CHR and RHF Sales Representatives: portrait of a relationship-driven profession in the era of data

The CHR (cafés, hotels, restaurants) and RHF (out-of-home catering) sales representative occupies a unique position in the French food distribution ecosystem. Faced with a highly fragmented customer base of independent restaurants, chains, cafés, contract catering, or Cash & Carry, they embody a profession where human relationships remain, even today, the primary added value.

However, this profession remains marked by a paradox. It is practiced across highly diverse channels, supported by employers with differing logic (brands, wholesalers, outsourced agencies), with very uneven levels of digital equipment depending on the organization. At the same time, pressure on recruitment and retention is intensifying, even as artificial intelligence begins to establish itself in daily practices.

At Sidely, we support field sales teams on a daily basis through our mobile CRM, and we noticed that this role of area manager remained poorly documented with updated, quantitative data, despite the rapid changes it is undergoing. To fill this gap and better understand the realities experienced in the field, Sidely surveyed CHR and RHF sales representatives in France between March and May 2026, through a questionnaire of 46 questions covering their profile, tools, compensation, and use of data and artificial intelligence.

This article outlines the key findings of this study: who these sales representatives are, how equipment transforms their productivity, what they earn, and why HR pressure has reached a high level in this profession today.

A relationship-driven profession, rarely chosen first

Profiles and career paths of CHR & RHF sales representatives

The role of a CHR and RHF sales representative is rarely a first career path. According to the study, 73.5% of respondents already held another job before taking on this role, confirming that it is a second-experience choice rather than an entry point into the job market. Among the profiles for whom this position is a first job, a large majority are on permanent contracts, and work-study programs represent a notable share, indicating a well-identified training pipeline in business schools or specialized vocational programs (BTS).

Areas of operation: CHR, RHF, or mixed

Two-thirds of the surveyed sales representatives (66.7%) work exclusively in the CHR channel, a quarter cover both CHR and RHF, and only 8.3% operate solely in the RHF channel. This latter profile, which is in the minority, stands out clearly from the others in its operating model, particularly regarding mileage traveled and the nature of the visits made. The core of the business remains focused on independent restaurants, cited by 69.4% of respondents as their primary establishment type, reflecting a fragmented customer base that demands both agility and interpersonal skills.

A profession under-equipped with digital tools (and equipment transforms productivity)

Productivity gaps linked to equipment

The digital equipment of CHR and RHF sales representatives remains uneven. Yet, its impact on field productivity is direct and highly pronounced. Sales representatives equipped with both a CRM and a route planner make an average of 9.8 visits per day, compared to just 6.6 for those without. They also spend less time per visit, about 33.8 minutes compared to 40.2 minutes, and plan their week much faster, taking 112 minutes instead of 146 minutes without tools.

CRM and planner: a measurable impact on visits

In total, the combination of CRM and planner allows for nearly three additional visits per day, the equivalent of a quarter of a full-time sales rep, without any additional recruitment. This figure illustrates the extent to which equipment remains a largely under-exploited performance lever in this profession, even among some employers who focus more on sales representative volume than on their toolkit.

Discover how to leverage your CRM as a CHR sales representative.

The equipment profiles also vary significantly by employer type. Brands and manufacturers show the best coverage in CRM (62.9%) and sales analysis (48.1%), reflecting a focus on fine-tuning performance. Distributors and wholesalers, conversely, focus primarily on order-taking, with an equipment rate close to 83.3%, the transactional core of their business model. Externalized agencies present the most singular profile, without CRM or planners, but with a strong presence in order-taking and sales analysis, revealing a model centered on immediate sales transactions rather than long-term customer relationships.

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Compensation and HR tension

What CHR & RHF sales representatives earn in 2026

The average total compensation for a CHR and RHF sales representative stands at 50,527 gross euros per year in 2026, split between an average base salary of 39,961 euros and an average variable component of 9,519 euros. The median remains close to the average, indicating a relatively balanced distribution without excessive concentration on extreme pay rates. Nevertheless, there is a 3.2-fold gap between the lowest and highest total compensation observed in the study, proving that highly diverse pay models coexist depending on the employer.

Why 51.6% plan to change jobs within 3 years

Compensation remains the number one criterion when choosing a new position, cited by 72.4% of respondents, ahead of the product sold (55.2%) and work-life balance (51.7%). But this criterion, central as it is, is no longer enough to retain talent: the study reveals that all sales representatives planning to leave in the coming years already earn above the industry average.

As a result, 51.6% of CHR and RHF sales representatives are considering leaving their positions within the next three years, including 19.4% within the next six months. Clarity on sales targets emerges as the number one expectation from management, cited by 48.4% of respondents, far ahead of the demand for training or additional autonomy.

AI is advancing, but remains largely individual

30.6% already use AI: early adoption for a relationship-driven job

Nearly one in three CHR and RHF sales representatives (30.6%) already use artificial intelligence tools in their daily professional life. This is a remarkably early adoption rate for a sector historically rooted in human relationships and field presence, where one might have expected later adoption than in more digitalized professions.

Usage is rarely governed by the company

However, this adoption remains largely individual: 54.6% of artificial intelligence users use it within a strictly personal framework, without any rules defined by their company, and only 18.2% operate in a truly governed environment. The number one use of artificial intelligence relates to assistance with negotiations and sales pitches, cited by 54.6% of users, which corresponds directly to the relationship-driven core of these sales representatives' work.

The most striking gap relates to training: 86.1% of sales representatives have received no training in artificial intelligence, and the most senior profiles, often those most demanding data analysis, are completely excluded from it.

Yet, 100% of sales representatives who received training perceive concrete benefits from using artificial intelligence, highlighting the effectiveness of training as an adoption lever, far more than just providing a tool.

In 2026, the profession of CHR and RHF sales representative remains one of the last sales jobs where human relationships constitute the primary added value. However, this relational dimension now coexists with a digital equipment challenge that has become essential: sales representatives equipped with a CRM and a planner make nearly three additional visits per day compared to those without, a performance gap that few organizations can afford to ignore today.

The HR tension observed in the study, with more than one in two sales representatives considering a departure within three years, serves as a reminder that compensation alone is no longer enough to retain teams. Work-life balance and managerial clarity emerge as retention levers that are at least as decisive. As for artificial intelligence, its early adoption in this highly relational profession shows that it meets a real need, provided it is supported by an appropriate framework and training.

This article presents only a portion of the insights from the Sidely 2026 study on CHR and RHF sales representatives. The full study details, in particular, the compensation gaps by channel and employer type, as well as the breakdown of artificial intelligence usage by seniority and team size.

Download the complete study “CHR & RHF Sales Representatives in France” to explore all the results.