Background
Shape the Future of Starbucks Ready-to-Drink in Italy & Switzerland
Are you a commercially driven marketing and sales professional ready to grow the world's most iconic coffee brand in Italy & Switzerland? This role combines strategic planning, key customer management, and hands-on market execution – offering the chance to make a significant impact on Starbucks RTD's international growth journey.
Join Arla's ambitious and innovative team at their brand-new office in Carlsberg Byen, Copenhagen – a hub for driving Arla's growth in international markets.
How you will make an impact. At Arla, they don't just make dairy – they build some of the world's most loved beverage and food brands. From fueling mornings with Lurpak to refreshing consumers on-the-go with Starbucks Ready-to-Drink (RTD), they bring passion, innovation, and Scandinavian values of trust and sustainability into every sip. Their RTD portfolio is one of the fastest-growing parts of our business, playing in a high-impulse, fast-moving category where visibility, execution, and speed truly matter.
For Arla, we are now looking for an experienced commercial professional to lead the Starbucks RTD business in two strategically important markets – Italy and Switzerland. This is a unique opportunity to take full ownership of markets at different stages of development: driving growth in a well-established, retailer-concentrated market in Switzerland, while continuing to scale the category and grow distribution in Italy.
You will report to the Senior Commercial Manager DS Rest of World and hold end-to-end responsibility for delivering growth in Italy and Switzerland. You will work closely with our national distributor in Italy, direct retail customers in Switzerland, and global marketing and commercial teams to build distribution, execute shopper campaigns, and strengthen in-market presence.
This is a broad commercial role where you will combine strategic business planning with best-in-class execution to deliver sustainable growth across both markets.
Key Responsibilities
* Own the full commercial agenda for Italy & Switzerland – including business planning, budgeting, and in-market execution
* Collaborate with our Italian distributor to deliver business plans and accelerate category growth
* Build and manage relationships with key retailers in Switzerland to drive distribution, visibility, and promotional effectiveness
* Localize and activate shopper and trade marketing plans in collaboration with global teams and agencies – ensuring strong execution in retail, convenience, and on-the-go channels
* Drive perfect store execution: secure best-in-class shelf placement, secondary displays, and cooler presence to win at the point of purchase
* Maximize promotional efficiency and lead selected net revenue management initiatives to balance growth and profitability
* Support capability-building efforts with distributor teams to ensure long-term business success for Starbucks RTD
Qualifications
What will make you successful
To thrive in this role, we believe you are a commercially minded professional with solid experience in beverages or other fast-moving, high-impulse categories. You combine a strategic approach with a hands-on mentality and enjoy working across different markets and business models.
You bring deep knowledge of the Italian FMCG landscape, with proven experience working with Italian retailers, distributors, or customers – giving you a strong understanding of local shopper behavior, route-to-market complexity, and executional drivers.
You are equally confident working with distributors as you are managing direct customer relationships. You are proactive, collaborative, and comfortable with regular travel (approximately 20–30 days per year) to engage customers and partners.
Additionally, we see that you have:
* 5+ years of commercial experience in FMCG, ideally within beverages, RTD coffee, soft drinks, energy drinks, beer, or other high-impulse categories
* Demonstrated success in managing or growing business in the Italian market (experience working directly with Italian customers or distributors is essential)
* Strong understanding of route-to-market models (distributors, key accounts, convenience, on-the-go) and how to unlock performance in impulse-driven channels
* Solid understanding of channel strategy, with ability to adapt to different market contexts
* Hands-on experience building brands in international or export markets, ideally with licensed or global brands
* Strong commercial acumen with a data-driven approach to decision-making and a track record of hitting growth targets
* High proficiency in Italian (mandatory) and English; German is a plus
Arla
What do they offer at Arla?
A dynamic and international work environment, a high level of autonomy, and a chance to grow a category with a globally loved brand. You'll be joining a team that's driven by passion and purpose – and making a meaningful contribution to building a stronger planet and stronger people.
Shape the Future of Dairy
Arla is a global leader in the dairy industry, committed to producing high-quality products while championing sustainability and innovation. They are passionate about people and our planet, striving to unleash the full potential in each of us. The goal is to make healthy dairy nutrition and good food habits accessible to all. Join Arla Foods and become part of a worldwide cooperative dedicated to making a significant impact on the planet and steering the dairy industry towards a sustainable future.
At Arla they are devoted to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. Diversity and collaboration are key to our success, propelling us to new heights in the dairy industry.