ZendBox
Senior NPD & Innovation Manager
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On-site | Leadership | Full Time | Hybrid
Location
Paddock Wood, Kent (with occasional UK, EU, and US travel)
About the Role
Help Build One of the UK's Most Exciting Contract Manufacturing Businesses
Zendlabs is looking for an exceptional NPD Specialist to help build one of the UK's fastest-growing contract manufacturing businesses.
This isn't a traditional NPD role. This is an opportunity to work with ambitious health, wellness, and sports nutrition brands, taking products from concept through to launch while helping shape the future of a business built around quality, innovation, and customer experience.
You'll work directly with founders, brand owners, and internal teams to bring new products to life, solve technical challenges, and deliver an exceptional customer experience.
If you love products, innovation, and building relationships, you'll love this role.
What You'll Be Responsible For
Own New Product Development
- Manage customer projects from concept through to launch.
- Develop new powder formulations across sports nutrition, wellness, and functional health products.
- Work closely with customers on ingredients, claims, flavor profiles, and formats.
- Coordinate artwork approvals, specifications, and technical documentation.
- Support continuous product innovation and line extensions.
Customer Success & Relationship Management
- Build long-term relationships with customers and brand founders.
- Lead onboarding and product launches.
- Deliver an exceptional customer experience that drives retention, referrals, and advocacy.
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Technical & Regulatory Leadership
- Work alongside Manufacturing to ensure products meet regulatory requirements.
- Support formulation development, stability, and specification management.
- Manage change controls and continuous improvement projects.
- Help maintain world-class quality standards across the facility.
Cross-Functional Project Management
Work Closely With
- Procurement
- Operations
- Manufacturing
- Supply Chain
- Commercial
to ensure projects are delivered on time and in full.
Drive Innovation
- Identify emerging ingredients, formats, and market trends.
- Support future product categories and technologies.
- Attend exhibitions and supplier events.
- Help shape the future direction of Zendlabs.
What We're Looking For
- Experience within sports nutrition, supplements, functional foods, or health and wellness products.
- Proven experience in NPD, formulation, or technical roles.
- Strong understanding of ingredients, formulations, and manufacturing processes.
- Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously.
- Commercial awareness and a customer-first mentality.
- Exceptional communication and organizational skills.
- Naturally curious with a passion for innovation and continuous improvement.
The Type Of Person Who Will Thrive Here
- You love products and innovation.
- You enjoy solving problems and turning ideas into reality.
- You are equally comfortable discussing formulations with customers, working with Quality, or spending time on the production floor.
- You are curious, proactive, and commercially minded.
- You thrive in fast-moving environments with plenty of autonomy.
- You want to build something genuinely special rather than simply maintain the status quo.
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Requirements
Benefits
Why Join Zendlabs?
- Help shape one of the UK's fastest-growing contract manufacturing businesses.
- Work with exciting health, wellness, and sports nutrition brands.
- Influence innovation, systems, and customer experience.
- Be part of a passionate and ambitious team.
- Opportunity to grow with the business and build a team around you.
- Health Care, Optical & Hearing
- Salary sacrifice, Retail & Health discounts
- Competitive Salary (£60,000 to £65,000 DOE), Bonus, and Exceptional Long-Term Career Opportunity
If you're looking for a role where you can combine innovation, technical expertise, and customer relationships while helping build something special, we'd love to hear from you.
Career Path & Next Steps
Year 1
- Establish and lead the NPD function.
- Deliver world-class customer onboarding and product launches.
- Help shape the innovation roadmap.
Years 2-3
- Build and develop an NPD team.
- Lead future product categories and technologies.
- Become a key member of the wider leadership team.
Next Step: Head of Innovation
- Responsible for innovation strategy, product pipeline, technical leadership, and long-term growth of Zendlabs.
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