Chief Executive Officer - Confidential Search

📍 Toronto, ON (New York considered) · Reports to Board · ~$30M revenue, profitable, growth phase

A founder-backed CEO role at a company that's already done the hard part.

We're running a confidential search for a growth-stage business that sells shipping containers to businesses and consumers across North America - national retailers, farmers, logistics operators, anyone who needs one. They source globally from container factories, wholesalers and depots, and own everything in between: purchasing, inventory, delivery, storage, and the customer relationship.

This isn't a listings site or a broker. They buy, they own, they sell. Deals run $2,000 to $20,000+, and most close with a real conversation - because nobody spends that on a physical asset without talking to a person first.

The company scaled fast, took the full force of a market correction, and rebuilt around profitable unit economics. It's now lean, profitable, and back in growth mode. The founder took it from zero to here over seven years and has made a deliberate decision: the next chapter needs a different kind of leader.

The mandate (next 3-4 years)

Accelerate US market share in the core business Expand into a new geography (Europe or Asia) or launch an adjacent unit like container wholesale Position the company for a successful exit Protect the profitable growth model the team fought hard to build

What you'll do

Run the commercial engine (the biggest part). Growth here is sales-led, not product-led - a substantial team working phones and inbox all day, closer to a trading floor than a SaaS pipeline. Your job is to make that machine better: lead gen, channel mix, sales execution, incentives, targets, gamification, and clearing whatever slows the team down. You'll know your numbers by rep, by channel, by week.

Own the supply side. A finite set of suppliers and logistics partners worth working with. This isn't about scaling a network - it's about understanding a small group of partners deeply and negotiating well. Sourcing terms, depot economics and delivery costs land directly on gross margin.

Own the P&L and the company. Full operational accountability across a cross-functional team — pricing, capital allocation, building a leadership team, working with the board and investors, and evaluating M&A, new geographies and adjacencies.

Who they're looking for

Must-haves

Proven P&L ownership - a business unit, country, division or company with real accountability for the result A sales-led operator - you've built, run or turned around a high-performance B2B sales org, and you enjoy it Commercially sharp - you understand how deals get done and where margin actually comes from Data-driven and hands-on - decisions from numbers, and you get into the weeds Lean by habit - you've delivered in fast-moving, resource-constrained environments B2B depth - ideally logistics, supply chain, distribution, industrial B2B, or another tech-enabled business with real physical operations behind it

Nice to have

A top-tier consulting background (McKinsey, Bain, BCG or similar) followed by several years in a hands-on operating role with real line responsibility Launching a new geography or business line from scratch M&A experience on either side of the table Already in Ontario, or Canadian and looking to come back

This probably isn't the right fit if you're a corporate executive who sets strategy rather than drives execution, your background is pure SaaS / product-led growth with no physical operations, or you've always had a large support function to lean on.

Compensation

Competitive base salary plus an aggressive performance bonus, ESOP, and a meaningful share of exit proceeds. Our client is looking for someone genuinely motivated by the bonus-equity-exit combination.

Why this one

A physical moat software can't replicate. Unit economics proven under pressure. A fully supportive founder with no agenda beyond a clean handover - he'll stay as long as needed. And a sector with multiple active acquirer types looking at the space. For the right person, this is a 3-4 year window to scale something that already works, and to own a meaningful share of what it becomes.

Interested? I'm running this search on a confidential basis on behalf of the company. If it's a fit - or you'd like to learn more before deciding - reach out directly for a discreet, no-obligation conversation. Happy to share the full details once we connect.

Our client is an equal opportunity employer. Applications are welcomed from candidates of all backgrounds.