How to hire a wholesale manager

How to hire a wholesale manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step wholesale manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a wholesale manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new wholesale manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The wholesale manager hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect wholesale manager also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list presents wholesale manager salaries for various positions.

   Type of Wholesale Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Wholesale Manager	Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives sell goods for wholesalers or manufacturers to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations. They contact customers, explain product features, answer any questions that their customers may have, and negotiate prices.	$23-55
   District Supervisor	A district supervisor organizes and manages employees' weekly work schedules, balances and controls the payroll budget, and ensures that the company documentation procedures are met. They also maintain and verify payroll information... Show more	$20-50
   Inside Sales Supervisor	The inside sales supervisors manage a team of highly trained sales professionals by merging all in-store techniques of reaching out and engaging prospective customers via phone calls and emails only, and by acting as a liaison between the customer and the company as they sell products and services to customers remotely. Their primary role is to hire sales staff and educate them about the products and services they are selling and evaluate their performance if their goals are met... Show more	$15-34

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Center Management
   • Customer Service
   • Product Knowledge
   • Wholesale Market
   • Business Relationships
   • Trade Shows
   • Sales Volume
   • Inventory Control
   • Retail Store
   • Payroll
   • Wholesale Sales
   • Retail Sales
   • Customer Orders
   • Wholesale Orders

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage QuickBooks including invoicing, accounts receivable and data entry.
   • Assist with underwriting of conventional, FHA and portfolio mortgage loans.
   • Surmount tumultuous economy by maintaining steady income, retaining customers, and realizing exponential sales growth by creating realistic customer expectations.
   • Review conditions as stipulated by UW and internal policy to ensure broker and AE understand what is required to meet/clear conditions.
   • Surmount tumultuous economy by maintaining steady income, retaining customers, and realizing exponential sales growth by creating realistic customer expectations.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your wholesale manager job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A wholesale manager can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, wholesale managers' average salary in hawaii is 52% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level wholesale managers 57% less than senior-level wholesale managers.
   • Certifications. A wholesale manager with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a wholesale manager's salary.

   Average wholesale manager salary

   $75,602yearly

   $36.35 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level wholesale manager salary

   $49,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

4. Writing a wholesale manager job description

   A wholesale manager job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a wholesale manager job description:

   Wholesale manager job description example

   We are seeking an experienced and hard-working Wholesale Manager to join our growing auto parts team. The Wholesale Manager position is primarily focused on coordinating/implementing wholesale marketing programs within the assigned territory for both independent and company owned NAPA stores . If you seek a key leadership position with a stable company that offers opportunities to learn, train and grow your career, the Wholesale Manager position is the job for you! The Wholesale Manager will use the NAPA Programs to assist NAPA Store Owners and Managers drive sales, improve profitability, and increase their overall market share
   Responsibilities
   
   * Work with existing NAPA stores to foster improved communications, build upon relationships, and expand their commercial sales effort to increased levels of market penetration. Develop plans to grow the average sales per customer of Auto Care and key Major Account customers. Provide leadership for directing sales and marketing programs that will provide real growth.
   * Target new markets for expanding wholesale efforts through increased outside selling, targeting of Major Account customers, and the addition of new Auto Care members.
   * Administer NAPA Wholesale Rebate Program information with HQ and coordinate field training programs.
   * Work with NAPA vendors and manufacturer representatives to provide strategic organization and planning for all wholesale efforts. Duties to include working with manufacturers to target and blitz specific accounts for sales improvement with their respective products.
   * Review sales trends and progress with store salespeople, owners, managers and Distribution Center management team.
   * Redirect and support wholesale selling efforts as needed.
   
   Qualifications
   
   * The ideal Wholesale Manager will have automotive aftermarket sales and management experience at both the store and service dealer level. Store and shop productivity experience preferred.
   * High School Diploma or equivalent required technical or college degree is preferred.
   * Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook) experience required.
   * Understanding of financial statements (P&L, Balance Sheet) preferred.
   * Prior Sales Program administration experience preferred.
   * Overnight travel (25%) with availability to conduct evening (non-retail hours) meetings required.
   * Passion for delivering customer service and building long term relationships.
   * Personal drive, self-motivation and initiative to accomplish business goals.
   
   GPC conducts its business without regard to sex, race, creed, color, religion, marital status, national origin, citizenship status, age, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, military status, status as a veteran, or any other protected characteristic. GPC's policy is to recruit, hire, train, promote, assign, transfer and terminate employees based on their own ability, achievement, experience and conduct and other legitimate business reasons.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right wholesale manager for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your wholesale manager job on Zippia to find and recruit wholesale manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit wholesale managers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new wholesale manager

   Once you've found the wholesale manager candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new wholesale manager first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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