Director of Sales, Grocery & Natural

Rip Van is reimagining sweetness for a healthier world. With 50–80% less sugar than conventional treats and made with prebiotic fiber instead of sugar alcohols, our snacks tackle one of the biggest drivers of modern health issues — the fact that one-third of all sugar consumed comes from sweet snacks and desserts.

As sugar reduction and fiber fortification become two of the largest and most enduring global wellness trends, Rip Van is at the forefront of this shift in sweet snacking. We’ve built the largest better-for-you cookie platform in America, spanning 8 product lines and 9 manufacturing plants across four continents.

Our #1-ranked Wafels and Wafers — and an expanding portfolio of new products — are sold in 20,000+ stores including Whole Foods, Costco, Amazon, and soon nationally at Kroger and Target.

An owner-operated, founder-led company, Rip Van is building an iconic, purpose-driven brand — combining innovation, integrity, and scale to redefine what indulgence means for the next generation.

Role Overview:

Location: Remote

Hours: Full Time

Travel Required: 20%

Reports to: VP of Sales

Position Summary:

The Director of Grocery & Natural will be a critical commercial architect for Rip Van, accountable for accelerating profitable revenue and EBITDA growth across the Natural and US Food channels. This is a high-impact, sales role driving substantial growth and requiring elite relationship management, strong commercial judgment, and rigorous financial discipline.

What you will own:

• Own revenue, margin, and EBITDA performance across Natural and Conventional grocery channels.
• Set and execute the channel strategy, including customer prioritization, distribution expansion, and trade investment.
• Personally lead the most critical retailer conversations and negotiations and maintain & develop direct ownership of key relationships
• Personally lead broker partner management to drive “core” platform door growth and programming in medium/small regional accounts
• Own forecasting accuracy, trade spend effectiveness, and overall profitability of the channel.
• Serve as the primary cross-functional partner to Finance, Supply Chain, and Marketing for all grocery-related initiatives.

What Makes You Successful in This Role

• Deep Grocery & BFY Expertise

You bring deep, existing relationships in Natural and Conventional grocery and have the muscle memory of scaling brands to high national ACV

• Data-Led Commercial Judgment

You are highly fluent in syndicated data (SPINS / Nielsen / IRI) and use it to independently build insight-driven sell stories that influence Category Managers.

• P&L Ownership Mindset

You manage your business like an owner, with a strong command of trade math, deductions, forecasting, and EBITDA contribution.

• Player-Coach Leadership Style

You lead through action—comfortable holding brokers accountable while personally owning high-stakes customer interactions.

• Cross-Functional Fluency

You work seamlessly with Supply Chain, Finance, and Marketing to translate strategy into profitable execution.

What you bring:

• 8–12+ years of progressive CPG sales experience.
• Proven success in Natural and/or Conventional grocery, ideally within Better-for-You snacking or comparable high-growth categories.
• Established, trusted relationships with Category Managers and senior retailer stakeholders.
• Highly self-motivated, with a strong bias toward action and ownership.
• Combines executive-level polish with the grit required to win shelf space and drive results.

Candidate DNA:

Scrappy yet sophisticated. Polished enough to influence Finance leadership, gritty enough to fight for distribution and execution. Motivated by ownership, impact, and the opportunity to shape channel strategy—not by maintaining the status quo.