Vice President – Growth

Company Overview

Our client is a well-established, heritage Indian food brand with a strong presence in Gujarat and a growing footprint in international markets. Founded in 1938, the company is a fourth-generation, promoter-led business with a diverse portfolio of over 500 products across namkeen, farsan, sweets, bakery, and frozen snacks.

With a strong retail network, in-house manufacturing capabilities, and an expanding export business, the company is entering its next phase of growth. Key strategic priorities include commissioning a large-scale manufacturing facility, expanding into new cities and markets, strengthening digital commerce, and building new revenue streams across quick commerce, e-commerce, direct-to-consumer (D2C), corporate and institutional sales, general trade, modern trade, and international markets.

The company is strengthening its professional leadership team to support its ambition of building a nationally recognized food brand while preserving its legacy, product quality, and customer trust.

Job Summary

The Vice President – Growth will lead the company's expansion across digital commerce channels, initially focusing on quick commerce and e-commerce, followed by corporate and institutional sales and, over time, general trade and modern trade distribution.

This is a strategic leadership role with end-to-end responsibility for driving profitable revenue growth, building scalable business channels, and expanding the brand's presence beyond its existing retail network.

Reporting directly to the MD & CEO, the role will work closely with the promoter group and cross-functional leadership to develop and execute the company's growth agenda.

Location: Vadodara, Gujarat (open to discuss), with extensive travel to Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and other key markets.

Key Responsibilities

1. Digital Commerce and Quick Commerce

• Own the P&L for quick commerce, e-commerce marketplaces, and D2C channels, managing assortment, listings, content, pricing, promotions, platform advertising, and trade terms.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with category and account teams at leading quick-commerce platforms, including Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart, as well as marketplaces such as Amazon and Flipkart.
• Negotiate commercial terms, margins, visibility, promotional investments, and joint business plans to drive sustainable growth.
• Collaborate with Product, Manufacturing, and Marketing teams to develop channel-ready SKUs, packaging, shelf-life solutions, product launches, and platform content.
• Establish efficient supply chain processes covering city-level demand planning, dark-store replenishment, fill rates, inventory availability, and returns management.
• Track channel performance through platform dashboards, sales analytics, advertising efficiency, contribution margins, and other key business metrics.

2. Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Growth

• Drive growth of the company's D2C website and app through improved conversion rates, customer acquisition, retention, and repeat purchases.
• Develop CRM, loyalty, subscription, and personalized marketing initiatives to improve customer lifetime value.
• Strengthen online gifting capabilities, product discovery, customer experience, and digital merchandising.
• Evaluate emerging digital channels, aggregators, and new customer acquisition opportunities.

3. Corporate Gifting and Institutional Sales

• Build the corporate and institutional gifting business from the ground up, including product catalogues, pricing architecture, sales processes, and key-account coverage.
• Develop relationships with corporate clients, large enterprises, hospitality groups, airlines and travel-retail operators, canteens, co-working spaces, and other institutional buyers.
• Establish a structured B2B sales strategy across Gujarat and key metropolitan markets.
• Develop scalable account-management processes, commercial frameworks, and seasonal gifting programmes to drive recurring business.

4. General Trade and Modern Trade Expansion

• Develop business cases and go-to-market strategies for entering general trade (GT) and modern trade (MT) channels.
• Define product and pricing architecture, distributor economics, channel margins, and market-entry models.
• Identify priority markets, assess distribution opportunities, and launch pilot programmes before scaling across selected geographies.
• Build the commercial and distribution capabilities required to support long-term national expansion.

5. Growth Strategy and Financial Management

• Develop and execute a comprehensive growth strategy aligned with the company's long-term business objectives.
• Prepare annual business plans, revenue forecasts, financial models, investment proposals, and return-on-investment assessments.
• Establish clear channel-level targets and performance dashboards covering revenue, gross margins, contribution profitability, customer acquisition, and return on advertising spend.
• Identify opportunities for profitable growth through portfolio expansion, new channels, geographic expansion, and strategic partnerships.
• Work closely with Finance, Operations, Marketing, and Product teams to ensure growth initiatives are commercially viable and operationally scalable.

6. Team Building and Leadership

• Build and lead teams across e-commerce, digital commerce, corporate sales, and business development.
• Define organizational structures, performance metrics, operating rhythms, and accountability frameworks.
• Establish scalable processes and systems to support rapid expansion while maintaining product quality, customer experience, and brand standards.
• Work closely with the MD & CEO and promoter group to translate strategic priorities into measurable business outcomes.

Qualifications and Experience

• MBA or PGDM in Marketing, Strategy, Finance, or General Management preferred.
• 12–20+ years of experience in consumer businesses, FMCG, packaged foods, or related sectors.
• At least 5 years in senior leadership roles focused on growth, e-commerce, digital commerce, business management, or commercial leadership.
• Demonstrated success in building or scaling quick-commerce and/or e-commerce businesses for an FMCG or packaged-food brand.
• Strong understanding of platform-level business metrics, including sales, fill rates, advertising expenditure, margins, and contribution profitability.
• Proven P&L ownership, financial modelling, unit economics, and business-case development capabilities.
• Established working relationships with category and account teams at leading quick-commerce platforms and online marketplaces.
• Hands-on experience with platform dashboards, data analysis, forecasting, and weekly business performance reviews.
• Strong commercial acumen, negotiation skills, stakeholder management, and people leadership capabilities.
• Willingness to be based in Vadodara, Gujarat, with extensive travel to key business markets.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Experience in snacks, sweets, namkeen, bakery, dairy, or other packaged-food categories.
• Experience building corporate gifting or institutional sales channels from inception.
• D2C brand-building experience, including website or app management, CRM, retention, and performance marketing.
• Exposure to general trade and modern trade distribution, distributor economics, and new-market entry.
• Experience in promoter-led businesses, high-growth companies, or professionally managed entrepreneurial environments.
• A demonstrated track record of scaling regional consumer brands into larger national markets through digital and omnichannel strategies.

Work Environment

• Location: Vadodara, Gujarat (open to discuss)
• Relocation: Expected for candidates currently based elsewhere.
• Travel: Extensive travel to Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and other key markets.
• Reporting: Directly to the MD & CEO.
• Organization: A heritage, promoter-led food business transitioning into its next phase of professionally managed growth.
• Collaboration: Close interaction with the promoter group and leadership teams across Marketing, Finance, Product, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Operations.

Growth Opportunity

This is an opportunity to lead a critical growth function within an established Indian food business entering an ambitious expansion phase.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to:

• Build and scale high-growth digital and institutional business channels.
• Drive expansion into new cities, distribution networks, and customer segments.
• Influence the company's national growth strategy and international expansion plans.
• Build professional teams and scalable commercial capabilities.
• Work directly with the MD & CEO and promoter group, with meaningful influence over business strategy and long-term growth.

Benefits

• Senior leadership role with direct access to the MD & CEO and promoter group.
• Opportunity to shape the growth strategy of an established heritage food brand.
• Significant ownership of business performance, channel expansion, and team development.
• Professional leadership environment with opportunities for long-term career progression.
• Opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the transformation of a regional leader into a nationally recognized consumer brand.