Jon Watson Email & Phone Number

Atlanta, Georgia, Us

Grand Haven, Mi, Us

Enterprising, extroverted and customer- focused sales and operations leader with a natural ability for building new business and forging loyalty with clients, vendors, internal and external business partners. Identifies and capitalizes on emerging business ventures to propel an organization to the top tier of its industry. Motivational management style with a proven history of building, guiding, and retaining high performance teams to develop and implement strategies for accelerated growth. Strives to optimize operations, reduce costs, and improve service quality while strengthening the bottom line. Talented sales strategist offering thought leadership, strategic advice, insights for market differentiation, competitive advantage, and go to market strategies using best in class tools and processes. Interests:• Customer Experience Design / Development• Consumer Path to Purchase • Retail Design Development• Digital In-Store • Shopper Insights and Brand Experience• Sales Operations• Manufacturing Technology and Innovation• Lean Manufacturing• Manufacturing Operations• Systems Integration• Interactive Technology• VR / AR / VI / AI

• Responsibilities included sales training, high level corporate sales presentations, sales forecasting for United States sales group. Continued opening and managing new and existing clients.• Added responsibilities of overseeing EDI development and implementation for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., design group, and project management group while continuing to manage direct accounts and generating new sales leads and corporate presentations.

• Hired in 1997’ as a National Account Manager and given responsibility for a four state territory with no previous sales activity. Generated over $2 million in sales which exceeded forecast. Managed custom permanent fixture programs from design through delivery and handled all client communication throughout programs.• Managed multiple accounts from 1997’ through 2005’ generating an average of over $4.3 million annual sales.

• Hired in 1990’ as a National account manager with a 6 state territory with no previous sales activity. Charged with opening new accounts for the custom permanent display division of American Greetings Corporation, AG Industries (AGI).• Responsibilities included sales lead generation, sales presentations to new potential accounts, project communication to internal design and project management groups, design presentations to clients, all communication between AGI and new potential clients. • Opened and retained clients Rawlings Sporting Goods, Impel Marketing, Aramark Marketing, and The San Francisco Chronicle-Examiner, and with sales averaging over $4.2 million per year.

• Promoted in 1987’ to account manager calling on beverage industry accounts for sales of stock merchandising equipment and displays for retail placement. Equipment included gravity feed shelves for both convenience and grocery retail, injection molded and wood free standing displays, and ice barrels for single serve beverages.• Responsibilities included telemarketing to rural, tertiary and major market accounts, sales travel and presentations, order write ups, follow-up on shipping delivery status and communication to customers in a 4 state territory. Travel was 36 to 40 weeks annually.• Delivered triple digit sales increases each year and was given responsibility for 2 additional states in 1988’. Opened first non-beverage account Auto Shack (now Auto Zone) in 1988’ with the first gravity feed system for single quarts of oil merchandising at retail.• Managed sales of over $1.8 million annually in a 6 state territory for a company doing less that $15 million in total sales.

During my junior and senior years in college I worked as a thermal vacuum former operator for Paul Flum Ideas Inc. Paul Flum was a leading supplier of merchandising and display products to the beverage industry. Duties included:• Set vacuum form tools and pushers• Testing parts and setting all controls to specification.• Production operation of machines with stringent QC and Quota requirements.• Certified Forklift operator for material staging and product flow plan.