No.4 Design Company Limited
Product Development Manager – Makeup
How your CV stacks up
Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role
?%
About The Role
Tropic is on an exciting journey to expand its award-winning beauty portfolio into makeup. With our first launches underway and an ambitious pipeline of innovation ahead, we're looking for an experienced Product Development Manager – Makeup to take ownership of the end-to-end product development process and ensure projects are delivered successfully from concept through to launch.
This is a highly collaborative role that combines product development, project management, and cross-functional leadership. You'll work closely with our Founder, Product Innovation, R&D, Operations, Marketing, and our lab to keep multiple development projects moving, balancing creativity with commercial priorities, timelines, and quality.
As the central point of coordination for our makeup development pipeline, you'll ensure products are delivered on time, within budget, and to the exceptionally high standards Tropic is known for. You'll also work alongside our Makeup Development Executive, supporting the development process and helping to bring innovative, high-performing products to market.
As the category continues to grow, you'll play an important role in shaping ways of working, strengthening supplier partnerships, and contributing to the long-term success of Tropic's makeup portfolio.
Key Responsibilities
- Manage the end-to-end development of multiple makeup products, from concept approval through to commercial launch.
- Create and maintain detailed project plans in Asana, ensuring milestones, actions, risks, and dependencies are accurately tracked while coordinating cross-functional teams across Product Innovation, R&D, Packaging, Operations, Supply Chain, and Marketing.
- Own the critical path for all makeup development projects, ensuring risks, dependencies, and decisions are identified early and managed proactively to deliver successful launches.
- Lead the development of primary and secondary packaging, working closely with the Design team, suppliers, and manufacturers. Manage tooling, component sourcing, artwork approvals, and packaging specifications, while building strong supplier relationships to ensure commercially viable, brand-aligned, and launch-ready solutions.
- Negotiate pricing, minimum order quantities (MOQs), and commercial terms with packaging suppliers to achieve the best balance of innovation, quality, and value.
- Oversee formulation development, product testing, and evaluations to ensure products meet Tropic's high standards for quality, performance, and customer experience.
- Champion innovation across formulations, textures, shades, packaging, and ingredients while keeping up to date with market trends and competitor activity.
- Partner with R&D to ensure products meet UK and international cosmetic compliance requirements.
- Support testing programs, claims substantiation, and launch readiness activities.
- Prepare and communicate project updates, timelines, budgets, and recommendations to key stakeholders and senior leaders.
- Continuously review and improve product development processes, implementing best practices to build a scalable, efficient, and commercially successful makeup development function.
Reasons to use Rodeo
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
It searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
What We're Looking For
We're looking for someone who thrives in a fast-paced product development environment and enjoys bringing complex projects together through excellent organisation, collaboration, and attention to detail.
You'll Bring
- At least 5 years' experience in makeup product development or cosmetic product management.
- Proven experience managing the end-to-end development and launch of makeup products.
- Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and competing priorities.
- Experience using project management software (ideally Asana) to manage projects, timelines, and cross-functional workflows.
- Experience leading packaging development, including tooling, supplier management, artwork approvals, and commercial negotiations.
- Experience working with formulation laboratories, manufacturers, and packaging suppliers.
- Excellent organisational skills and exceptional attention to detail.
- Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build effective working relationships across multiple teams.
- Strong commercial acumen with experience balancing innovation, quality, timelines, and cost to deliver commercially successful products.
- A passion for makeup, beauty innovation, and delivering exceptional customer experiences.
Desirable
- A recognised Project Management qualification (such as PRINCE2, Agile, APM, or equivalent).
- Experience working within premium beauty or cosmetics brands.
- Knowledge of UK and international cosmetic regulations.
- Experience mentoring or supporting junior team members.
What We Offer
- Employment Type: Full-time, Monday to Friday, 9:00am–5:00pm.
- Location: Tropic HQ is a short walk from Beddington Lane Tram Stop, with direct links to East Croydon and Wimbledon.
- Hybrid Working: Enjoy a blend of office (4 days) and remote (1 day) working.
- Salary: Competitive.
- Benefits: Generous annual leave, 24/7 wellbeing support, discounted gym membership, pension scheme, enhanced maternity/paternity leave (available after a qualifying period), exclusive skincare collection, 50% discount for family and friends, annual product allowance, free breakfast bar, access to retailer discounts, social events, wellbeing treats, on-site parking, and a Cycle to Work scheme.
- Start Date: Immediate.
Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
About Tropic
Susie, our Founder and CEO, started Tropic Skincare as a teenager, selling homemade body scrubs at Greenwich Market to help her mum pay the bills. She sold out on her first day, and the incredible response made her realise she had started something quite special. We still sell that iconic body scrub, and it sits alongside an extensive range of award-winning skincare and beauty products that have made us one of the UK's fastest-growing beauty businesses.
Our brand is certified vegan, cruelty-free, and CarbonNeutral®, and our infinite purpose is to create a healthier, greener, more empowered world.
And that's where you come in!
We're looking for creative and ambitious people who share our vision and get excited about beauty that's both innovative and sustainable. If you're passionate about beauty and have a genuine desire to empower communities across the globe, you could be a great fit.
Apply now if you're ready to join a vibrant team who believes beauty knows no bounds!
Tropic's Commitment to Equal Opportunities
Our team is as diverse as it is talented because at Tropic, we go the extra mile to cultivate a culture of respect and belonging. We value every candidate, respect protected characteristics, and never discriminate.
We also provide reasonable adjustments for applicants with disabilities at every stage of the hiring process, so if this is something you need, please let our Recruitment team know at the earliest opportunity.
Ultimately, the most important thing for us is hiring the best person for the job. We focus on skills, experience, and qualifications to ensure our recruitment process is fair, inclusive, and provides every candidate with a positive experience.
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
Skills
Location