National Account Manager

Klosterman Baking Company, founded in 1892, is one of America’s most storied wholesale bakeries. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, we produce premium fresh and frozen breads, buns, rolls, flatbreads, artisan loaves, and donuts — served to over 8,000 restaurants, grocery stores, hospitals, and institutions nationwide. Backed by New Water Capital and operating five state‑of‑the‑art production facilities, Klosterman is in an exciting national growth phase — and we’re building the sales team to match.

The National Account Manager — Broker & Distributor Channel is a high‑visibility, revenue‑driving role responsible for recruiting, managing, and growing Klosterman’s broker network and the distributor relationships that carry our frozen bakery portfolio to operators and retailers nationwide. This individual inherits and builds out an established national pipeline — advancing targets from prospecting through closed‑won, driving distributor authorizations, velocity, and long‑term program growth across food service, grocery, convenience, and specialty channels.

This role’s selling effort is allocated across three channels:

Distribution through food service DC’s – volume, velocity & item placements

Broker partner recruitment, alignment & new‑item distribution

Senior‑level relationships & strategic national/regional account closes

Direct, established relationships with food service and retail brokers — and with the broadline, grocery, c‑store, and specialty distributors they serve — are the primary differentiator for this role. The ability to identify the right category buyers, recruit and activate broker partners, navigate distributor authorization and slotting processes, and secure long‑term program business across a managed national network is essential. Experience selling frozen bakery (bread, buns, rolls, artisan, specialty) into distribution at scale is highly valued.

Critical national targets span manufacturers, bakeries, ingredient suppliers, and distribution partners. All targets are currently in the prospecting stage, awaiting an owner to qualify, advance, and convert:

• National Chain Restaurants
  : QSR (Burger King, Wendy’s, Inspire Brands, etc), Fast Casual (Shake Shack, Smash Burger, Chick Salad Chick, etc), Casual Dining (Bloomin Brands, Brinker, Applebee’s), C‑Store (7‑11, Quick Trip, Wawa, Racetrac, etc)
• Distribution Companies
  :
  Sysco, US Foods, Performance Food Group (PFG), Gordon Food Service (GFS), Dot Foods, Shamrock Foods, and Ben
  
  E. Keith Foods.

• Distributor Authorization & Pull‑Through:
  Win category authorizations and DC placements with broadline, grocery, c‑store, and specialty distributors; drive product movement through the system via broker activation, incentives, sampling, and operator conversion.
• Own & Advance the National Pipeline:
  Take ownership of the 134‑target distributor pipeline; assign, qualify, and progress accounts through the stage‑gate process from prospecting to closed‑won, prioritizing the 55 Critical and High targets.
• Broker Network Leadership:
  Recruit, onboard, manage, and hold accountable a national network of food service and retail broker partners — setting priorities, targets, and expectations to drive distributor authorizations and program growth.
• Buyer Identification & Outreach:
  Validate the correct frozen bakery / category buyers and execute structured multi‑touch outreach cadences; convert cold targets into qualified, sample‑and‑spec opportunities.
• Menu & Product Placement:
  Drive inclusion of Klosterman’s bread, bun, roll, and specialty bakery items on operator menus, approved‑item lists, and retail shelf sets through broker‑led selling.
• Cross‑Functional
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Partner with marketing, R&D, operations, and supply chain to deliver samples, specs, allergen and category documentation, and ensure on‑spec, on‑time launch execution.
• Trade Show & Industry Presence:
  Represent Klosterman at the National Restaurant Association Show, IFDA and distributor events, and key food service and retail trade shows to build presence and…