Sales director - Hodder & Stoughton

Closing date for applications: 17 August 2026

Salary: £75,000+ dependent on experience and location (+bonus +benefits)

Location: The role will be based at our London or Sheffield office, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week.

Looking for a high-impact leadership role in publishing? Head up sales at Hodder & Stoughton and help deliver growth across the UK and beyond.

Hachette UK is a creative powerhouse and the UK's second largest book publishing group. Our mission is to make it easy for everyone to discover new worlds of ideas, learning, entertainment and opportunity. We're made up of 10 autonomous publishing divisions and over 60 imprints with a rich and diverse history and an incredible range of authors. We're also the market leader in e-books and publish a range of bestsellers in audio format, the fastest growing part of our business.

Our award-winning adult publishing divisions are Little, Brown, which won Publisher of the Year at the 2026 British Book Awards; Orion (2021 Publisher of the Year Award Winner); John Murray Press; Hodder & Stoughton; Headline; Octopus, and Bookouture. They publish fiction and non-fiction in digital, audio and print format, from the world's best and most diverse authors, including Brit Bennett, Candice Carty-Williams, Martina Cole, Michael Connelly, John Grisham, Stephen King, Stieg Larsson, Nelson Mandela, Stephenie Meyer, Maggie O'Farrell, Delia Owens, Ian Rankin, Colson Whitehead, and Malala Yousafzai. Hachette Children's Group publishes a wide and vibrant range of books for children across all age ranges, while Hachette Learning is a market leader in resources for both primary and secondary schools.

What you'll be doing

• To maximise sales opportunities for Hodder & Stoughton in the UK and international markets, ensuring budgeted targets are met and exceeded across all formats and channels.
• To play a central role in shaping divisional publishing strategy, ensuring editorial ambition is aligned with commercial opportunity and that sales plans support the successful delivery of frontlist and backlist objectives.
• To work closely with colleagues across Editorial, Marketing, Publicity and Group Sales to deliver outstanding results for authors, customers and the division.
• To lead, develop and inspire both direct reports and the wider sales teams aligned to Hodder & Stoughton, creating a high-performing, collaborative and inclusive culture.
• As a member of the Hodder & Stoughton leadership team, to contribute to strategic decision-making, business planning and the continued success and growth of the division.

Who we are looking for

We're looking for a commercially minded and collaborative leader with:

• Significant senior sales leadership experience
• Strong knowledge of the UK book market and wider retail landscape
• A proven track record of delivering sales growth and commercial targets
• Excellent analytical, strategic and decision-making skills
• Outstanding communication and stakeholder management abilities
• Experience developing, coaching and inspiring high-performing teams
• A passion for publishing, readers and great books

What we offer

Our staff are our greatest asset, and our benefits reflect this:

• 28 annual leave days per year, increases to 29 days after 2 years' service and goes up to 30 days after 5 years' (+ bank holidays)
• Private medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Generous pension schemes
• Rent deposit loans
• 2 community days per year
• Summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months)
• Retail discounts through Hachette rewards
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Eye care vouchers
• Wide-ranging training library
• Development programmes (including mentoring)
• Up to 70% off book purchases
• A charity bookshelf
• An active range of staff-led employee networks that are voluntary, including AgeWise, Gender Balance, Thrive, Pride, All Together, Wellbeing, Women in Techand religious networks
• Season ticket loans
• And much more!

Our commitment

Hachette employs people on the basis of their abilities. We aim to attract and develop talent from a base as broad as the world of readers we want to reach, with a wide and representative range of age, faith, disability, race, gender, sexuality and socio-economic, regional and cultural backgrounds.

We want everyone to have the opportunity to perform at their best during our recruitment process. If you need any adjustments, you can let us know at the ‘Reasonable Adjustments’ section of your application. We’ll make sure you’re supported throughout the process.

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 and undertaking junior roles. For more information visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

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