Direct Sales Representative

Direct Sales Representative

Location: Buffalo, NY – Onsite
Employment Type: Full-Time
Travel: Approximately 50%
Work Authorization: U.S. Citizens (USC) and Green Card Holders only
Base Salary: $60,000
Variable/Commission: Up to $40,000
Target Compensation: $100,000
Note: Candidates with significantly higher salary expectations will not be considered.

Position Overview

We are seeking a Direct Sales Representative to manage and grow a key sales territory covering New York State and Ontario, Canada.

This is a high-impact, field-based sales position suited for a technical sales professional who enjoys building customer relationships, developing new business, and providing application-specific solutions within industrial and manufacturing environments.

The successful candidate will work closely with customers, engineering teams, and internal stakeholders to understand manufacturing processes, identify opportunities, and recommend technically sophisticated solutions that deliver measurable value.

This is not an order-taking sales role. The ideal candidate will take a consultative approach—learning customer applications, understanding their manufacturing challenges, and partnering with technical teams to develop solutions that improve product performance, process efficiency, and cost-per-part economics.

The position is based at the company’s Buffalo, NY facility and requires approximately 50% travel throughout the assigned territory. Comprehensive training on products, applications, and internal processes will be provided.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and grow an existing customer base across New York State and Ontario, representing approximately $850K–$1M in annual revenue.


• Develop new business through proactive prospecting, cold outreach, networking, referrals, and industry events.


• Build and maintain long-term relationships with key decision-makers across purchasing, engineering, operations, and manufacturing.


• Conduct customer application reviews and process analyses to understand operational requirements and challenges.


• Recommend customized, application-specific solutions based on customer requirements.


• Partner with internal engineering and product development teams to develop appropriate product specifications and solutions.


• Communicate the performance and value of premium products, including:
  
  
  
  • Cost-per-part savings
  
  
  • Extended product life
  
  
  • Improved process efficiency
  
  
  • Reduced downtime
  
  
  • Overall manufacturing cost improvements
  
  
  
  


• Effectively communicate value propositions and justify premium pricing against competing products.


• Maintain accurate customer, opportunity, pipeline, and sales activity information within CRM systems.


• Provide regular territory updates, forecasts, and market feedback to the Sales Manager.


• Monitor competitors, market trends, customer requirements, and industry developments.


• Provide field intelligence to internal teams to support product development and go-to-market strategies.


• Represent the organization at trade shows, customer events, industry associations, and other relevant industry activities.


• Travel approximately 50% throughout New York State and Ontario for customer visits, application reviews, prospecting, and new business development.


• Work independently while maintaining strong communication and collaboration with internal teams.

Target Markets & Customers

The successful candidate will work with customers across industrial and manufacturing sectors, including:

• Steel mills and metal processing facilities


• Automotive and transportation manufacturers


• Piston and engine component manufacturers


• Cutting tool manufacturers


• Precision grinding and metalworking operations


• Industrial manufacturing companies


• Other organizations requiring high-performance, application-specific abrasive or metalworking solutions

Required Qualifications

• 3–7 years of technical sales, industrial sales, manufacturing, or related experience, or a combination of technical/manufacturing experience and demonstrated sales aptitude.


• Strong understanding of metal removal, machining, grinding, cutting tools, or related manufacturing processes.


• Demonstrated ability to develop new business while managing and expanding existing accounts.


• Strong consultative and solution-based selling skills.


• Ability to identify customer needs, diagnose technical challenges, and recommend appropriate solutions.


• Comfortable working with multiple stakeholders, including purchasing, engineering, operations, and management.


• Self-motivated and highly organized, with the ability to independently manage a large geographic territory.


• Comfortable learning technically complex products and manufacturing applications.


• Strong communication, presentation, relationship-building, and negotiation skills.


• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and CRM systems.


• Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel approximately 50%.


• Ability to travel throughout New York State and Ontario, Canada.


• Must have appropriate authorization to work in the United States and be eligible for required cross-border travel into Canada.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience selling abrasives, grinding wheels, cutting tools, industrial consumables, or related products.


• Experience selling custom-engineered or technically specified products.


• Experience with longer sales cycles and consultative technical selling.


• Familiarity with:
  
  
  
  • Steel mills
  
  
  • Automotive suppliers
  
  
  • Precision machining
  
  
  • Grinding operations
  
  
  • Metalworking
  
  
  • Manufacturing processes
  
  
  
  


• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Materials Science, Industrial Technology, Business, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a technical, consultative salesperson who can confidently operate in manufacturing environments and communicate with both technical and business stakeholders.

You should be comfortable spending time on the shop floor, understanding how a customer’s process works, identifying performance issues, and translating technical improvements into measurable business value.

This role is particularly well suited for someone with experience in industrial manufacturing sales, abrasives, grinding, cutting tools, machining, metalworking, or engineered industrial products who wants to take ownership of a significant territory and drive both account growth and new business development.

Compensation

• Base Salary: $60,000


• Variable/Commission: $40,000


• Target Total Compensation: $100,000


• Candidates with substantially higher compensation expectations will not be considered.

Work Authorization

Only U.S. Citizens and Green Card Holders will be considered.

Candidates must also be able to meet the requirements for business travel between the United States and Canada.