Director, Product Development & Commercialization

Shameless Foods; México; Remote; MXN 900,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Time Off

Work From Home

Training & Development

Job summary

Shameless Snacks is seeking a senior product developer to own the commercialization of every product from approved briefs through first production runs. You will determine if a concept can be made, where, and at what COGS, owning the technical center of our co‑manufacturing model.

With 10+ years in confectionery, you will oversee formulation, BOM costs, regulatory data, sensory criteria, and pilot runs across multiple platforms.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in confectionery or related food product development, hands-on at the bench.
• Experience taking products from bench through pilot to first commercial run.
• Managed co‑manufacturers without owning a plant, with site audits.
• Written acceptance criteria and run a technical sensory gate; proficient with CoAs, moisture activity, stability and shelf-life.

Responsibilities

• Own the commercialization timeline from brief to first production run.
• Provide feasibility and cost reads for briefs before approval; determine where and at what COGS.
• Develop formulations across platforms with Shameless-owned formulas.
• Produce benchtop samples with labs and co‑manufacturers; deliver 3–4 weeks before flavor lock.
• Create regulatory and label data; establish specs, shelf life, and acceptance criteria.
• Coordinate with Brand, Procurement, and Quality to hand off BOMs, test plans and supplier qualifications.

Skills

Confectionery product development

Gummies formulation

Co-manufacturer management

Costing and BOM

Technical specification writing

Flavor/texture sensory

Job description

About US

Shameless Snacks makes low-sugar gummy candy that tastes like the real thing. Every bag has 3g of sugar, is packed with fiber, and is vegan and gluten‑free. Our sour and fruit gummies are sold on Amazon, DTC, TikTok, and at major retailers across the country.

We’re not a startup hoping something works. We’ve taken better‑for‑you candy from an idea to retail shelves nationwide and built a brand that consumers love. We move with the speed of a startup: small teams with real ownership and accountability.

This is the place where you’ll see the entire machine: flavor development, formulation, packaging, co‑manufacturing, compliance, marketing, marketplace strategy, retail, all in one team. If you want to build and ship a food brand at scale, there is no better place than this.

About the role

You are in charge of commercializing every Shameless Snacks product: taking an approved brief and delivering a formula, spec, supplier and stable first commercial production run, on the roadmap date and at the target cost. You own the technical answer to “can we make this, where, and at what COGS,” and the go/no‑go at each step from bench to first run.

Shameless is an omnichannel better‑for‑you confectionery brand. We do not own plants. Product is made by co‑manufacturers across several confectionery platforms, and the company owns its formulas. This role is the technical center of that model.

What you own:

• The commercialization timeline for every product, brief to first production run, and the go/no‑go at each step
• Feasibility and cost reads on every brief before it is approved: can we make it, where, and at what COGS.
• Formulation across all platforms, with every formula owned by Shameless in writing.
• Benchtop samples, hands‑on — you make them yourself and through flavor‑house and co‑manufacturer labs (there is no in‑house lab today), and deliver them to Brand 3–4 weeks before flavor lock.
• Regulatory and label data: nutrition panel, sugar grams, allergens, claims substantiation.
• Technical specs and acceptance criteria: sensory, texture, shelf life, stability. You own technical sensory; Brand owns consumer acceptance.
• Structural packaging spec (bag, master case, display) with Brand on artwork.
• Supplier and co‑manufacturer technical qualification: technical fit, trials, site audits. You recommend which co‑manufacturer makes what.
• Pilot runs, stability, scale‑up and first commercial run, ending in a released spec, BOM and test plan handed to Quality and Procurement
• Post‑launch improvement: sensory consistency, cost‑down and reformulation, driven by market feedback and quality signals

How you work with the rest of the company:

Brand decides what and when. You decide how, and whether it can be done at cost. Each function holds the final call on its own piece:

• Brand owns the brief, the roadmap, consumer acceptance, artwork and go‑to‑market
• Quality (under the Director of Supply Chain, Procurement and Sourcing) approves the spec and test plan and releases lots at the co‑manufacturer
• Procurement and Sourcing owns commercial terms, MOQs and purchase orders
• The executive team owns co‑manufacturer contracts, IP, recall terms, and which co‑manufacturer gets volume
• Operations owns inbound logistics, tariffs and 3PL
• FP&A owns COGS targets, the margin model, and S&OP
• The Retail team owns retail spec sheets, pallet patterns and OTIF

Your job is to give each of them what they need from the product: the spec, the cost inputs, the lead times, the recommendation on where it should be made.

What success looks like in year one:

1. The co‑manufacturer transition is complete for the core portfolio.
2. Every active SKU has a written, Shameless‑owned formula and spec
3. Written acceptance criteria exist for every platform, and every incoming sample is evaluated against them before it reaches Brand.
4. Every launch on the roadmap ships on its date, with formulation freeze and benchtop samples delivered ahead of flavor lock
5. Landed COGS on transitioned SKUs is down against the prior baseline, quantified with FP&A.
6. Every project is visible in the pipeline system with a stage, owner and next gate, and nothing depends on one person’s inbox.

What you bring:

Experience

• 10+ years in confectionery or adjacent food product development, still hands‑on at the bench, with formulation depth in gummies (pectin and starch), and depth in at least two of: aerated, panned/crunchy, licorice, sugar‑reduced systems (allulose, erythritol, fiber).
• Has taken products from bench through pilot to first commercial run, and has transferred a formula between plants
• Has qualified and managed co‑manufacturers without owning the plant, including site audits and holding a CM to spec.
• Has written acceptance criteria and run a technical sensory gate; fluent in CoAs, moisture activity, stability and shelf‑life.
• Builds a BOM cost and knows yield and MOQ math.

How you work

• Ownership — you hold the timeline and the go/no‑go; when a launch slips for product readiness, that is yours
• Resourcefulness — there is no in‑house lab or pilot plant; trials run at supplier and co‑manufacturer facilities, and you make that work.
• Documentation discipline — formulas, specs and supplier history live in the system, not in your head.
• Speed with rigor — comfortable being the whole function in a company that moves weekly, without lowering the technical bar.
• Clear communication — you translate between Brand’s consumer language and a co‑manufacturer’s process language, in both directions.

• Paid Time Off
• Work From Home
• Training & Development

Why Shameless Snacks

• We operate with speed, ownership, and accountability
• Ideas move quickly from concept to execution
• Every team member has direct impact on company growth
• We value operators who think strategically and execute decisively

Equal Employment Opportunity

Shameless Snacks is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace where all team members feel valued and respected. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, medical condition, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

We believe diversity drives innovation and strengthens our ability to serve our customers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment based on merit, qualifications, and business needs.