

• Are you comfortable driving 4-5 days a week across a large, lucrative territory?

Education:

• Bachelor's (Preferred)

Location:

• North Shore, IL (Required)
• Work Location: On the road