NPD Development Chef

NPD Development Chef

Location:

Glasgow (with travel to customer sites)

Salary: £50,000 - £60,000

Are you the kind of chef who doesn't wait for a brief, but writes the future menu instead?

We're looking for a commercially sharp, trend-obsessed NPD Development Chef who can turn insight into irresistible concepts. This is your chance to lead from the front end of innovation, creating bold ideas customers didn't even know they needed yet.

This isn't about tweaking recipes. It's about shaping what hits shelves next.

• Lead front-end innovation, turning consumer insight into standout product concepts
• Work directly with major retail customers - pitching, presenting, and influencing at senior level
• Create bench samples that excite, inspire, and sell the vision
• Spot gaps in the market and build concepts before the brief even exists
• Travel across sites and customers, embedding best practice and building partnerships

• Build trusted relationships and act as a culinary ambassador in customer meetings, tastings, and reviews
• Bring ideas to life with compelling storytelling, creative presentations, and high-impact samples
• Stay ahead of trends, food, ingredients, tech (yes, including AI) - and turn them into commercial opportunities
• Collaborate cross-functionally to ensure concepts are feasible, scalable, and commercially viable
• Own the journey from idea to concept to development handover

• Proven experience as a Development Chef in a fast-paced food manufacturing environment
• Exceptional culinary skills with a creative, forward-thinking mindset
• Confidence in front of customers - able to present, influence, and inspire
• Strong commercial awareness and ability to juggle multiple projects at pace
• A genuine passion for food trends, innovation, and pushing boundaries

• Based in Glasgow
• Fast-paced, customer-facing, highly creative environment
• Flexibility required to meet customer timelines and key milestones