📋 Description
The SAB Learnership for Sales & Marketing is a commercial learning opportunity for candidates who want to enter the sales, marketing, and customer development environment. This programme is offered by South African Breweries (SAB) and is focused on practical field-based exposure. It is suitable for applicants who are interested in working directly with customers, tavern owners, sales teams, and outlet staff to support brand visibility, sales growth, and strong market execution.
This is not a simple classroom-only programme. The learner will be involved in real commercial activities linked to tavern outlets. The role focuses on helping SAB products stay available, visible, correctly priced, well positioned, and properly promoted in the market. This makes the learnership useful for candidates who want to understand how sales and marketing work in real business conditions, especially in a competitive trade environment.
SAB describes its culture as ambitious, future-focused, and built around people with passion, talent, and curiosity. The company looks for candidates who can bring energy into the business and grow with support from teammates, resources, and opportunities. For someone who wants a practical start in sales and marketing, this learnership can provide valuable exposure to customer management, outlet execution, merchandising, and commercial planning.
The main purpose of the programme is to help implement a market-driven and differentiated service that builds sustainable competitiveness in the Tavern Class of Trade. In simple words, the learner will help SAB strengthen its position in tavern outlets by improving brand equity, sales volume, market share, competitive advantage, customer relationships, product availability, merchandising, and corporate reputation.
This role is field-focused and customer-facing. Candidates should expect to visit customer outlets, work with tavern owners, check stock and merchandising, support sales and promotional activities, manage activity plans, and complete reports. Because of the nature of the role, applicants must be flexible and willing to work weekends and public holidays when required.
The learnership is best suited for candidates who have a Diploma or Degree, a valid unendorsed Code 8 driver’s license, basic computer literacy, Microsoft Office experience, and good knowledge of the local Kimberley area. The driver’s license and local area knowledge are very important because the role involves outlet visits, customer interaction, and sales execution in the field.
Overall, the South African Breweries Sales & Marketing Learnership 2026 is a good opportunity for candidates who want hands-on experience in sales, customer relationships, merchandising, outlet execution, stock management, and brand growth.
📌 Available Positions
- Sales & Marketing Learnership
✅ Eligibility Criteria
- Must have a Diploma or Degree.
- Must have a valid unendorsed Code 8 driver’s license.
- Must have basic computer literacy.
- Must have experience using Microsoft Office.
- Must have good knowledge of the local area.
- Must be able to work in a flexible environment.
- Must be willing to work weekends and public holidays when required.
- Must successfully complete a driver’s assessment test before appointment.
- Should be comfortable working in sales, marketing, and customer-facing environments.
- Should be able to represent SAB professionally in the market.
- Should be willing to work in the Central – Kimberley region.
🛠️ Responsibilities
The learner will support SAB’s sales and marketing activities in tavern outlets. Main responsibilities may include:
- Build strong customer relationships with tavern owners.
- Drive weekly customer calls per outlet.
- Build effective partnerships with customers.
- Resolve customer issues professionally.
- Ensure customer master data is accurate and updated.
- Support customer sales and volume targets.
- Ensure outlets buy directly from SAB every week.
- Support product availability in targeted outlets.
- Help improve merchandising and product visibility.
- Monitor volumes by outlet.
- Support price and promotion activities.
- Track competitive shelf space.
- Support brand positioning for maximum volume growth.
- Manage stock rotation and quality.
- Help minimise stock-outs.
- Assist customers with model stock systems.
- Conduct asset verification surveys, such as fridge checks.
- Support SAB audits and compliance requirements.
- Manage reports and activity plans.
- Work with sales teams to improve trade execution.
🎓 Qualifications
Applicants must have:
- Diploma
- Degree
The exact field of study is not specified in the details, but this opportunity is suitable for candidates with studies or interest in:
- Sales
- Marketing
- Business Management
- Retail Management
- Customer Relationship Management
- Commerce
- Brand Management
- Supply Chain or Trade Execution
- Related commercial fields
💼 Experience
- This is a learnership opportunity, so extensive experience is not the main requirement.
- Candidates should have good understanding of the local area.
- Experience in sales, customer service, retail, promotions, merchandising, or field work can be helpful.
- Applicants should be comfortable speaking with customers and outlet owners.
- Basic computer and Microsoft Office experience is required.
- Candidates must be able to work flexible hours, including weekends and public holidays when needed.
- The role is suitable for people who want to gain practical commercial experience in the field.
🌟 Skills
The SAB Learnership requires candidates with strong commercial, customer, and personal skills. Important skills include:
- Commercial aptitude
- Customer focus
- Selling skills
- Communication skills
- Planning and organising ability
- Problem-solving ability
- Resilience
- Flexibility
- Accountability
- Integrity
- Relationship-building skills
- Ability to work under pressure
- Ability to adapt to changing situations
- Good administration skills
- Attention to detail
- Local area knowledge
- Microsoft Office skills
- Ability to manage customer calls and activity plans
- Confidence in customer conversations
🧩 Required Competencies
Commercial Aptitude
Applicants should understand how sales and marketing work together. The learner should be able to understand pricing, profitability, product mix, merchandising, competitor activity, and commercial decision-making. This is important because the role takes place in a competitive trade environment where product availability, pricing, and visibility can affect sales.
Customer Focus
The role requires strong customer relationship skills. The learner must be able to build productive relationships with tavern owners, understand customer needs, support customer satisfaction, and help build loyalty. Since the role involves direct work with outlets, customer focus is one of the most important parts of the learnership.
Accountability
SAB wants candidates who take responsibility for their work. The learner must be professional, honest, reliable, and results-driven. Since the learner will represent SAB in the market, integrity and accountability are very important.
Flexibility
The role requires flexibility because sales and trade execution work may involve changing priorities, customer needs, promotional activities, weekend work, and public holiday work. Candidates should be open-minded and able to adapt when plans change.
Problem Solving and Resilience
The learner may face real-time challenges such as stock problems, customer concerns, pricing issues, competitor activity, or outlet execution gaps. Candidates should be able to stay calm, identify problems, and help find practical solutions.
Selling Skills
The role requires confidence in customer conversations. The learner should be able to identify customer needs, find sales opportunities, explain SAB’s value proposition, represent SAB’s capabilities, establish rapport, and help gain customer commitment.
Planning and Organising
The learner will need to work with the sales lead to develop plans, prioritise customer activities, execute outlet plans carefully, and maintain good administration. Attention to detail is important because sales execution depends on consistent follow-up and accurate reporting.
📊 AMPPS Delivery
SAB uses AMPPS as an important trade execution focus area. AMPPS stands for:
- Availability
- Merchandising
- Price
- Promotions
- Space
This means the learner will help ensure SAB products are available in outlets, displayed properly, priced correctly, promoted effectively, and given the right space. AMPPS delivery is important because it helps improve sales performance, product visibility, and customer experience in tavern outlets.
🏪 Merchandising, Price, Promotions and Space
The learner will support outlet execution by:
- Monitoring outlet volumes
- Ensuring full availability of key brands and packs
- Managing stock rotation
- Supporting selective merchandising in consumption and purchase zones
- Following In Trade Execution Guidelines, also called ITEG
- Negotiating and executing interior and exterior price communication
- Capturing price priorities
- Ensuring price point compliance
- Supporting price and promotion campaigns throughout the year
- Tracking competitive shelf space
- Monitoring volumes sold
- Ensuring effective brand positioning for volume growth
This part of the role is important because merchandising and visibility can directly affect sales in the outlet environment.
🧊 Asset Management
The learner will also support SAB asset management in outlets. Responsibilities may include:
- Managing SAB refrigeration assets through governance and compliance
- Supporting SAB audits
- Managing permanent merchandising and signage in outlets
- Ensuring SAB products are stocked in fridges according to ITEG
- Conducting fridge and asset verification surveys
- Assisting customers with model stock systems
- Supporting stock replenishment
- Minimising stock-outs
- Managing stock rotation and product quality
This is important because fridges, signage, and merchandising materials help improve product availability and brand visibility.
🏢 Work Environment
This learnership is field-based and customer-facing. Candidates should expect to work with outlets, tavern owners, sales teams, merchandising standards, and product availability checks.
The role may involve:
- Visiting customer outlets
- Working with tavern owners
- Checking stock and merchandising
- Supporting sales and promotional activities
- Managing reports and activity plans
- Working flexible hours
- Working weekends and public holidays when required
🎁 Job Benefits
- Practical experience in sales and marketing
- Exposure to customer development and tavern trade execution
- Experience working with a major South African company
- Opportunity to build customer relationship skills
- Learning in merchandising, pricing, promotions, and outlet execution
- Field-based commercial experience
- Exposure to brand visibility and sales growth activities
- Experience in stock management and asset checks
- Development of planning, organising, and reporting skills
- Strong foundation for future roles in sales, marketing, customer development, retail, and trade execution
👤 Who Should Apply?
This learnership is best suited for candidates who:
- Have a Diploma or Degree
- Have a valid unendorsed Code 8 driver’s license
- Know the Kimberley area well
- Are comfortable working in sales and marketing
- Can communicate confidently with customers
- Are willing to work flexible hours
- Can work weekends when needed
- Have strong planning and organising skills
- Are interested in brand growth and trade execution
- Can represent SAB professionally
- Are customer-focused, resilient, and accountable
🤝 Employment Equity
SAB is an equal opportunity employer. All appointments will be made in line with SAB’s Employment Equity Plan and talent requirements. The advert also states that management may use additional relevant information as part of the shortlisting criteria.
📞 How to Apply
To apply for the SAB Learnership, candidates should prepare an application that clearly shows their qualification, valid Code 8 driver’s license, local area knowledge, sales and marketing interest, customer communication skills, and ability to work flexible hours. Applicants should also be ready to complete a driver’s assessment test before appointment.
📝 Final Summary
The SAB Learnership 2026 for Sales & Marketing is a commercial learnership opportunity focused on customer development, sales execution, merchandising, promotions, outlet visibility, and brand growth. The role is linked to the Central – Kimberley region and focuses on the Tavern Class of Trade.
Applicants need a Diploma or Degree, a valid unendorsed Code 8 driver’s license, basic computer literacy, Microsoft Office experience, good local area knowledge, and the ability to work flexible hours, including weekends and public holidays when required. Successful candidates must also complete a driver’s assessment test before appointment.
This opportunity is ideal for candidates who want practical experience in sales, marketing, customer relationships, brand execution, merchandising, promotions, stock management, and field-based commercial work.