Executive Pastry Chef: Lead Innovation & Scale Production

Sucré; New Orleans (LA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Sucré, a nationally distributed French pastry brand, seeks an Executive Pastry Chef to lead the production facility, shape culinary direction, and partner with executive leadership to scale concepts to nationwide distribution.

You will oversee pastry production, recipe development, ingredient sourcing, food costing, and packaging, while mentoring a production team and maintaining the highest standards of quality and craftsmanship.

Qualifications

• Professional experience in French pastry or an equivalent high-end pastry environment.
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing pastry, bakery, or culinary teams.
• Strong understanding of classical pastry techniques and modern production methods.
• Experience with recipe costing, food cost management, and ingredient sourcing.
• Excellent organizational, communication, and leadership skills.
• Ability to balance creativity with operational discipline.
• Knowledge of packaging systems, shelf life, and product stability.
• Formal pastry or culinary education.

Responsibilities

• Lead all aspects of pastry production with uncompromising standards for quality and consistency.
• Oversee production of macarons, entremets, cupcakes, confections, seasonal products, king cakes (seasonal) and future product categories.
• Drive continuous improvement in recipes, production methods, and operational efficiencies.
• Ensure all products meet Sucré's visual, flavor, and quality standards.
• Develop new products that align with the Sucré brand.
• Refine recipes for production efficiency without compromising quality.
• Lead products from concept through testing, rollout, and full-scale production.
• Collaborate on packaging solutions that maintain product integrity throughout shipping and distribution.
• Continuously evaluate market trends and emerging techniques to keep the brand innovative.
• Manage ingredient sourcing and vendor relationships while maintaining premium quality standards.
• Develop accurate product costing and identify opportunities to improve margins.
• Partner with leadership on forecasting, production planning, inventory management, and purchasing.
• Learn and oversee Sucré's distribution and logistics systems to support multiple retail locations and nationwide shipping.
• Lead, mentor, and develop the production team through coaching, accountability, and hands-on leadership.
• Foster a culture of professionalism, teamwork, and continuous improvement.
• Build systems and processes that enable growth while maintaining craftsmanship.
• Work cross-functionally with operations, retail, marketing, and executive leadership.

Skills

Leadership

Team mentoring

Operational discipline

Recipe costing

Sourcing ingredients

Education

Formal pastry or culinary education

Job description

Sucré, a nationally distributed French pastry brand, seeks an Executive Pastry Chef to lead the production facility, shape culinary direction, and partner with executive leadership to scale concepts to nationwide distribution.

You will oversee pastry production, recipe development, ingredient sourcing, food costing, and packaging, while mentoring a production team and maintaining the highest standards of quality and craftsmanship.