Updates

Jobs in the Drinks Sector

Posted on 25-08-21 by Jack Woolsey

Drinks form an important part of the FMCG sector. Along with food, it is the single biggest manufacturing sector in the UK meaning it is a sector full of opportunities. There is always a need for employees to support the brands that the UK knows and loves as well as creating new ones. Products in the drinks sector could include bottled water, carbonated drinks, fruit juices, dilutables, still and juice drinks, coffee, tea and alcoholic beverages such as spirits, beer and wine. 

As with all Consumer Goods businesses, a job in the drink sector will ensure an exciting and fast-paced working environment that requires constant innovation. The work you do can have a direct impact on the drinks that people buy and consume every day.  

A job in the drinks industry is typically a stable one due to the nature of the product – drinks are sold everywhere. In addition, most businesses will sell more than one consumer goods product meaning they are large and have scope for growth. They are normally a safe career option if you’re concerned about job security.

Large scale businesses such as those in the drinks industry require a more defined structure and strongly established processes in order for them to operate smoothly and in harmony with other departments. As a result, employees for a drinks brand will likely have a clearer understanding of their career progression and where their current role can take them. 

Due to the scale of the drinks businesses and the wide range of roles needed to run smoothly, this industry, like others in the FMCG category, present a wide range of career opportunities. Below are just a few areas in which Clear Edge Search and Selection can help.

Drinks Marketing Jobs

Marketing roles in the drinks industry will be responsible for the promotion and positioning of the brand or the drinks products that the company sells. 

In a drinks marketing job, who you market to can be one of two different types of people. Either you work to market to the consumers who will buy the drinks from the shop (B2C) or you’ll focus on marketing to the shops and supermarkets themselves, convincing them to stock your drinks product (B2B). Since there are different motives to purchasing your product, you will likely use different marketing methods for each.  

There are so many different customer touchpoints in the beverage industry, so working in a drinks marketing job could see you participate in various different marketing functions.

Whether you work in B2C, B2B or a mixture of both, you will need to identify and analyse the types of customers that the company wants. Although drinks can be consumed by anyone, it’s crucial to understand the brand and determine who the product will appeal to the most. The overall aim of the team will be to design or develop a strong brand image and then position it so that the drink takes up a permanent place in consumer’s minds.

You will then need to attract more customers and raise brand awareness through multiple marketing campaigns. The beverage market is a crowded one and it can be difficult to stand out but it’s important that there is a good return on any investments made.  

Your individual contributions to the marketing team could involve:

• Drinks packaging
• Social media marketing
• Blogging
• Email marketing
• Creating special offers
• PR 
• Partnerships with other businesses
• Data analysis
• Copywriting and content

Drinks marketing jobs require both creative and analytical skills. Creativity helps to bring new ideas to implement into your campaigns whilst data interpretation helps you to make more informed decisions. A good commercial awareness will mean that you’re always looking out for new opportunities to promote the business.  

Communication skills are important as you will be communicating with people on a variety of different levels through different mediums. One day you could be using social media to communicate with consumers and explaining your marketing strategy to the CEO the next.

If you plan to work in a management role, you’ll need a good and broad understanding of marketing as a whole as well as leadership skills. 

Drinks Sales Jobs

A drinks manufacturer relies heavily on consistent relationships with other businesses to sell its products. For example, think about how hard it would be for Coca-Cola if supermarkets or vendors stopped stocking their products. Partnerships are crucial and a drinks sales job is where these partnerships are made and maintained. 

If you’re working in a drinks sales job for a large beverage manufacturer, you can expect to be working closely with existing and new retail partners, to grow the relationship and ensure that the drinks bring profit to both parties. This work could take place in an office or home office environment, however, the work may involve visits to clients and attending trade exhibitions. 

Most sales roles for a drinks company will also involve reviewing sales performance and working towards meeting sales targets. Adverts for sales roles in the beverage industry will usually display a salary that includes ‘on-target earnings’ (OTE). 

As part of your role in developing and maintaining relationships with your vendors, you may be required to work on after-sales services. Clients may come to you directly for any queries or issues, such as pricing, delivery schedules or upcoming promotions. 

To be successful in a drinks sales job, you’ll need great communication and negotiation skills, as you’ll spend time talking to existing and potential clients. You’ll need to confidently persuade buyers that the drinks product you are selling is the best one for the limited shelf space. Leadership, self-motivation and commercial awareness are also key skills for a role in drinks sales. 

Drinks Brand Ambassador Jobs

A Brand Ambassador is responsible for pushing the product and the brand forward, ensuring that they receive the distribution and visibility required. In a drinks brand ambassador job, this will be ensuring that the drinks products are performing as well and have a positive perception by consumers.

As a drinks Brand Ambassador, it would be your job to live and breathe the brand and its corporate identity. You will be responsible for delivering the best of the brand at every opportunity. A Brand Ambassador role could involve liaising with the media, consumers and distributors to benefit the brand and will therefore effectively act as the public face of the product. They may also work on developing relationships with influencers. This role is linked to marketing and sales and as a result, you can expect to work closely with these teams developing sales pitches or participating in event marketing. 

A successful Brand Ambassador will have an established network of contacts to market the brand and product, of which they will be extremely knowledgeable. A candidate for this role will always be looking for new, innovative ways to promote the brand and will find fun, educational and interesting ways to help consumers learn more about the product. 

It’s important to be outgoing and enthusiastic when working in a drinks Brand Ambassador job as you will effectively be the main cheerleader for the brand. As the role involves speaking to others on a variety of different levels, you will need to be confident in communication. Depending on the role, you may require familiarity with social media and perhaps an existing presence on your personal channels. 

Jobs in the Wine Industry

As part of the drinks FMCG sector, the wine industry was estimated to create £49 billion in economic activity in 2018. Despite the UK being one of the smallest wine producers in Europe, it is one of the largest wine importers in the world.

Because the UK has much fewer vineyards than other European countries, there aren’t very many opportunities when it comes to the production of wine, unless you’re looking overseas. 

However, the UK still consumes a lot of wine, with around 80% of people claiming to drink it. This means there are plenty of jobs in the UK wine industry in other areas such as sales, marketing and buying. Since the wine industry forms part of the drinks FMCG sector, roles in the wine industry are very similar to those in other drinks companies, mentioned above.

Wine buyer jobs, however, are slightly different as these have special requirements.  

Wine Buyer Jobs

Instead of buying various ingredients to manufacture a drink, a Wine Buyer’s job will involve liaising directly with wine suppliers from all over the world. As a lot of wines have protected status (e.g. Champagne can only come from the Champagne region in France) it can sometimes be very difficult to simply head to a new supplier. A Buyer will need to develop and maintain healthy relationships with these suppliers. 

Negotiation and communication skills will be very important for a wine buyer job in order to acquire casks or bottles of wine at the best possible value. A good price from the supplier will ensure a more attractive price for the vendors and therefore consumers too. 

A Wine Buyer job also requires a vast knowledge of wine and wine industry trends in order to be effective. It may depend on the employer, but ideally, candidates will need to have a qualification from a reputable body, such as a Masters of Wine or WSET Diploma. It will be the responsibility of the Wine Buyer to select wines for clients and vendors with an understanding of consumer preferences. 

Passionate about wine, the Buyer’s job will also include researching and resourcing new wines to present to the market. You may even be responsible for arranging tasting sessions. 

Brewer / Distiller Jobs

Brewers are primarily responsible for the production of beer. Usually a hand-on role, they are normally involved with all of the operations within a brewery team. You may be responsible for selecting and storing raw ingredients from suppliers, recording and checking brewing conditions (such as temperature or pH levels) or even assisting with the packaging process.

Distilling is a step in the process of creating alcoholic spirits which involves evaporating and recondensing alcohol until the liquid is suitable for drinking. Distillers are effectively responsible for the creation of these alcoholic spirits, including product development, quality control, product testing, raw material sourcing and liaising with customers about the product.   

Unless you are in a training role, you will require previous brewing or distilling experience. In an advanced role, you may be required to train others on aspects of the role, requiring coaching and mentoring abilities as well as leadership and interpersonal skills. 

Drinks Sector Opportunities

Clear Edge Search and Selection specialises in placing candidates for jobs in the drinks sector, including marketing, sales, buyers and more. If you’re looking for your next big career move in the drink industry, we can help you out with our dedicated team of expert consultants. Get in touch today to discuss your requirements.