Culinary Director – New York
Marquee Brands is seeking an ambitious self-starter, with impeccable culinary skills, a rich background in content creation and programming, Food and Beverage experience, exceptional organizational habits and flawless time management skills, to join its New York team as Culinary Director for the Martha Stewart brand.
Martha Stewart Brand
Martha Stewart is an Emmy Award-winning and acclaimed lifestyle expert and educator who is the author of more than 90 books on cooking, entertaining, crafts, homekeeping, gardening, weddings and decorating. Founded in 1982, the Martha Stewart brand enjoys 98% brand awareness in the United States and represents one of the largest licensed franchises in the home category across various product categories.
Here’s what you will do here
- Manage food and beverage development and timelines for Martha Stewart businesses. Including, but not limited to:
- Concept/Product Development - initial concept development (including competitive analysis), menu/product planning and development, benchmark recipe optimization, recipe development, ingredient advisement and procurement best practices (brand preferences and vendor introductions, when necessary), menu/assortment evolution and seasonal inclusions, presentation/plating direction and style guide creation, ability to provide menu descriptions and other culinary related copy, etc.
- Time & Action Calendar - In collaboration with Brand Director, buildout and adhere to T&A calendar based on go-live dates and Marketing/PR initiatives
- Food Costing - advise on food and beverage costs, develop menus and/or products into agreed upon pricing structures, pivot appropriately when necessary
- Training/Best Practices - establish written guidelines and best practices based on individual brand standards, hands-on training, interviewing & vetting of culinary team members (where applicable)
- Execution - coordination and implementation of tastings with key stakeholders, participation in launch of concepts, maintenance and QA audits
- Quality Control - documentation (written and photographic) including product approvals, periodic audits, provide direction/corrective measures when necessary
- Ability to Travel - including concept buildouts, tastings, vendor/manufacturer meetings and production runs, marketing & PR events, trade shows, off-site demos, industry events, etc.
- Marketing/PR Support - support Marketing and PR teams for launch and throughout concept lifecycle
- Creative/Design Support - support Creative, Design and Packaging teams by providing culinary advisement on packaging, design, layout, functionality, etc.
- Organizing and Archiving - organizing and archiving recipes and style guides, product development documents, tasting logs and feedback documents, vendor/manufacturer contact sheets, photographs, etc.
- Forecasting, Sales Reporting & Data Tracking - In collaboration with Brand Director, aggregate forecasts and sales information from licensees, report on weekly/bi-weekly/monthly basis, pivot PD accordingly, archive sales data
- Media, Content and Education - Assist, create and repurpose existing culinary content in a manner that is aligned with brand standards and business goals; provide culinary direction and feedback to internal and external stakeholders
- Presentation and Teaching - Strong presentation and teaching skills with the ability to lead culinary demos and/or classes
- Management and Direction - Management of the test kitchen and department budgets (groceries, supplies and other inventory); Direct/manage freelance food stylists/chefs and test kitchen interns; supply culinary direction to Books Dept., Video/Production, Design Teams, .com and other creative departments as needed; Cookware, bakeware and kitchen gadget product testing/advisement as needed
- Department Duties - Coordination and management of bi-weekly, monthly and quarterly meetings with licensees; Create and present food department presentations (for current partners, future business development, etc.); Conduct food and beverage research as it relates to new and existing businesses
- Additional responsibilities as assigned by manager
This job is for you if:
- you are a culinary professional with a passion for both food media and merchandise.
- you possess exceptional organizational and time management skills.
- you are flexible and can change gears and adapt as required.
- you can manage priorities for yourself and others, and pivot easily when priorities change.
- you have an impeccable work ethic (must be at work on time, meet goals and deadlines and work to the best of your ability)
- ability to work in harmony with coworkers.
- you are eager and willing to add to your knowledge base and skill.
You’re going to need this to carry out this job
- Bachelor’s degree
- Culinary degree
- 4+ years of test kitchen experience
- Product management experience
- Recipe writing and testing experience.
- Restaurant and food media (magazine, television, cookbooks) experience
- Microsoft office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) proficiency
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to move about the test kitchen organizing, preparing/testing recipes and merchandise for an extended period (up to 8 hours) of time.
- Ability to lift and/or move merchandise and/or kitchen equipment weighing up to 35lbs.
Marquee Brands Benefits and Perks
- You'll enjoy coming to work because we have a refreshing company culture that is open, entrepreneurial and
- Competitive salary, and bonus structure
- Parental leave
- Healthcare Benefits including dental and vision
- Short-term and Long-term disability
- Flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA)
- Life insurance
- Pet Insurance
- Generous Vacation and Leave Policies
- Action Days - two (2) fully paid “Marquee In Action" days each calendar year to dedicate your time to a charity or cause of your
- 11 Paid Holidays: In addition to Paid vacation.
Salary - $100,000-$125,000 + bonus
This job description may not be inclusive of all assigned duties, responsibilities, or aspects of the job described, and may be amended at anytime at the sole discretion of the Employer.
We are an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status.