Trade Marketing Manager, Central Region

Location: Michigan

About the Role

The Regional Trade Marketing Manager will play a lead role in building the Long Drink brand and executing marketing strategy within the Central Region. As the regional trade marketing lead, you will develop a regional strategy and execute plans that drive brand awareness and engagement with customers and consumers across retail and activations.

This highly cross-functional and entrepreneurial role balances creative brand-building with disciplined commercial execution. You'll work closely with the Marketing, Sales, and Customer Development teams to ensure Long Drink shows up consistently, creatively, and with impact in every market touchpoint while expertly leveraging local insights and partnerships.

Key Responsibilities

Trade Marketing & Program Development

• Adapt and execute national retail programs for local markets, ensuring alignment with regional priorities and customer needs.
• Develop and execute localized retail and trade marketing programs tailored to priority markets, chains, and independent accounts that win features and display.
• Lead regional promotional programs, sweepstakes, and customer marketing initiatives in collaboration with Sales and Customer Development.
• Manage the production and distribution of trade marketing assets, optimizing cost, quality, and turnaround through local vendor partnerships.

Regional Marketing Leadership & Field Alignment

• Serve as the marketing lead for your region — developing annual and quarterly plans that align with national strategy and local market goals.
• Partner closely with Sales and Customer Development to guide regional budget planning and ensure spend is prioritized against the most impactful programs and activations.
• Lead creative execution and work with Sales teams locally to ensure consistent, premium brand execution across markets with a focus on trade support and events.
• Lead the development and activation of support plans for innovation launches, marketing campaigns, and other brand-building initiatives at the regional level.
• Track program performance, share learnings, and continuously optimize execution to drive stronger alignment and ROI across marketing and sales.

Activation & Consumer Engagement

• Own the regional activation calendar, identifying and executing high-ROI events, festivals, and cultural moments that drive trial and brand love.
• Identify, negotiate, and manage local partnerships, sponsorships, and alliances that amplify brand visibility and connect with target consumers.
• Partner with Sales to ensure activations ladder up to both marketing strategy and commercial priorities.
• Oversee recruiting, training, and management of local brand ambassador and sampling teams to ensure premium, consistent representation.
• Manage sourcing and production of regional activation assets while optimizing cost and quality through local vendor relationships.
• Extend the reach of activations and partnerships through smart integration with retail, media, and field initiatives — maximizing visibility and ROI.
• Evaluate activation performance and develop recaps and recommendations to inform future planning.

Brand Building & Market Insight

• Build Long Drink's brand equity at the regional level by driving awareness, advocacy, and relevance with both consumers and trade.
• Strengthen relationships with key accounts, distributors, and partners — acting as a credible, creative ambassador for the brand.
• Regular in market work to assess the execution of our plans as well as monitor local competitive activity and identify new opportunities for growth and differentiation.
• Act as the marketing voice of the region, surfacing insights, competitive activity, and local trends to inform broader brand and business strategy.
• Serve as a trusted partner and valuable resource to the local sales team, helping inform and support their tactical plans.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in field, trade, or brand marketing, ideally within beverage alcohol, CPG, or lifestyle brands.
• Proven ability to translate brand strategy into impactful in-market execution.
• Strong collaboration skills and the ability to influence cross-functional partners across sales and marketing.
• Demonstrated success managing budgets, agencies, partnerships, and vendor partners.
• Excellent organizational and project management skills, with a bias for action and follow-through.
• Candidates should be located within Michigan but can expect to travel across Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

The salary range for this position is $100,000-$120,000 annually, based on experience, skills, and qualifications. This role is also eligible for performance-based bonuses and a comprehensive benefits package, including health insurance, retirement plan options, paid time off, and professional development opportunities.