Talal's CV
Talal El-Masri
Personal Profile
Profile summary
Strategic Head of Commercial with 11 years shaping commercial outcomes and scaling operations. Known for building distribution networks, managing P&L accountability, and leading cross-functional teams. Committed to driving growth through data-informed strategies and operational alignment.
Career highlights
Commercial Strategy and Channel Development: Architected the entire route to market from scratch at No Saint, establishing a footprint of 2,000 doors through field activation, distributor onboarding, and trade platform integration.
Sales Team Expansion and Performance: Expanded the business development manager team from 3 to 13 in 3 months at InPost, achieving 200 percent of the annual sales target within 6 months.
Key Account and Retail Growth: Secured a listing in Waitrose across 8 SKUs at Juul Labs Ltd, elevating the brand to number 10 nationally and maintaining a 95 percent product fulfilment rate.
Field Infrastructure and Regional Sales: Built a field team from 8 to 52 personnel and secured 950 new distribution points within 6 months while presenting commercial performance directly to the chief executive officer.
Key skills
Professional experience
Reports directly to the chief executive officer and senior leadership team, shaping the commercial strategy and steering full P&L ownership, channel execution, and cross-functional alignment.
- Architected the entire UK route-to-market from scratch, establishing a footprint of 2,000 doors through field activation, distributor onboarding, and trade platform integration.
- Structured and managed distributor SLAs covering activation targets, field execution standards, service delivery, and operational compliance.
- Designed and deployed a multi-tier field structure consisting of City Managers, Brand Warriors, ASMs, and BDEs with defined KPI frameworks.
- Built weekly reporting workflows including interactive dashboards, WoW volume tracking, door health monitoring, and SLA compliance reporting.
Directed national sales operations and team expansion, establishing territory coverage while managing target performance and cross-functional operational workflows.
- Expanded the BDM team from 3 to 13, establishing national territory coverage through data-driven strategies.
- Achieved 200% of annual sales target within 6 months.
- Partnered with operations to establish clear communication and delivery SLAs, resulting in a 211% increase in deployments vs 2023.
- Simplified the sales process from 8 steps to 4, achieving a 60% increase in deal readiness and improving closure rates.
Shaped commercial direction and go-to-market strategy for the UK and Ireland region as an independent consultant, driving strategic enterprise accounts and aligning cross-functional teams to execute market entry plans.
- Served as executive sponsor for senior-level partnerships with Unitas, Booker, and symbol chains, acting as the primary commercial contact for key accounts.
- Implemented a push-pull go-to-market strategy that produced three times reorder value on initial sales bundles and thirty percent reorder rates in a competitive regulatory environment.
- Delivered twenty-five percent return on investment on the initial marketing campaign within the first month.
Directed commercial performance reviews for senior leadership, delivering pipeline, risk, and forecast clarity. Maintained compliance and operational standards while managing financial resources to support retail expansion.
- Secured an annual listing in Waitrose across 8 SKUs with a budget value of 1.2M.
- Mentored and led a team of 43 members, receiving Coach of the Year in 2022 and Value of the Year in 2021.
- Maintained a 95% product fulfilment rate through rigorous partner and operational compliance management.
- Secured 950 new distribution points within 6 months.
- Built field team from 8 to 52 personnel while presenting commercial performance directly to the CEO.
- Exceeded regional sales targets by 23% consistently through focused retail execution.
- Executed distribution agreements across key accounts, expanding market availability.
- Generated 1.5 million pounds in annual gross merchandise value through strategic key account development.
- Negotiated and executed commercial contracts that strengthened retail footprint presence.
- Implemented push-pull go-to-market strategies resulting in a three times reorder value on initial sales bundles and thirty percent reorder rates.
- Achieved twenty-five percent return on investment on the initial marketing campaign within the first month.
- Managed a 1.2M budget while leading the sales team to contribute 30% to national revenue.
- Secured a major retail listing worth 1.2M annually across 8 stock keeping units.
- Secured 950 new distribution points within 6 months.
- Built field team from 8 to 52 representatives.
- Managed a £250K budget across aggressive distribution goals.
- Consistently exceeded sales performance targets by 23%.
Education
Business Management | Awards & Achievements
- 2:1
- ASM of the Year | March 2020
- Coach of the Year | March 2022
- Value of the Year | September 2021
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People | May 2018
- Gap Negotiation Training (3-day course) | August 2016