Territory Sales Representative

We are seeking an Independent Territory Sales Representative for Industrial Packaging and Inspection Solutions throughout Iowa.

Expected On-Target Earnings: $120,000 to $290,000

Take ownership of an Iowa territory with a solid foundation and room to grow. An established manufacturer’s representative agency is seeking an independent sales professional to build customer relationships and revenue across food, beverage, pharmaceutical, and agriculture-related markets. You will inherit existing accounts and an active pipeline, then expand the territory through disciplined prospecting and consultative selling. You will have the autonomy to manage your day and the ongoing support of an experienced team.

The opportunity

Represent a portfolio of packaging, product-inspection, and conveying solutions that help manufacturers protect product quality and improve production lines. In one part of the portfolio, you will build on a leading inspection-equipment brand with strong market share, name recognition, and marketing-generated leads. Other represented lines have less name recognition and lighter principal marketing, so they call for more self-generated prospecting and market education. This role gives you the chance to strengthen an established business while opening doors for underrepresented solutions.

Where the growth is

Priority markets include food, beverage, and pharmaceutical manufacturers, with additional opportunity in agriculture-related products. Dry-goods producers, contract packers, and pharmaceutical accounts are underpenetrated. Beef processing is showing signs of recovery, while pork and egg operations have traditionally been strong. Sales cycles vary with project size: roughly one month is a fast close, while many opportunities take six months or longer.

What you will own

• Develop new business across Iowa through targeted prospecting, referrals, account research, and consistent follow-up. Balance pipeline creation with advancing active opportunities.
• Own the sales process from first conversation through order: uncover customer needs, coordinate application discovery and demonstrations, develop proposals, manage stakeholders, and close.
• Grow transferred customer relationships and inherited opportunities while finding new contacts, applications, and projects within existing accounts.
• Build trusted relationships with engineering and quality leaders, and with production and continuous-improvement teams. Explain technical value in terms customers care about.
• Coordinate with agency leadership and manufacturer resources, including technical consultants and key-account support, to move complex projects forward.
• Keep pipeline, bookings forecasts, customer records, and follow-up current across the team’s digital tools; plan travel and administrative work with sound judgment.

How you will work

This is a self-managed, field-based territory. A typical rhythm may be about one-third focused office work, one-third customer engagement from a home office by phone and email, and one-third travel. The mix shifts with customer needs and active projects; the agency values results and reliable coverage rather than a prescribed daily visit quota. Des Moines is the preferred home base because it makes statewide travel efficient, though other Iowa locations are considered.

Customer commitment and team support

You will stay accountable for the customer relationship throughout its lifecycle. Your ownership of the sales opportunity runs through the order; you will not install equipment or provide aftersales service. When a customer issue arises after the sale, you are expected to stay informed, connect the customer with the responsible service or support team, and follow up or escalate as needed. Responsive communication is a hallmark of the agency.

Agency leadership and colleagues will provide training and support as needed throughout the relationship, with no fixed expiration. You are encouraged to speak up when a product, process, or customer situation is unclear and to ask for the training that will help you succeed. During the early ramp, the team expects to shadow and support much of your work; manufacturer technical resources are also available for appropriate customer opportunities.

Your first six months

• First 30–90 days: build and execute a 30/60/90-day plan; learn the portfolio and customer landscape; show dependable follow-up; become conversant in the industry; and maintain the inherited pipeline.
• By month six: grow qualified pipeline, demonstrate confidence discussing the solutions you represent, and produce bookings attributable to your work. The goal is to be performing and increasingly self-sustaining. Deep product and market expertise typically takes one to two years to develop.

Who will thrive here

• A self-directed seller who creates opportunities without close supervision and balances prospecting, account development, and closing.
• A curious, quick learner who is comfortable asking for help, absorbing technical concepts, and staying patient through longer sales cycles.
• Organized and confident with computer-based work, including CRM and web tools, online research, email, video calls, quote workflows, and multiple applications.
• Willing and able to travel throughout Iowa and maintain a valid driver’s license. Capital-equipment or food, beverage, pharmaceutical, or agricultural sales experience is helpful but not required; product-inspection experience is welcome, not required.

Commission opportunity

This is a commission-based independent-contractor opportunity with no salary or guaranteed earnings. The agency receives 8%–15% of gross sale value, depending on product and discount; the representative earns an agreed share. At the Iowa target of about $350,000 in monthly bookings, an 11.5% average agency commission and 60% representative share imply about $290,000 in annualized commissions. The agency views $120,000–$180,000 as a reasonable first-year earnings range and expects a qualified representative to reach or exceed the territory target in year two. These are estimates, not guarantees; actual earnings depend on bookings, product mix, discounting, project source and commission split, order completion, and customer payment timing. Earnings are before business expenses and taxes.

The agency is generally paid after its principals receive payment, which can take months after a sale. A commission advance may be available during the initial ramp under separate written terms, with reconciliation against future earned commissions. The sub-representative agreement will define the applicable share for each project.

Interested in building an independent sales career with territory ownership and meaningful earning potential? Apply now!