Year-End in FMCG: What I Learned from a Belgian KAM

If you think September is the start of a slow wind-down, you’ve never worked in FMCG. For a KAM, it’s the opposite: this is when pressure doubles. They’re juggling two things at the same time: pushing maximum sell-out with year-end promotions, and preparing for the 2026 negotiations with retailers. Both urgent. Both essential. And yes, both happening at once.

The Sell-Out Battle: “December Is Won in September”

The first thing that struck me was how tactical the role becomes. Visibility in-store is king. You can design the smartest promotion, but if it’s stuck at the back of a Carrefour hypermarket, it might as well not exist.

This KAM’s mantra was simple:

• Visibility first. End-of-aisle displays, secondary placements, Christmas-themed corners. Without that, no shopper notices.

• Promotions with logic. Multi-buy mechanics, festive bundles, discounts that attract without killing margin. Easy to design, hard to get right.

• Stay close to the field. “If it’s not executed, it doesn’t exist,” they told me. Field reps, store checks, photos — all crucial.

• Weekly data tracking. Every Monday, they check sell-out versus target. If something underperforms, there’s still time to act.

I liked their one-liner: “In FMCG, December is decided in September.” Brutal, but true.

Preparing 2026: Negotiations Already Begin

At the same time, the KAM is already deep into 2026 preparation. This surprised me. While pushing short-term promotions, they’re building the story that will convince Delhaize or Colruyt for next year.

Here’s how they framed it:

• Category review. Look at YTD data: winners, losers, innovations, growth pockets.

• Understand the retailer’s agenda. Private label, pricing pressure, sustainability goals. Each chain has its own priorities.

• Internal alignment. Finance, supply chain, marketing all need to sign off before anything goes to the buyer.

• Build the story. “It’s not about selling products, it’s about showing how we grow the category for them.”

They told me they follow the 80/20 rule: 80% preparation, 20% discussion. Anyone who has sat at the table with Colruyt will understand why.

Staying Organized in the Chaos

What impressed me most was the discipline. Without structure, this dual focus would eat you alive. Here’s how they manage:

• Mornings for analysis and planning. Afternoons for calls and store visits.

• One day per week blocked only for 2026 prep. Non-negotiable.

• Weekly goals: promo sell-out uplift, number of store visits, negotiation draft progress.

• Quick cross-functional check-ins — because silos are deadly in FMCG.

• And finally: energy management. “You can’t sprint from September to December without pacing yourself.”

I nodded at that one. Too many burn out before the year is done.

My Take as a Headhunter

This conversation reminded me why strong KAMs are so valuable — and so hard to find. They’re not just negotiators. They’re operators, analysts, strategists, and fire-fighters, often in the same week.

The year-end in FMCG is a pressure cooker. You’re expected to deliver today’s results while building tomorrow’s plan. That requires resilience, sharp prioritization, and yes, the ability to drop some balls while never dropping the critical ones.

As the KAM told me in closing: “At year-end, you’re juggling ten balls at once. The art is knowing which one can fall — and which never should.”

It stuck with me. Because in many ways, that sentence could describe the career of a KAM — or, frankly, the reality of every ambitious sales leader I meet.

Dominique Dierckxsens