NPD Manager FTC

Pod Talent; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Pod Talent in West London is seeking an NPD Manager to lead end-to-end product development in beauty and personal care. Hybrid pattern: 2-3 days in the office per week, with close collaboration across internal stakeholders, manufacturers and packaging suppliers.

You will drive innovation, maintain quality standards and keep projects on track against timelines and commercial objectives, from brief to launch.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in product development within beauty/personal care or consumer goods environments.
• Strong track record of managing formulation and packaging projects through full development lifecycle.
• Sound understanding of manufacturing processes, product testing requirements and quality standards.
• Commercially minded with experience managing budgets and business case development.
• Highly organized with supplier management and project coordination skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end product development projects across launches, reformulations and packaging updates.
• Manage project timelines, milestones and launch deadlines.
• Collaborate with suppliers and manufacturers, preparing briefs for formulation and packaging testing.
• Develop commercial business cases evaluating costs, pricing and margin potential.
• Drive continuous improvement across development processes and quality controls.

Skills

Product development

Project management

Supplier management

Budget management

Cross-functional collaboration

Job description

NPD Manager | £60,000-£75,000 | 2-3 days in West London

I am partnering with a growing personal care business that is looking for an NPD Manager to join its team in West London, with a hybrid working pattern of 2-3 days in the office per week.

In this role, you will lead product development projects from initial brief through to launch, working closely with internal stakeholders, manufacturers and packaging suppliers to ensure successful delivery. You will play a key role in driving innovation across the portfolio, improving development processes, maintaining product quality standards and ensuring projects remain on track against timelines and commercial objectives.

In this role,
You will:

• Lead end-to-end product development projects across new product launches, reformulations, gifting ranges, packaging updates and range extensions.
• Manage project timelines and critical paths, ensuring milestones, approvals and launch deadlines are delivered on time.
• Collaborate closely with suppliers and manufacturers, preparing clear briefs for formulation, packaging and product testing requirements.
• Develop commercial business cases, evaluating product opportunities, costs, pricing and margin potential alongside finance teams.
• Drive continuous improvement across development processes, strengthening quality controls and ensuring projects run efficiently from concept to launch.

About you:

• Proven experience in product development within beauty, personal care, wellbeing or other consumer goods environments.
• Strong track record of managing formulation and packaging projects through the full development lifecycle.
• Sound understanding of manufacturing processes, product testing requirements and quality standards.
• Commercially minded, with experience managing budgets, evaluating costs and supporting business case development.
• Highly organised and proactive, with excellent supplier management, communication and project coordination skills, and a passion for improving ways of working.