Business Development Manager​

About us:​​

City to Sea is an award-winning environmental charity on a mission to prevent plastic pollution at source. Leading in this space for almost a decade, we work with communities, businesses, and policymakers to tackle single-use packaging and accelerate the transition to a circular economy. Our campaigns empower individuals and businesses to reduce waste by providing easy access to reusable, refillable, and returnable options. From tech-powered tools and behaviour change campaigns to grassroots community-led action and education programmes, our initiatives help individuals and organisations reduce single-use packaging. Our campaigns include the Refill Campaign, which has saved 100 million pieces of plastic from entering our waste stream, World Refill Day, Switch the Stick, Plastic Free Periods and more.​

City to Sea is proud to be a winner of the ‘Escape 100 Best Organisations to Escape to 2022’. We’re a 4-day-a-week employer, driven by purpose, making a real impact by tackling plastic pollution at its source. Our team may be small, but we’re mighty — known for our ambition,​friendliness, adaptability, and ability to juggle multiple projects. We pack a lot into those four days!​

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Role Summary: ​

Are you a dynamic business development professional with a strong commercial mindset? Do you excel at building strategic partnerships and driving revenue growth? Are you passionate about using your skills to create a positive environmental impact? If so, we want to hear from you.​

We’re looking for an ambitious and commercially savvy Business Development Manager to join our team as we enter an exciting new phase for the organisation. This role is central to driving City to Sea’s financial sustainability by identifying, securing, and growing revenue-generating opportunities. You’ll be a confident self-starter, comfortable with the full sales cycle — from prospecting and pitching to closing deals and managing relationships.​

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Purpose:​

To generate and secure revenue streams that strengthen the financial sustainability of City to Sea. The successful candidate will identify and sell commercial opportunities within our portfolio of products and services, such as the Refill App, Corporate Partnerships, the Reuse and Return Alliance and sponsorship opportunities at global events such as The Global Reuse Summit.​

All our products/services aim to reduce reliance on single-use plastic packaging and accelerate the transition to a circular economy. You’ll work as part of a mission-driven social enterprise alongside a passionate team of campaigners and change-makers.​

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About the role:​

This is a commercially focused, entrepreneurial role within City to Sea. It’s ideal for someone with a proven track record in business development who wants to channel their commercial expertise into environmental impact. You will lead on identifying and pursuing new business opportunities, securing partnerships, and driving income growth across our portfolio.​

You’ll be engaging a broad spectrum of clients, including local authorities, public sector bodies, retailers, brands, traders, and NGOs. Our portfolio includes consultancy services, trade memberships, platform advertising and paid listings across our Refill App and digital platforms.​

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Your core responsibilities:​

• Work with the Head of Partnerships to refine City to Sea’s commercial strategy, defining target markets, value propositions, and pricing structures.​

• Proactively identify new business opportunities and secure partnerships, building a robust sales pipeline.​

• Develop and deliver compelling pitch decks and proposals tailored to client needs.​

• Collaborate with the team to deliver positive experiences for partners and clients, driving retention and growth.​

• Manage the sales pipeline, providing accurate revenue forecasts and regular progress reports.​

• Build and nurture strategic relationships with key stakeholders across different sectors.​

• Leverage City to Sea’s CRM system to manage contacts and track new business prospects.​

• Work with City to Sea’s marketing team to deliver B2B campaigns and activity that support sales. ​

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About you: ​

• You’re commercially driven and passionate about using your business development skills to support environmental causes.​

• With a proven track record in sales, partnership development, and income generation, you’re a natural communicator and relationship-builder. ​

• Confident pitching and negotiating with senior decision-makers across multiple sectors, you know how to turn conversations into collaborations.​

• You bring experience in business development within relevant industries like tech, retail, or sustainability.​

• You are goal-oriented and self-motivated — always striving to meet or exceed revenue targets.​

• Agile and adaptable, you have a positive, can-do attitude and aren’t afraid to roll up your sleeves to get the job done. ​

• You approach challenges with a sense of humour and a problem-solving mindset.​

• A skilled networker, you confidently use platforms like LinkedIn to build connections and spot new opportunities. ​

• You’re IT-literate, comfortable with CRM systems, and know your way around Microsoft tools like PowerPoint.​

• You’re open to exploring fresh commercial ideas as they arise and thrive in a fast-paced environment.​

• You can work from City to Sea’s Bristol office at least twice a week, with flexible remote working options.​

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Diversity and Inclusion at City to Sea: ​

We recognise that City to Sea, like much of the environmental sector, is lacking diversity amongst its staff. As a Bristol based organisation, we’d love to be more representative of the city’s 16% black and ethnic minority demographic and particularly welcome applicants from this background. ​

For this reason, if you are from a black or minority ethnic background, we will guarantee you an interview providing you are able to show you can do the job in your covering letter. Please use the reference ‘ABDM Access’ at the top of the covering letter if this applies to you. ​

If you have any additional access requirements to support with your application, please let us know by contacting [email protected]​.

We would be grateful if you could take the time to fill out our Equalities Monitoring Form (see below). This form is anonymous and will not affect your application in any way. The data we collect will feed into our annual benchmarking that drives our strategy to attract, welcome and retain a more diverse team. ​