Senior Marketplace Business Lead

Role Overview:-

The Senior Marketplace Business Lead will own the end-to-end P&L and business performance of a large mandi or a cluster of smaller mandis within the FruitX business. The role will be responsible for driving revenue, margins, marketplace liquidity, buyer development, farmer engagement and operational efficiency while ensuring strong execution on the ground. The individual will work closely with Demand, Supply, Operations, Quality, Finance, Product and Analytics teams to balance supply and demand and build a profitable, scalable marketplace. The ideal candidate should have strong commercial acumen, General Trade/Distribution experience, excellent on-ground execution skills and a high bias for ownership.

The expectations from the candidate are:

1. Willingness & openness to travel at least 15 days in a month.

2. The candidate is expected to be very hands- on and not just delegate tasks.

3. The candidate should possess strong team grooming & capability building skills

4. The candidate should have strong first principles thinking.

Key Responsibilities

1.P&L & Business Ownership

• Own the complete P&L of the assigned mandi/mandis, including revenue, gross margins, contribution and key operating metrics.
• Drive daily, weekly and monthly business performance against revenue, volume, margin and profitability targets.
• Identify business levers to improve realization, margins, throughput and overall marketplace profitability.
• Develop and execute business plans for the assigned mandi/mandis in line with the broader FruitX strategy.
• Track market trends, competition, pricing and local business dynamics to identify growth opportunities.

2.Marketplace & Commercial Management

• Drive buyer acquisition, activation, retention and wallet share within the assigned market. ·
• Build strong relationships with key buyers, dealers, wholesalers and channel partners. · Drive auction participation and ensure healthy marketplace liquidity.
• Take ownership of commercial negotiations while protecting margins and business profitability.
• Identify gaps between supply and demand and work with relevant teams to improve marketplace matching and throughput.

3.Farmer & Supply Engagement

• Build strong relationships with farmers, suppliers and local ecosystem stakeholders. · Develop a deep understanding of crop arrivals, quality, pricing and local mandi dynamics.
• Work closely with Supply teams to ensure adequate and consistent supply for the marketplace.
• Leverage on-ground market intelligence to improve sourcing, pricing and business decisions.

4.Credit & Collections

• Own credit discipline for the assigned mandi/mandis, including customer limits, payment cycles and receivables.
• Drive collections and ensure adherence to agreed credit policies.
• Balance business growth with credit quality and working capital discipline.

5.Operational Excellence ·

• Partner closely with Operations and Quality teams to ensure efficient grading, sorting, auctioning, dispatch and customer fulfilment.
• Identify operational bottlenecks and drive corrective actions to improve productivity, turnaround time and cost efficiency.
• Ensure strong adoption of technology and standard processes across the assigned mandi/mandis.

6.Team Leadership

• Lead and develop the on-ground commercial/business team for the assigned mandi/mandis.
• Set clear targets and drive performance through regular reviews and data-driven decision making. ·
• Build a culture of ownership, execution excellence, customer centricity and accountability.
• Coach team members and build a strong leadership pipeline within the business.

7.Cross-functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Demand, Supply, Operations, Quality, Finance, Product, Technology and Analytics teams to improve marketplace performance. ·
• Translate business problems into actionable solutions and drive them to closure with relevant central and field teams.

Desired Candidate Profile

• 6–10 years of experience in General Trade, Food, Agri-business, Fresh Produce, Retail, Distribution or other high-volume B2B businesses. Experience in Agri Input/Output or Mandi/Fresh Produce businesses is preferred.
• Proven experience of owning business performance/P&L or a significant business charter with responsibility for revenue and profitability. ·
• Strong understanding of customer management, channel development, commercial negotiations, credit and collections.
• Strong on-ground execution orientation with the ability to manage fast-moving and operationally intensive businesses.
• Excellent stakeholder management and team leadership skills. ·
• Strong analytical and commercial decision-making ability. ·
• High ownership, entrepreneurial mindset and bias for action; comfortable working in an ambiguous, high-growth environment.