Business Development Lead
Content + Source + Freshness • 14 Dec 2025 • 95% confidence
Offer value
This role emphasizes relationship building within a growing market but lacks clarity on compensation and impact assessment.
- Opportunity to build strong industry relationships.
- Exciting role focusing on sales and outreach.
- Flexibility with a mix of remote and in-field work.
- Ambiguity in position might challenge new entrants.
Pros
- Engagement with a diverse range of clients and stakeholders.
- Opportunity to shape relationships in the commercial real estate sector.
- Flexibility and potential for hybrid work with fieldwork.
Cons
- Limited information about salary indicates potential uncertainty.
- Success metrics and expectations may evolve as the role is newly established.
- Requires strong cold outreach skills in a competitive environment.
Who it's for
Mid-level / Senior • In-market with potential remote work.
Good fit
- Sales professionals with experience in outreach and networking.
- Candidates engaged in commercial real estate.
- Those eager to develop in a growing environment.
Not recommended for
- Newcomers without a sales or industry background.
- Individuals who prefer a structured 9-to-5 job.
- Those unwilling to engage with clients in various formats.
Motivation fit
Key skills
About the job
The Opportunity
When we launched Branch in 2019, our original mission was making it easy for teams of all sizes to furnish a corporate office with the speed and cost of a big box store, but the ease, ergonomics and quality of high-end contract furniture. During COVID, we put that mission on hold to support the millions of new remote workers creating workspaces at home.
Now the world is changing again. Over the past two years, we’ve had a front-row view as many organizations have returned to the office, with more adopting a hybrid approach. Branch is uniquely positioned to become the partner of choice for companies that want to create inspiring and ergonomic workspaces anywhere their team works, whether remote, hybrid, or in the office full-time—all without breaking the bank.
We’re already doing it: our office products have achieved rave reviews from startups and landlords to F500 companies and institutions like Google, Shopify, LVMH, SpaceX and MIT. We’ve built Branch Business to eight figures of annual revenue, and it’s time to take it to the next level, driven by partnerships in the commercial real estate ecosystem.
The Role
We’re hiring a Business Development Lead in San Francisco to drive revenue growth through commercial real estate brokerage and office designer communities. This is a new role at Branch and a critical one: you'll be our in-market lead for building relationships with commercial real estate professionals, activating our Jackson Square showroom and events calendar, and turning trusted local networks into repeatable referral engines. You’ll play a key role in how we grow our presence in the Bay Area, and how we win the trust of the people shaping today’s return-to-office landscape.
The ideal candidate thrives in fast-paced environments, knows how to open doors with a cold email, a warm handshake, or a great breakfast roundtable, and ideally has experience in commercial real estate, office furniture, or proptech. You’re energized by the idea of spending your days out in the field, hosting showroom tours, co-creating sales kits with the team, tracking broker engagement and running monthly pipeline reviews to keep the flywheel spinning. You’ll build the referral programs, talk tracks, and local playbooks that help Branch turn great conversations into qualified pipeline.
As our first hire in this function, you’ll have the opportunity to shape the role, the strategy, and the way Branch shows up in the CRE ecosystem. If you’re equal parts relationship builder, go-getter, and strategic thinker, we’d love to hear from you!
A Day In The Life
- Engage with the local commercial real estate community, meeting with brokers, designers, and other influencers in the office furniture purchase decision
- Map the local commercial real estate ecosystem and track progress vs. goals in HubSpot (e.g. number of brokers engaged within target brokerages)
- Run daily outreach across multiple channels (ie phone, email, LinkedIn, direct mail etc)
- Activate a quarterly field calendar (breakfasts, events, showroom tours etc)
- Leverage our Jackson Square showroom for client tours
- Co-create broker & A&D kits (one-pagers, case studies) to drive referrals
- Launch and optimize a broker referral program (tiers, talk tracks, incentives, deal registration process)
- Run monthly market pipeline reviews, identifying opportunity areas, risks and action plans
- Co-create thought leadership activities that drive attendance and build relationships
What We’re Looking For:
- Proven cold outreach success and experience with field/event activation
- Outstanding communication and presentation skills
- Excitement to build relationships in person - this is a full time, in-market position
- Willingness to work outside of the traditional nine-to-five, engaging clients over morning coffees and evening dinners, as needed
- Ownership mindset and bias toward action—you’re comfortable rolling up your sleeves in a lean, fast-paced environment to get things done
- Excels in cross-functional collaboration and thrives in ambiguity
- “Hunter” personality; persistent and resilient, with a track record of overcoming obstacles to get the job done
Bonus Points:
- 1-3+ years in commercial real estate sales or account management (brokerages, A&D or proptech)
- Deep understanding of commercial real estate principles and market dynamics. Fluent in the ‘language’ of commercial real estate.
- Existing Bay Area broker or A&D relationships
- Experience with partner program mechanics (tiers, co-marketing, MDF)
- Experience in commercial furniture, interiors, or workplace strategy—particularly with buyers involved in design, tenant improvement, or workplace planning
- CRM proficiency: lists, sequences, deal reg discipline
- A love for design, wellness, real estate and the built environment
