James Folsom
Experienced CPG Sales Professional
Atlanta,GA
Summary
Accomplished CPG professional with over 13 years of experience in building strategic customer relationships across multiple channels, growing distribution, scaling merchandising plans, and developing long-term growth strategy with both internal & external partners. Excellent business acumen, problem solving, collaboration, & communication.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
4
4
years of post-secondary education
Work History
Customer Team Leader - Target
The Clorox Company
05.2023 - Current
- Manage 3 businesses with Target (Cleaning, Glad, & Laundry) totaling ~$350M in BCS for Clorox
- Responsible for customer P&L management and Target JBP financials
- Heavy strategic influence with the internal Clorox Business Units to drive alignment with Target customer strategy, resource planning, and growth strategy
- Direct interface and relationship with 3 Target Senior Buyers
- 2 direct reports, and a dotted line with 3 cross-functional resources (Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain)
- Key accomplishments: +7% distribution growth on Home Care while in role; secured +3 incremental merch events in FY25; was on-track to deliver BCS, Share, & Trade % goals on all businesses in FY25 prior to Target's -8% traffic erosion in Feb '25
National Account Manager – Amazon
The Clorox Company
08.2021 - 04.2023
- Managed 2 brands at Amazon (Cleaning & Glad Trash) totaling $140+ million in BCS for Clorox
- Delivered +30% BCS growth on Cleaning and +15% BCS growth on Glad at Amazon for Clorox's FY23
- Grew margin by +55 bps through mix improvement and fines reduction
- Successfully negotiated AVN with Amazon to setup mutually profitable growth for 2024 & beyond
- Improved the relationship with the Amazon Vendor Managers that resulted in the first JBP meeting with Amazon in over 4 years
- Expanded Clorox assortment on Amazon by over +30% in 2022
- Managed 2 direct reports (Region Sales Manger and Senior Sales Analyst)
- Clorox Leading Edge Retailer (top 7 accounts) Salesperson of the Year - FY23
National Account Manager – Home Depot
The Clorox Company
04.2019 - 07.2021
- Managed Kingsford at Home Depot totaling $50 million in BCS for Clorox
- Delivered +14% growth in FY21 as one of the top Kingsford growth accounts for the company
- Secured +6 SKU’s in the 2021 line review that increased in-store distribution by over +2X
- Supported ecommerce growth acceleration on homedepot.com through increasing assortment by +3X and building an online merchandising strategy to drive traffic & increase conversion
- Delivered a trade funds restructure program to Home Depot that led to increased profitability and a sustainable long-term customer P&L
- 1 direct report
National Account Manager – Kroger
The Clorox Company
02.2017 - 03.2019
- Managed 3 brands at Kroger (Burt’s Bees, Laundry, Vitamins) totaling $30 million in BCS for Clorox
- Navigated a challenging time with the customer and still delivered sales growth objectives on 2/3 businesses in FY18
- Secured +2X distribution growth on Burt’s Bees Lip Care in 2018 that set-up a strong 2019 growth plan (before departing the role)
- Secured distribution in a new category with Kroger (Digestion) on Renew Life Probiotics
- Renegotiated a 3-year Laundry promotion agreement to drive increased profitability & ROI
- 1 direct report
Regional Sales Manager
The Clorox Company
03.2015 - 01.2017
- Key customer accounts: Babies R Us, Old Navy, Sprouts, Bed Bath & Beyond
- +17% growth at Babies R Us, +15% growth at Sprouts, +415% growth at Old Navy
Senior Sales Analyst
The Clorox Company
07.2013 - 02.2015
- Managed data & analytics for the Kroger account, focusing on topline sales reporting, post promotion analysis, line review support, budget tracker management, & share gap analysis
- Developed proficiency with 84.51/shopper card data, IRI, Nielsen, & retailer POS data
Supply Chain Analyst
The Clorox Company
06.2012 - 06.2013
- Supported Grocery customers by providing logistics performance analysis, supply chain capability development, custom packaging projects, & improved customer service performance
Education
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration
Bryan College
Dayton, TN 08.2008 - 05.2012
Skills
- Business growth and retention
Strategic account development
Ecommerce strategy
Line reviews
Contract & terms negotiation
Promotional planning & strategy
People management
Sales strategy
Sales forecasting
Timeline
Customer Team Leader - Target
The Clorox Company
05.2023 - Current
National Account Manager – Amazon
The Clorox Company
08.2021 - 04.2023
National Account Manager – Home Depot
The Clorox Company
04.2019 - 07.2021
National Account Manager – Kroger
The Clorox Company
02.2017 - 03.2019
Regional Sales Manager
The Clorox Company
03.2015 - 01.2017
Senior Sales Analyst
The Clorox Company
07.2013 - 02.2015
Supply Chain Analyst
The Clorox Company
06.2012 - 06.2013
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration
Bryan College
08.2008 - 05.2012
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