Key account manager - DK UK sales

Closing date for applications: 19 October 2025

Salary: £31,000 - £40,000

From pitching new opportunities to growing trusted partnerships, this is your chance to lead key accounts and shape bold retail strategies that bring standout titles to shelves nationwide.

We are seeking a non-trade retail and bulk wholesale account manager to join our UK sales team. This is an exciting opportunity for a proactive and customer-focused professional to play a vital role in managing and expanding our key accounts, covering non-trade high street accounts such as The Works, TK Maxx, and Urban Outfitters, as well as bulk wholesale accounts such as 66 Books.

DK champions new thinking and creativity while placing the end consumer at the heart of everything we do. From illustrated non-fiction Sunday Times Bestsellers by Caroline Idens, Simon Akroyd and Rhiannon Lambert, to zeitgeist YA romantasy fiction from Rosaria Munda to innovative BSL board books from Rose Ayling-Ellis, we truly have the perfect book for every reader, of every age, in every genre. DK Sales also encompasses Sourcebooks and their exciting portfolio of fiction and non fiction titles, including #1 bestselling author Freida McFadden.

As the key account manager, you will embrace the challenge of being an innovative problem solver. This role empowers you to pitch and pursue every deal from a fantastic and diverse publishing catalogue - you will be working on A-List licences, ground-breaking reference titles, million copy selling pre-school series, heart-stopping fiction and everything in between. You will also have the creative freedom to explore bespoke custom edition partnerships with your accounts. Developing and maintaining strong relationships with our existing key accounts is essential, and you will consistently go above and beyond to meet their needs. You will be a key part of the sales team, driving and shaping the retail strategy, building brands and growing sales across the business.

You will work from the office a minimum of three days a week and report directly to the head of mass sales channel. The ideal candidate will be adaptable and open to change, with a passion for detail. You will demonstrate numeracy in delivering sales targets and company profitability, bring excellent communication skills both in person and online, and maintain a keen commercial awareness.


Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain strong relationships with existing key accounts, ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction and retention
• Implement effective strategies to maximise sales and revenue growth from key accounts
• Identify and pursue new business opportunities, while also fostering growth and upselling within existing accounts
• Collaborate with internal teams such as production, editorial, and marketing to ensure seamless execution of account plans
• Creating custom publishing projects to suit customer needs, working with finance, publishing, creative and production to ensure custom projects are delivered on time and within agreed sales and margin targets
• Provide timely and accurate sales reports, forecasts, and analysis to the head of channel and the sales leadership team

Knowledge, skills & experience

• Proven experience within the publishing industry
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with diverse stakeholders
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities
• Proficiency in Google Workspace or MS Office ( Word, Excel, PowerPoint essential)
• Self-motivated and results-oriented, with the ability to work independently and within a team

Additional information

To apply for this role, please submit your most recent CV and cover letter by 19th October 2025. Early applications will be prioritised. DK supports flexible working and has introduced a new ‘smart-working’ policy with a hybrid approach of working weekly from home and in DK’s office. We have a range of benefits to reflect our commitment to our people, some of which are:

• 25 days paid holiday entitlement in year one, plus bank holidays
• Generous pension scheme
• Volunteering policy and charity matching
• Employee assistance programme
• 60% discount on company books
• Cycle to work scheme and discounted gym membership
• Flex Fridays (1pm Finish*)
• Shopping discounts
• Up to 30 days remote working from abroad(*subject to certain criteria being met)
• And we plant a tree for every new employee to our business

The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade, but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews or undertaking internships. For more information, visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

DK is committed to building a diverse workforce that reflects the varied communities that read our books across the world. We encourage applications from all individuals, regardless of age, religion, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexuality or social background. DK is proud to announce that we have adopted The Halo Code. DK is a member of the disability confident scheme. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.

Please state in your application that you found this opportunity through Creative Access.