About Nexus Agriscience
Nexus Agriscience is on a mission to actualize hemp's potential as the most prolific producer of natural compounds in the world. Based in Livermore, California, we are pioneering molecular farming to build the future of natural flavor, fragrance, and active ingredients. By bridging science and agriculture, our team is developing innovative, natural ingredient solutions that replace petroleum-based synthetics with sustainable alternatives.
Job Overview
We are looking for a VP of Beverage Applications to launch and lead Nexus Agriscience's newest growth vertical: a portfolio of novel, hemp-derived flavor and functional ingredients purpose-built for the non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverage markets. This is a category-defining moment for the company, and this role is the tip of the spear.
You will own the end-to-end go-to-market for the beverage application — from positioning and pricing, to building the target account list, to landing the first marquee customers, to defining the long-term commercial playbook that scales into a full team. You will be the company's most senior commercial voice inside the beverage industry, and the internal owner of how this category builds, sells, and wins.
The ideal candidate is a CPG veteran who has launched ingredients or new product platforms inside (or into) major beverage brands before. You know how flavor houses sell. You know how functional ingredients get qualified, scaled, and reordered. You have a working Rolodex of innovation, R&D, and procurement leaders across non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverage. And you are excited to build something from scratch with the freedom — and accountability — of a true category owner.
Responsibilities
- Launch the beverage application from early-adopter wins to national-scale programs: own the GTM strategy, ideal customer profile, pricing architecture, positioning, and category narrative for our hemp-derived flavor and functional ingredients
- Build and personally close the initial book of business across non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverage brands — owning a full-cycle sales process from prospect to first PO to scaled commercial program
- Develop the technical and category fluency to lead consultative conversations with beverage formulators, R&D leads, innovation teams, and procurement on flavor systems, functional efficacy, regulatory considerations, and at-scale supply
- Identify and prioritize the highest-leverage segments within beverage — functional beverages, hydration, RTD coffee and tea, energy, sparkling water, RTD cocktails, seltzers, beer, spirits, and emerging categories — and sequence the launch accordingly
- Partner with R&D, Product, and Operations to translate customer requirements into specs, samples, and pilot programs; close the loop on customer feedback to inform roadmap and new format development
- Stand up the sales motion — CRM workflows, pipeline cadence, forecasting discipline, and customer-facing collateral — so that the function is ready to scale into a team as revenue grows
- Represent Nexus Agriscience at major beverage industry events, trade shows, and customer summits (BevNet, Expo West, NACS, etc.) as the credible commercial face of the beverage category
- Build and nurture deep, multi-threaded relationships with senior decision-makers at strategic accounts — including innovation, R&D, brand, and procurement leadership
- Partner with Marketing to develop category-specific positioning, content, and demand-generation programs that fit how beverage brands actually buy ingredients
- Deliver accurate forecasts, pipeline reporting, and category insights to executive leadership; serve as the company's primary lens into the beverage market
- Recruit and ramp additional commercial talent into the beverage vertical as the category scales
Qualifications
- 7+ years of commercial experience in the beverage industry, with direct, demonstrated success selling ingredients, flavor systems, functional ingredients, or new product platforms into non-alcoholic and/or alcoholic beverage brands
- Existing relationships with innovation, R&D, and procurement leaders at major beverage CPGs, contract manufacturers, and/or co-packers
- Proven ability to launch a new ingredient, platform, or category from scratch — taking it from first conversations to a repeatable, scaled commercial program
- Deep working knowledge of how beverage brands develop, qualify, and scale new ingredients — including formulation cycles, regulatory considerations, sensory evaluation, and supply chain qualification
- Comfort operating across both non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverage markets, with an understanding of the structural differences in distribution, regulation, and buying behavior
- Demonstrated track record of personally carrying and closing 7- and 8-figure commercial relationships
- Strategic operator who can build the playbook, then execute it personally — equally comfortable in a brand R&D lab, on a procurement call, in an executive review, and at an industry trade show
- Entrepreneurial mindset with a strong bias toward action; you don't wait for a playbook, you build one
- Exceptional communication, negotiation, and interpersonal skills — you can hold your own with a beverage formulator one hour, a CPG CMO the next, and a procurement lead after that
- Cannabis or hemp ingredient experience is a plus, but not required; what matters most is deep beverage industry credibility and a builder's mindset
- Willingness to travel for key customer meetings, trade shows, and industry events
What We Offer
- Competitive salary commensurate with experience, plus performance bonus tied to the launch and growth of the beverage category
- Comprehensive healthcare benefits
- 401(k) retirement plan
- Fully remote work flexibility
- The opportunity to launch and lead a new category at one of the fastest-growing hemp companies in the world — with the autonomy of an operator and the resources of a company in active expansion
- A collaborative, mission-driven culture where your ideas and leadership will have direct, measurable impact on the trajectory of the business
Benefits:
Work Location: Remote
Pay: $135,000.00 - $175,000.00 per year
Work Location: Remote
