Two Very Different Approaches
When a packaging company needs to hire a sales professional, there are two fundamentally different recruitment approaches available: retained search and contingency recruitment. Understanding the difference — and when to use each — can significantly impact the quality of your hire.
How Contingency Recruitment Works
In a contingency model, the recruitment firm is only paid if they successfully place a candidate. There is no upfront fee. The recruiter works on a "no win, no fee" basis, typically earning a percentage of the placed candidate's first-year salary.
The advantages: No financial risk upfront. You can engage multiple agencies simultaneously. If nobody places a candidate, you pay nothing.
The reality for packaging sales roles: Because contingency recruiters only get paid on placement, they are incentivized to work on the easiest-to-fill roles and to present candidates quickly rather than thoroughly. They typically work on multiple assignments simultaneously, giving limited attention to any single search. For senior or specialist packaging sales roles, this approach often produces disappointing results.
How Retained Search Works
In a retained search model, the recruitment firm is engaged exclusively on your assignment and paid a fee — typically in stages — regardless of whether the search results in a placement. In return, you receive a dedicated, thorough, and confidential search process.
The advantages: The recruiter commits fully to your search. They conduct comprehensive market mapping, targeted headhunting, and thorough candidate assessment. The process is confidential, structured, and designed to reach passive candidates who would never respond to a job advertisement.
Why it works for packaging sales: The strongest sales professionals in packaging are passive candidates — they are not on job boards, not responding to LinkedIn InMails from generalist recruiters, and not actively looking for a change. Reaching these candidates requires a specialist who already has relationships within the packaging industry and can approach them with credibility and discretion.
When to Use Each Approach
Use contingency recruitment when:
The role is junior or mid-level with a large pool of available candidates
Speed matters more than candidate quality
The role does not require deep industry specialization
You are comfortable receiving candidates from multiple agencies simultaneously
Use retained search when:
The role is senior (Sales Director, VP Sales, Chief Commercial Officer)
The role requires deep packaging industry knowledge and established relationships
Confidentiality is important (replacing an incumbent, entering a new market)
Previous contingency searches have failed to produce suitable candidates
You want a thorough, structured process with a dedicated search partner
The Cost Comparison
Retained search fees are typically higher than contingency fees on a per-placement basis. However, when you factor in the total cost of a failed hire — lost revenue, disrupted customer relationships, team morale, and the cost of starting the search again — retained search often represents better value for senior packaging sales roles.
A failed VP Sales hire can cost a packaging company hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue and opportunity cost. The incremental cost of a retained search is a fraction of that risk.
Why Retained Search Delivers Better Results for Packaging
The packaging industry is a relatively small, relationship-driven market. The best sales professionals know each other, know which companies are growing, and know which recruiters are credible specialists versus generalists fishing for fees.
A retained search firm that focuses exclusively on packaging sales recruitment brings several advantages:
**Established networks** across every major packaging segment
**Credibility** with passive candidates who would not engage with a generalist recruiter
**Deep market knowledge** to assess whether a candidate's experience is genuinely relevant
**Confidentiality** to protect your brand and the candidate's current position
**Commitment** to completing the search, not just submitting the easiest candidates
Making the Right Choice
For most packaging companies, the decision comes down to the seniority and strategic importance of the role. Junior sales positions can often be filled through contingency recruitment or direct advertising. But for Sales Directors, Vice Presidents of Sales, and other senior commercial leadership roles, retained search consistently delivers stronger candidates, faster completions, and better long-term outcomes.
The key is choosing a retained search partner who genuinely specializes in packaging sales recruitment — not a generalist firm that claims to cover every industry. The depth of network and market knowledge that a specialist brings is what makes the retained search model work.