Dubai, United Arab Emirates
nabilnajem.com General Manager with 10+ years of leadership experience across FMCG, foodservice, frozen bakery, and B2B markets in the Middle East and emerging markets. Proven track record in driving revenue growth, leading business transformation, and managing full P&L accountability across multi-country operations. Recognized for scaling businesses, optimizing route-to-market strategies, and delivering sustainable profitability. Experienced in leading large cross-functional teams and building high-performance organizations in complex, high-growth environments. • P&L Management & Financial Performance • Revenue Growth & EBITDA Optimization • Commercial & Go-to-Market Strategy • FMCG, Foodservice (HORECA) & Frozen Bakery • Market Expansion & International Growth • Distributor & Channel Management • Strategic Partnerships & Negotiation • Business Transformation & Performance Improvement
• Advise FMCG and Foodservice companies on international expansion across the Middle East. • Develop and implement go-to-market and distributor strategies to scale revenue and market presence. • Support CEOs with P&L optimization, pricing strategies, and cost-to-serve improvements. • Identify new revenue streams through channel expansion. • Structure commercial partnerships and negotiate long-term agreements.
Entrusted with full executive ownership of emerging markets, reporting directly to the CEO and Board, with mandate to scale, transform, and institutionalize sustainable growth across high-potential but complex regions spanning GCC, Africa, and Asia. -Owned full P&L accountability for a multi-market portfolio exceeding USD 80M, driving revenue growth, margin expansion, and cash discipline across diverse and volatile operating environments. -Architected and executed international expansion strategy, establishing scalable market entry models (distributor, JV, hybrid), including successful joint ventures in Pakistan and strategic restructuring of Morocco operations. -Led end-to-end turnaround of Sudan business, transforming a loss-making operation into a USD 10M profitable entity with 16% EBITDA, within a structured performance recovery roadmap. -Drove margin architecture transformation, delivering +15% gross margin improvement through pricing discipline, product mix optimization, and commercial policy redesign. -Rebuilt and optimized regional route-to-market, restructuring distributor networks by 20%, enhancing numeric distribution, execution quality, and in-market control. -Accelerated category growth and innovation, launching new product segments that delivered +30% uplift in product adoption and strengthened competitive positioning. -Secured long-term, predictable revenue streams through multi-year strategic agreements and joint business planning with key partners and distributors. -Institutionalized operating discipline, introducing performance scorecards, structured governance, and weekly operating rhythms aligned with board-level KPIs (revenue, EBITDA, working capital, and market share). -Acted as a strategic partner to the Board, translating shareholder vision into executable market strategies, while de-risking expansion through disciplined capital allocation and market prioritization frameworks.
Appointed to co-lead and transform a multi-brand FMCG distribution business, with full executive oversight across commercial, supply chain, and operations, serving both Retail and Foodservice (HORECA) channels in a highly competitive UAE market. -Directed a 220+ employee organization, integrating sales, operations, logistics, and finance into a unified performance-driven structure, aligned to aggressive growth and profitability targets. -Managed a complex portfolio of 3,000+ SKUs across 20+ international brands, balancing category mix, pricing architecture, and channel strategy to maximize revenue and margin contribution. -Redesigned the route-to-market across Retail and Foodservice channels, optimizing distributor coverage, channel segmentation, and customer prioritization, delivering +20% revenue growth. -Strengthened Foodservice (HORECA) penetration, building structured key account management for hotels, restaurants, and catering groups, while enhancing service levels, product availability, and tailored offerings. -Elevated retail execution standards, improving shelf presence, in-store visibility, and promotion effectiveness across modern trade and wholesale channels, driving higher sell-through and brand equity. -Institutionalized a performance management system, introducing KPIs, sales force effectiveness tools, and pipeline discipline, resulting in +30% improvement in sales conversion and team productivity. -Optimized supply chain and demand planning, improving forecast accuracy by 35%, reducing stock-outs, enhancing service levels, and supporting consistent growth across channels. -Drove cost and margin discipline, delivering USD 1.2M in savings through procurement optimization, supplier renegotiations, and operational efficiencies, while strengthening strategic partnerships with global principals.
• Directed Foodservice, B2B, and HORECA commercial operations across Saudi Arabia, leading a 25-member sales and key account management team. • Delivered exceptional revenue expansion, scaling annual sales from SAR 3M to SAR 75M, positioning the company among the leading frozen bakery suppliers in the Saudi market. • Established category leadership in frozen bakery, launching and managing a portfolio of 100+ SKUs including croissants, Danish pastries, baguettes, pizza, and artisan loaves. • Led strategic commercial negotiations that secured a national exclusive supply contract with PANDA Retail, generating a high-volume recurring revenue stream and strengthening nationwide brand presence. • Held full commercial P&L ownership, overseeing pricing architecture, margin optimization, discount policies, and trade promotion investments to improve profitability. • Developed and expanded strategic Foodservice key accounts, including hotel chains, airline caterers, QSR groups, and national distributors, driving strong channel penetration. • Designed and executed multi-channel go-to-market strategies covering Modern Trade, Foodservice, and Distributor networks, ensuring structured market coverage. • Negotiated long-term supply agreements and preferred supplier partnerships, positioning SUNBULAH as a strategic frozen bakery partner for major foodservice operators in Saudi Arabia. • Spearheaded custom product development initiatives for strategic clients, including Saudia Airlines, Subway, Pizza Hut, Kudu, and Americana, tailoring solutions to operational and brand specifications. • Implemented key account management frameworks and performance KPIs, improving customer retention, service levels, and contract value. • Collaborated closely with supply chain, production, and operations teams to ensure consistent product availability, service excellence, and scalable growth. • Built a high-performance sales culture, developing team capabilities in negotiation and account management.
• P&L owner for the territory, responsible for driving market share growth and profitability for the Nestlé Professional portfolio (beverages, culinary, dairy, and branded solutions) through strategic distributor management and key account development. • Developed and executed the annual business plan for the territory, achieving 125% of annual sales targets in 2005. Managed a full P&L with a budget of SAR 15M, implementing cost-saving measures that improved net profitability by 6% year-over-year. • Conducted comprehensive market analysis to identify white-space opportunities, leading to the successful launch of 3 new product lines in the HORECA channel. • Managed the end-to-end relationship with a major distributor, overseeing a network of over 200+ sub-distributors and key outlets. • Implemented a rigorous Joint Business Planning (JBP) process with distributors, aligning on targets, trade investments, and portfolio strategy, resulting in a 20% increase in distributor-initiated orders. • Led distributor team training programs on product knowledge, sales techniques, and increasing their salesforce productivity by 15%. • Directly managed and grew relationships with top-tier Key Accounts, including major hotel chains (e.g., Marriott, Hilton), Saudi Airlines, and restaurant groups), AL Baik, Kudu, and catering companies. • Secured exclusive beverage partnerships with 2 leading QSR chains, generating SAR 0.3M in new annual contract value. • Pioneered a customized "Signature Solutions" program for key clients, leveraging Nestlé's branded assets (e.g., NESCAFÉ, MAGGI) to drive menu innovation and client loyalty. • Collaborated with marketing, supply chain, and finance teams to ensure aligned execution of national strategies at the regional level.