Business Development Manager | Storrington, West Sussex | £45k + uncapped commission (OTE £50k+)
Hands-on role, officed-based with lots of travel, with a genuinely niche product. If you've got sales drive and a technical head, this is a great chance to grow something, not just maintain it.
The Job in Plain English
We're a small but highly specialised UK manufacturer — in fact, the only one of our kind — making bespoke high-value capital equipment for heavy-duty industries like oil & gas, marine, and construction, think serious engineering our kit has some impressive capacity.
Right now, we're after someone to join our sales team as a Business Development Manager. The outgoing MD (who still carries a sales bag) is retiring, and our Sales Manager is stepping up. We need someone sharp to backfill and drive new business, not just babysit accounts.
You'll be based at our West Sussex site (non-negotiable), with UK travel and international trips once you've found your feet.
What You'll Be Doing
* Building relationships with new and existing customers — mostly B2B, capital equipment
* Digging into a database of 2,000+ qualified contacts, and finding fresh ones
* Driving outbound activity, targeted, not telesales. It's a niche market with only 10 global competitors
* Getting on the road: site visits, demos, problem-solving — you'll need to be face-to-face
* Supporting dealers and agents (UK and international)
* Attending exhibitions and flying the flag at industry events
* Reporting to the Sales Manager but working closely with the whole leadership team
* After 6–12 months, expect 1–2 overseas trips a month (1 week at a time typically)
What You'll Need
* A strong sales background ideally in a industrial capital equipment but definitely a techical sell.
* Comfortable talking shop with engineers, but commercially sharp, we want a doer, not a theorist
* You don't need a degree, but you do need to understand technical products and long lead times
* Proven sales success especially in new business, not just account management
* A proactive mindset — you won't be spoon-fed leads
* Flexibility to travel – including time away from home when needed
* Bonus if you've worked internationally or supported overseas distributors, but it's not essential
A Bit About Us
We've been around for decades and export to over 50 countries. Despite that reach, we're under 20 people — so everyone knows what's going on and mucks in. Our gear is bespoke, engineered to order, and we build everything on-site. Visitors are always surprised by what we do here.
You'll be sitting in an open-plan office with sales, marketing and the MD — no ivory towers, just people getting things done.
The Package
* £45k base salary
* 1% commission on all sales over £500k (realistic OTE £50k+ in year one, more beyond)
* Company car (or allowance)
* Laptop, mobile, company credit card
* 25 days holiday + bank holidays
* Workplace pension
* Private health care (after qualifying period)
* Full-time: Monday–Friday, 8am–5pm (half-hour lunch)
* 3-month trial period
Note: This is a site-based role — you'll need to live within a 45-minute commute of Storrington, West Sussex.
Interested?
No need to overthink it. If this sounds like you, send us what you've got — CV, LinkedIn profile, or even just a quick email to Harris Lord our search partner on this role to start the conversation.