Brand Manager

Freshpet Inc.; Bedminster Township (NJ); On-site; USD 135,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k) match

Paid parental leave

Pet insurance

Tuition assistance

Generous PTO

Job summary

Freshpet is seeking a Brand Manager in Bedminster, NJ to own the homestyle portfolio and shape the brand strategy with cross‑functional partners. You will drive growth across channels, lead launches, and co-develop an innovation grid to elevate the pet food experience.

The role requires an MBA or BA with strong analytics, forecasting, and communication skills. You will work three days a week in the Bedminster office and travel up to 10%.

Qualifications

• MBA with 2–4 years of related experience in CPG food or pet brand marketing.
• BS/BA with 5 years in a similar role.
• Passion for pets and belief they deserve the best food.
• Experience building forecasts and business cases; strong analytics and financial acumen.
• Able to turn complex data into clear, actionable insights.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills; ability to influence cross‑functional stakeholders.
• Strong project management skills with milestones and deadlines.
• Consumer‑first, creative and strategic mindset; manage multiple projects.

Responsibilities

• Own brand plan and financials across the homestyle segment.
• Drive omnichannel growth with targeted plans for key channels.
• Lead initiatives to expand reach and build brand loyalty.
• Co-develop multiyear innovation grid with the team.
• Plan and execute launches for the homestyle portfolio.
• Lead packaging design briefs with Packaging, Creative and R&D.
• Evaluate results and provide data‑driven recommendations.
• Drive growth and productivity improvements across the brand.
• Champion quality improvements with R&D and Quality teams.
• Coordinate with cross‑functional teams (R&D, Operations, Packaging, Market Research, Sales).

Skills

Forecasting

Analytics

Financial acumen

Communication

Project management

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

MBA

BS/BA

Tools

Circana data

NielsenIQ data

Job description

Who We Are

At Freshpet, our goal is to change the way people nourish their pets forever. We strive to strengthen the bond between people and our pets so that we both live longer, healthier, and happier lives while being kind to the planet. We believe that if we can create fresh, real foods that pets love and help them live healthier lives, that their pet parents will also enjoy the many benefits of a rich life shared with a pet. IT’S AMAZING WHAT CAN HAPPEN WHEN YOU START COMPLETELY FRESH!

What You Will Do

As Brand Manager, you will be an integral part of the Brand team responsible for owning and managing the Freshpet “homemade” portfolio, one of the fastest-growing segments in the category and Freshpet portfolio. This segment brings home‑cooked goodness to dogs through ready‑to‑serve meals made from real ingredients and sold in grocery, mass, and pet specialty retailers. Reporting to the Senior Marketing Director, you will shape and deliver the brand's strategy and multi‑year growth plan in close partnership with cross‑functional partners.

How You Will Make an Impact

• Own brand plan and financials. Build comprehensive short and long‑term brand strategies across the homestyle segment, balancing volume growth, profitability, and sustainable growth objectives.
• Drive omnichannel growth. Develop targeted plans and activation strategies for key strategic growth channels / customers; collaborating closely with Sales to unlock new opportunities and accelerate business development.
• Bring our category and brand growth vision to life. Lead strategic initiatives aligned to growth priorities to expand Freshpet’s reach, deepen engagement among our most valuable customers and build lasting brand loyalty.
• Co‑develop innovation pipeline. Partner with the Innovation team to build out multi‑year innovation grid, including breakthrough innovation as well as renovation / upgrades to existing recipes to deliver elevated brand experiences to existing and prospective pet parents that are worth paying more for.
• Plan and execute launches. Lead launch planning, forecasting and execution for the homestyle portfolio, including timelines, cross‑functional readiness, retailer and consumer communications, and post‑launch performance reviews.
• Lead packaging for “homemade” portfolio. Write packaging design briefs and guide design development and approvals with Packaging, Creative, and R&D.
• Drive brand performance. Evaluate results against plan and develop data‑driven recommendations for ways to better meet and exceed short & long‑term business goals, as well as identify insights to inform strategic growth plans.
• Optimize Growth and Productivity. Lead continuous improvement initiatives that raise the brand's growth contribution and productivity, including reformulations, spend effectiveness and portfolio mix.
• Drive Superior Quality. Champion and partner with Quality and R&D to champion and implement key initiatives to enhance the product quality and experience for pets and pet parents.
• Manage and lead multiple cross‑functional teams. Work with R&D, Operations, Packaging, Market Research, and Sales to align and implement brand initiatives, and ensure the brand strategy is communicated, understood and implemented across the organization.

What You Will Bring

• MBA with 2-4 years of experience in a similar or related role preferred, ideally experience working in CPG Food or Pet Brand Marketing.
• BS/BA with 5 years of experience in a similar or related role.
• Passion for pets and a belief that they deserve the best food on the planet
• Experience building forecasts and business cases; strong analytics and financial acumen
• Ability to turn complex data into clear, actionable insights
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to influence and align cross‑functional stakeholders without formal authority
• Strong project management skills, including setting milestones and delivering against deadlines
• A consumer‑first, creative, and strategic mindset, and the ability to manage multiple projects at once and execute with excellence.

Preferred

• Experience in CPG food or pet brand marketing
• Proficiency with Circana (formerly IRI) or NielsenIQ data

Location and travel

• Ability to commute to our Bedminster, NJ headquarters and work in the office three days per week
• Ability to travel up to 10%

What We Offer

The range for this position is: $135,000 – 175,000 base salary. Bonus and equity offered.

At Freshpet, we offer a competitive salary and an excellent benefits package, including medical, dental and vision insurance, basic and optional life insurance, short‑and long‑term disability protection, flexible spending accounts, and a 401(k) plan with company match, paid parental leave, pet insurance, tuition assistance, a generous PTO plan and so much more!

Our Commitment to a Diverse Workforce:

Freshpet is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All employment decisions are made without regards to race, color, national origin, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital or domestic/civil partnership status, genetic information, citizenship status (although applicants and employees must be legally authorized to work in the United States), uniformed service member or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law (“protected characteristics”).

Disclaimers

The salary range provided above is the range of the wages that we will pay for the listed position. A final determination on the wages within this range is based on a number of non‑discriminatory factors, including but not limited to the required work location, previous work experience, skill set, and wage rates for comparable positions.

Freshpet is not accepting unsolicited assistance from search firms for this employment opportunity. Please, no phone calls or emails. All resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at Freshpet via-email, the Internet or in any form and/or method without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of Freshpet. No fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by Freshpet as a result of the referral or through other means.

We are interested in every qualified candidate who is eligible to work in the United States. However, we are not able to sponsor visas.