Associate Sales Manager-Chicago, Ann Sacks
Work Mode: Onsite
Location: Onsite at Chicago Showroom, Mon-Fri
About Ann Sacks
For over four decades, Ann Sacks has been synonymous with exceptional craftsmanship, timeless design, and innovation in tile and stone. What began in Portland, Oregon as a simple venture into tile has grown into a luxury design brand offering tile, slabs, stone furniture, fireplaces, baths, and home accessories.
As part of Kohler Co., Ann Sacks combines the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of a design-led luxury brand with the strength, resources, and stability of a global organization. Across our support office, manufacturing teams, and showrooms, we maintain a small-business feel with a national footprint.
Opportunity
Ann Sacks is seeking an ambitious, growth-oriented sales leader to drive market performance, develop high-performing sales talent, and expand our influence within the architecture and design community.
The Associate Sales Manager serves as a sales leader for the Chicago market, responsible for driving revenue growth, profitability, client engagement, and market visibility through disciplined territory development and strong sales team leadership. The showroom is our hub, but the market is the focus.
Success in this role requires a visible presence both inside and outside the showroom, building relationships with architects, designers, builders, contractors, developers, and other key influencers who shape luxury residential and commercial design.
The ideal candidate is a natural relationship builder with strong business acumen, a passion for luxury design, and the ability to lead a consultative sales team. You understand that growth comes from consistent activity, thoughtful client strategy, disciplined follow-up, and meaningful market presence.
You bring energy, accountability, and a drive-growth mindset. You know how to motivate people, build trust with clients, and turn market insights into action.
This role does not own an individual book of business, but is expected to be actively engaged with the market’s most influential clients and design partners, helping strengthen Ann Sacks’ position as the preferred luxury surfacing partner.
The Kind of Leader Who Thrives In This role
- Loves being in front of clients and building relationships.
- Gets energy from coaching others and celebrating their success.
- Sees networking as an opportunity, not an obligation.
- Believes activity creates opportunity.
- Is competitive, accountable, and driven to win.
- Can balance luxury hospitality with commercial business acumen.
- Adapts quickly, innovates with purpose, and ascends with the team.
- Wants to build something bigger than themselves.
- Eager to learn and grow within the business.
How You’ll Make an Impact
Grow the Market
- Lead market growth initiatives through relationship-building, business development, networking, client engagement, and strategic territory management.
- Coach associates to develop and execute territory plans that strengthen client relationships, expand market influence, and generate future sales opportunities.
- Drive accountability to High Impact Activities, including outreach, client meetings, events, networking, project follow-up, account reactivation, and activities that support long-term growth.
- Foster a proactive sales culture focused on creating opportunities, not waiting for opportunities.
- Partner with associates on Top 25 client relationships, significant project opportunities, presentations, and strategic account development.
- Lead showroom-hosted events, CEUs, product presentations, client experiences, networking opportunities, and community engagement efforts.
Lead Winning Teams
- Build and lead a results-driven sales culture grounded in accountability, client engagement, relationship development, and consistent execution.
- Partner with your leader to provide regular coaching, feedback, and performance management to help associates achieve and exceed sales goals.
- Review individual and team pipelines, forecasts, High Impact Activities, outreach plans, and territory strategies to identify opportunities and remove barriers to success.
- Recognize and celebrate individual and team wins while maintaining clear accountability to goals, behaviors, and expectations.
- Proactively address performance gaps and partner with leadership and Human Resources as needed on coaching plans, performance improvement, disciplinary action, and career development.
Build Strategic Client Relationships
- Act as a visible market leader and ambassador for Ann Sacks within the local design and building community.
- Maintain active engagement with the market’s most influential architects, designers, builders, contractors, developers, and strategic clients.
- Partner with associates to deepen key account relationships, strengthen client loyalty, and expand Ann Sacks’ influence within target firms.
- Attend industry events, design community gatherings, trade programs, networking opportunities, and client-facing experiences to build Ann Sacks’ presence in the market.
- Serve as a resource for clients and associates on product, service, project strategy, and luxury client experience expectations.
Deliver a Luxury Client Experience
- Ensure the showroom reflects the high standards, hospitality, design point of view, and luxury experience expected of the Ann Sacks brand.
- Set clear expectations for the client experience across every stage of the sales journey, from initial engagement through project completion and post-sale support.
- Lead by example in delivering gracious, consultative, and solution-oriented client experiences.
- Partner with associates to resolve client concerns with urgency, professionalism, and a focus on protecting long-term relationships.
Drive Business Performance
- Own showroom and market performance and overall business results, in close partnership with Area or Regional leadership.
- Review sales forecasts and partner with associates to develop action plans that accelerate monthly, quarterly, and annual results.
- Use CRM, reporting tools, pipeline data, activity metrics, and market insights to evaluate performance and guide priorities.
- Drive disciplined follow-up, accurate forecasting, effective pipeline management, and consistent CRM utilization across the team.
- Balance the urgency to drive sales with a strong understanding of long-term business health.
- Provide market insights to Sales leadership and demonstrate strong knowledge of local market dynamics, client behavior, and competitive activity.
Lead Operations That Support Growth
- Ensure showroom operations support a high-performing sales environment and exceptional client experience.
- Partner with leadership to ensure appropriate staffing, scheduling, onboarding, and training across showroom roles.
- Manage time and attendance, work schedules, vacation planning, and staffing adjustments to align with business needs.
- Oversee daily, weekly, monthly, and annual reporting processes, using insights to improve sales effectiveness and business performance.
- Maintain operational discipline while ensuring the primary focus remains market growth, sales leadership, and client development.
Attract, Develop, and Retain High-Performance Talent
- Build a strong network and talent pipeline within the luxury design, sales, showroom, and building materials industries.
- Recruit, onboard, coach, and develop sales talent capable of delivering strong business results and exceptional client experiences.
- Own the onboarding experience for new showroom sales and support associates, including training plans, skill assessment, role plays, and progress check-ins.
- Create development plans that strengthen sales capability, product knowledge, territory management, client engagement, and leadership potential.
- Foster an inclusive, collaborative, and accountable team culture aligned with Ann Sacks and Kohler values.
- Model professionalism, curiosity, resilience, and a growth mindset for the team.
What Success Looks Like
- Stronger engagement with architects, designers, builders, contractors, developers, and key influencers throughout the market. Includinga minimum of5outreachappointments per month.
- A high-performing sales team that consistently executes High Impact Activities and delivers measurable growth.
- Increased market visibility through networking, events, presentations, CEUs, and community engagement.
- Stronger relationships with Top 25 clients and strategic accounts.
- A culture of accountability, collaboration, momentum, and winning.
- Ann Sacks positioned as the luxury surfacing partner of choice in the market.
Why Ann Sacks
- Design is not simply what we sell. It is who we are.
- For more than 40 years, Ann Sacks has partnered with influential designers, architects, builders, and clients to create spaces that are distinctive, personal, and enduring. Joining Ann Sacks means joining a team that values creativity, entrepreneurship, craftsmanship, and growth.
- As part of Kohler Co., Ann Sacks offers the energy of a design-led luxury brand supported by the resources and stability of a global organization.
Skills/Requirements
- Minimum of 5 years of sales experience required.
- Minimum of 1 year of experience managing, coaching, or leading a sales team required.
- Prior showroom, luxury retail, architectural/design, interiors, or related industry experience preferred.
- Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, design, architecture, interior design, or a related field preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to drive sales results through coaching, accountability, territory planning, and client relationship development.
- Experience using CRM systems to manage pipeline, track activity, analyze data, and maximize sales performance required.
- Proficiency using Microsoft Office or similar business tools required.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to evaluate performance data, identify trends, and translate insights into action.
- Ability to contribute to a positive, collaborative, inclusive, and accountable work environment.
#LI-Onsite
#LI-KZ1
Applicants must be authorized to work in the US without requiring sponsorship now or in the future.
We believe in supporting you from the moment you join us, which is why Kohler offers day 1 benefits. This means you’ll have access to your applicable benefit programs from your first day on the job, with no waiting period. The salary range for this position is $77,200 - $117,300. The specific salary offered to a candidate may be influenced by a variety of factors including the candidate’s experience, their education, and the work location. In addition, this position is eligible for a performance bonus/variable incentive compensation.
Why Choose Kohler?
We empower each associate to #BecomeMoreAtKohler with a competitive total rewards package to support your health and wellbeing, access to career growth and development opportunities, a diverse and inclusive workplace, and a strong culture of innovation. With more than 30,000 bold leaders across the globe, we’re driving meaningful change in our mission to help people live gracious, healthy, and sustainable lives.
About Us
It is Kohler’s policy to recruit, hire, and promote qualified applicants without regard to race, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran. If, as an individual with a disability, you need reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process, please contact kohlerjobs@kohler.com. Kohler Co. is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
