Company Description
Champs is a leading North American luggage and travel goods brand known for thoughtfully crafted products designed for the way people travel today. Since 1988, we've combined modern design with timeless craftsmanship across luggage, leather goods, backpacks, duffels, and travel accessories - each engineered for durability and built to earn a place in real travel routines.
Champs products are sold through major retailers across Canada and the United States, and direct-to-consumer at champsluggage.com. Every product is backed by our 10-Year Warranty - a reflection of the quality we build into everything we make.
Headquartered in Montreal, family-owned since day one, and supported by warehousing in both Canada and the United States, we work with a global manufacturing network and are actively investing in the next phase of our growth - expanding our product portfolio, deepening our retail footprint, and building our team.
Role Description
The Director of Sales is a foundational leadership hire based on-site at our Montreal headquarters. This role owns Champs' wholesale channel across Canada and the United States - including managing existing retail relationships, opening new accounts, leading our independent sales representative network, and representing the brand at major industry trade shows.
You will report directly to one of the founders and operate with significant autonomy. This is a role for a builder - someone who wants to own a channel end-to-end and shape a growing business, not fill a seat on a sales org chart.
What You'll Own
- Direct management of our North American wholesale accounts across big-box, department store, and specialty retail channels
- New business development, with priority focus on off-price retail and other untapped North American channels
- Full leadership of our independent commission-based sales representative network - supporting them, growing the network, and recruiting new reps where territory or category gaps exist
- End-to-end ownership of our trade show strategy, from selection and booth planning through staffing, logistics, and follow-up
- Retailer contract and terms negotiation within established credit and pricing guardrails
- Input into product assortment recommendations for specific retailers based on customer fit and demand
- Primary escalation point for major retail account decisions (flyers, seasonal programs, key promotional initiatives)
- Monthly performance reporting to the founders on pipeline, account health, and progress against targets
Year 1 Success Looks Like
- Existing account revenue maintained at or above current baseline
- 2–3 new retail partners added to the portfolio
- 10–15% revenue growth from existing accounts
- Structured trade show calendar established with at least two major shows attended
Qualifications
- 7–12 years of B2B or wholesale sales experience in consumer goods - ideally luggage, travel goods, accessories, footwear, apparel, housewares, or a related category
- Direct experience selling into major North American retailers - big-box, department store, and/or off-price
- Track record of owning and growing a meaningful book of business
- Experience managing or working closely with independent sales rep networks
- Trade show experience (ASD, NY Now, Magic, Travel Goods Show, Toronto Gift Fair, or equivalent)
- Strong negotiation skills and real understanding of retail terms, margin structures, and merchandising programs
- Self-starter who thrives with autonomy and accountability - comfortable building a function and operating with founder-level partnership
- Willingness to travel 25–40% of the year, primarily across Canada and the United States
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field is a plus; equivalent industry experience is equally valued
Compensation
- Base salary: CAD $90,000 (commensurate with experience)
- Performance bonus: CAD $25,000–$35,000 at target, tied to revenue growth, new account acquisition, and trade show outcomes
- Long-term incentive participation available for the right candidate
- Trade show and account development budget to be proposed by the Director within the first 90 days
- Three weeks vacation, travel expenses covered
