My food & drink job: Sophie Lister, senior territory manager, Just Eat

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Sophie Lister Just Eat

Name: Sophie Lister

Age: 27

Job title: Senior territory manager

Company & location: Just Eat, Leeds

Education: Business & Marketing at Sheffield Hallam University

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? I changed my mind constantly. It went from wanting to be a vet to a footballer. In sixth form my business teacher Mr Smeaton was brilliant and it’s great teachers like him who have a real impact on where you end up. My dad is also successful in business, which has a real influence on me.

Why did you decide to go for a career in food & drink? Who doesn’t love food & drink? I worked at The Box Tree in Ilkley (which was one of the first UK restaurants to hold a Michelin star) as a kitchen porter when I was young, which is where my love for food grew.

Going out or ordering in from new and exciting places always gives me such satisfaction, especially when I travel abroad and try out the cuisines there.

Explain your job to us in a sentence (or two): My role is to enable restaurants and takeaways across Leeds to get the most out of Just Eat and reach their full potential.

“I’m a proud Yorkshirewoman, so any way I can highlight the amazing food Leeds has to offer is a real privilege to me”

What does a typical day look like for you? Relationship building is key to my role so it’s driving around seeing around eight to 10 restaurant partners across Leeds in person and creating strategic plans with them to help them fulfil their goals (as well as day-to-day problem-solving).

Working with independent businesses is brilliant, It’s incredibly rewarding. These collaborations don’t just drive measurable results, they can transform a business, create real growth, and have a lasting impact on the community.

I am Leeds born and bred and being a local and working with locals is brilliant as I want to put Leeds on the map as having some of the UK’s best restaurants and takeaways. I’m a proud Yorkshirewoman, so any way I can highlight the amazing food Leeds has to offer is a real privilege to me.

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Tell us how you went about applying for your job: To become a territory manager I had an in-person interview followed up by a virtual presentation on how I would approach the role and my patch within the first 12 months.

I had been in the business for nine months at that point as a sales executive so had been able to shadow multiple territory managers to gain invaluable knowledge.

What’s the best part about working for a food & drink company? The best part about working as an account manager at Just Eat is the combination of relationship-building, commercial impact, and being at the centre of food culture. You’re not just managing accounts. You’re helping local restaurants grow by using data and insights to improve their visibility, optimise menus, and drive promotions that directly increase orders and revenue.

It’s incredibly rewarding to see the measurable impact of your work, whether that’s a successful campaign, a record sales weekend, or steady long-term growth for a partner.

And what’s the biggest misconception people have about working in food & drink? I used to have an orange Just Eat branded vehicle and when I turned up to meetings, some restaurant partners thought I was a delivery driver. The same can be true in conversation, when I speak to people outside the industry they’re not always aware of the breadth of roles there are at a company like Just Eat.

I’ve also found one of the biggest misconceptions about working in food & drink is that it’s all tastings, perks, and fun, when in reality it’s a highly commercial, fast-paced, and operationally complex industry.

Behind every menu item, promotion, or product launch is serious work around margins, supply chains, forecasting, data analysis and performance management.

What advice would you give to other young people looking to get into the food & drink industry? If you want to get into this industry, make sure you have a passion for people. Working with people from all walks of life and building those key relationships with partners is what gets me out of bed in the morning.

If you’re willing to put the effort in and would like to work within a fast, ever-changing environment, then this industry is for you. Be proactive: reach out to people in roles you’re interested in, ask questions, stay adaptable, and show that you’re willing to learn quickly because in this industry, those who move fast and add measurable value stand out.

What’s your ultimate career dream? To step fully into a leadership role where I can shape commercial strategy and drive impact across the business. I want to move beyond account management to lead people, influence market direction, and help scale smarter, sustainable growth within a fast-paced, tech-enabled food environment like Just Eat.