Consultation

Professional Summary

An entrepreneurial, strategic leader with over 25 years’ success in scaling businesses across FMCG, healthcare, retail, and marine industries. Chris specialises in sales transformation, capability development, operational turnaround, and team coaching. Through roles in corporates, SMEs, and start-ups, he has consistently exceeded commercial targets while building scalable systems and high-performance teams. Chris thrives on identifying levers for growth and simplifying complex processes to drive results.

Key Skills

• Sales Strategy & Transformation
• Business Turnaround & Growth
• Coaching & Capability Building
• Category Management
• Process Simplification
• Advanced Negotiation
• Channel & Trade Management

Professional Experience

Founder | Coastal Tide
Oct 2024 – Present
Helping brands unlock growth through strategic marketing, sales systems, and business development.

Co-Managing Partner | Axina Solutions
Jul 2024 – Present
Working across 50+ global markets identifying growth levers, maximising trade investments, and developing team capabilities.

Director | Tidal Force Solutions
Oct 2022 – Oct 2024
Advised SMEs on strategic sales, project planning, and go-to-market execution. Partnered closely with clients to deliver measurable growth.

Interim General Manager | Alpha Electronics Manufacturing
Oct 2022 – Oct 2023
Rebuilt operations and launched eCommerce channel. Delivered 15% YoY revenue growth through targeted go-to-market planning.

Divisional Managing Director – Marine | Tower Supplies
Nov 2021 – Aug 2022
Built £10m 5-year growth plan and secured £1.7m ferry fleet contract within 6 months.

Group Sales & Marketing Director | Cleenol Group
Jan 2021 – Oct 2021
Redesigned performance management processes and coached internal teams to boost sales and exports across three verticals.

Head of UK & International Sales | Brakeburn
Jan 2019 – Dec 2020
Grew sales by 30%, appointed new distributors, and expanded into Greece, Finland, and Poland.

Boat Builder | RNLI
Oct 2018 – Jan 2019
Trained and worked on marine equipment installation and modification projects.

Head of Sales & Category UK & Ireland | Boehringer Ingelheim
Mar 2013 – Jun 2017
Grew Consumer Health rank from 16th to 12th in UK. Delivered £850k+ in cost price uplift across two years.

Sales & Channel Leadership | Bayer Consumer Care AG
1999 – 2012
Held several senior roles including Pharmacy Channel Controller and Trade Sector Manager. Delivered multimillion-pound revenue gains and cost savings.

National Account Manager | Kerry Foods
1995 – 1998

Sales Development Manager | Weetabix
1992 – 1995

Education & Certifications

Level 3 Diploma in Marine Construction
Boat Building Academy, Lyme Regis (2017 – 2018)

Diploma in Grocery Marketing
Institute of Grocery Distribution (1993 – 1994)

Thornden Secondary School – Hampshire

Chris Silverwood
Freelance Sales Coach | Fractional General Manager | Sales Director
Poole, England, United Kingdom
📞 +44 07522 582100 | 📧 chris@coastaltide.co.uk
🔗 LinkedIn | 🌐 www.coastaltide.co.uk