A closer look at the work behind the headline numbers — leading a €0.5Bn category at Selecta, and the negotiation craft built through Harvard and Michigan.
As Group Category Leader for Hot Drinks at Selecta — Europe's largest route-based unattended retail and coffee services group — I owned the commercial and financial performance of a €0.5Bn category spanning 14 European markets. The role sat at the intersection of procurement, category strategy and P&L ownership, reporting into senior leadership in a private-equity-backed environment where margin and cash discipline were under constant scrutiny.
My defining project was developing and rolling out the "One Selecta Coffee Strategy" — moving 14 historically independent markets toward a single, coherent coffee approach. Rather than 14 separate sourcing and assortment decisions, the strategy aligned the group around shared supplier relationships, a rationalised portfolio and consistent commercial logic, designed to lift both revenue and gross margin. Crucially, this was never just an Excel-driven savings exercise — it was built around our clients' and consumers' needs, ensuring the character of each brand and concept stayed intact and came through in the quality of every product.
I negotiated and managed contracts with the category's most important partners — including Nestlé Professional, Lavazza and Segafredo. These were high-stakes, multi-market agreements where small movements in price, terms or volume commitments translated directly into millions of euros of margin. Managing these relationships meant balancing tough commercial outcomes with partnerships strong enough to last. My remit went well beyond the major coffee players: I negotiated the full hot-drinks basket — tea, paper cups, sugar sticks, fresh milk, and instant articles such as cocoa, milk powder and instant drinks — so the entire category, not just coffee, was optimised.
Alongside the strategy, I drove a range of projects focused on pricing and margin optimisation, and provided hands-on commercial support to local markets to help them stay competitive and grow. The thread running through all of it: protect and expand margin without losing share.
€0.5Bn category, 14 European markets
Nestlé Professional, Lavazza, Segafredo & more
Senior leadership, PE-backed environment
An earlier role as Brands & Concepts Manager (Selecta Netherlands) adds a local-market brand perspective alongside the group-level work above.
As Key Account Manager for the group, I managed a portfolio of strategic international accounts across the coffee business, with a clear focus on deepening customer relationships and lifting the retention rate. It was a role built on trust, commercial discipline, and understanding what each account genuinely needed.
My defining project was leading the transition from external A-brands to an in-house roasted coffee portfolio — delivering significant savings while strengthening the group's own brands. Alongside it, I managed international intercompany relations, secured large tenders, and supported assortment rationalisation across markets to unlock cost and production efficiencies.
I also developed tailored sales propositions per country, sharpening the brand hierarchy so each market led with the right proposition.
Based in the UK, I led large-scale strategic projects focused on revenue growth, profitability and customer retention — turning strategy into delivered results in a competitive market.
Working closely with the Sales Director, I coordinated team members and drove pipeline conversion, keeping cross-functional projects on track from plan to execution.
The deal-making I did at Selecta is grounded in formal negotiation training from two of the most respected programmes in the field. Together they cover both sides of the discipline: the frameworks for structuring a negotiation, and the tactics for creating and claiming value within it.
Harvard Business School Online
Harvard's programme focuses on the dynamic between creating value (growing the pie) and claiming value (securing your share), preparing systematically, using objective decision tools, and closing deals that hold up. It sharpened how I prepare for and run complex, multi-stakeholder commercial negotiations.
University of Michigan
Michigan's course laid the foundations: the four key stages of negotiation — prepare, exchange information, bargain, and close — plus how to use leverage, BATNA and psychology to reach agreement. It's the structured base I've applied and refined on every deal since.
Whether it's a procurement challenge, a supplier negotiation, or a commercial project — let's talk about what you need.
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