Strategist

Acosta Group; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 84,000; Full time

Job summary

Acosta Group is seeking a creative Brand Strategist with hands-on food & beverage experience to steer our internal vision and shape client brands. You’ll craft strategic narratives for restaurant and F&B brands and translate curiosity about how people eat into meaningful business insights.

You will co-create world-class F&B experiences, support senior strategists, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop narratives, frameworks, and presentations with a strong visual aesthetic.

Qualifications

• We are looking for someone with existing experience in food and beverage. Restaurant, foodservice, hospitality, food & beverage CPG brands, or related experience is highly valued and is a priority for this role.
• 2+ years of professional experience in brand strategy, consulting, marketing strategy, innovation, product development, or a related strategic discipline.
• Hands‑on experience in food & beverage, ideally with a restaurant, foodservice company, F&B brand, hospitality business, or agency/consultancy serving these industries.
• A genuine passion for restaurant and F&B brands and an interest in how consumers experience them.
• A strong understanding of consumer trends and their business implications, and the ability to distinguish a meaningful trend from a fad, particularly in the food world.
• A passion for brand storytelling and the ability to turn complex thinking into compelling, easy‑to‑understand narratives.
• Strong presentation skills and a keen visual sensibility. You know how to build a great deck and understand how content, narrative, and imagery work together to make an idea memorable.
• Confidence working directly with clients and presenting strategic thinking with composure, clarity, and enthusiasm.
• The ability to write and deliver presentations that are to‑the‑point, memorable, and impactful.
• The ability to work closely and collaboratively with cross‑functional teams and a willingness to learn as you go.

Responsibilities

• Co-create compelling and grounded strategies with a diverse team of collaborators to create world‑class F&B experiences for some of the largest and smallest brands in the world.
• Support Senior Strategists in guiding projects from problem definition through strategic recommendation.
• Support in translating consumer, cultural, competitive, and category insights into clear strategic opportunities.
• Collaborate with internal teams to develop strategic narratives, frameworks, and presentations employing captivating storytelling and a keen visual aesthetic.
• Bring a strong understanding of the restaurant and F&B landscape to client challenges and strategic conversations.
• Help identify emerging food, beverage, restaurant, hospitality, and consumer trends and understand their implications for brands and businesses.

Skills

Brand strategy

Client presentation

Storytelling

Trend analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Job description

About the role

We are looking for a creative Brand Strategist with hands‑on food & beverage experience who thinks big, can steer our internal vision, and can help shape the visions of our clients. The Strategist is a multi‑talented professional who is practiced in thinking critically about restaurant brands and F&B businesses, crafting inspiring strategic narratives, and developing clear solutions to ambiguous problems. This role is specifically suited to someone who has experience working in restaurants, foodservice, food & beverage brands, hospitality, or a closely related F&B environment and is excited by the opportunity to build the brands and experiences of the future. You should be genuinely curious about how people eat, drink, shop, dine, and experience brands, and be able to translate that curiosity into meaningful business and brand strategy. Above all, the Strategist demonstrates a passion for the food and beverage industry and an ability to work collaboratively, nimbly, and effectively. Sound like you? Read on.

Responsibilities

As a Strategist, you will…

We are committed to creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. Our goals and commitments are shaped and strengthened by our team. There is more work to be done. Join us, and help us build a future where all voices are heard and everyone can feel they belong.

• Co-create compelling and grounded strategies with a diverse team of collaborators to create world‑class F&B experiences for some of the largest and smallest brands in the world.
• Support Senior Strategists in guiding projects from problem definition through strategic recommendation.
• Support in translating consumer, cultural, competitive, and category insights into clear strategic opportunities.
• Collaborate with internal teams to develop strategic narratives, frameworks, and presentations employing captivating storytelling and a keen visual aesthetic.
• Bring a strong understanding of the restaurant and F&B landscape to client challenges and strategic conversations.
• Help identify emerging food, beverage, restaurant, hospitality, and consumer trends and understand their implications for brands and businesses.

Qualifications

We are looking for someone with existing experience in food and beverage. Restaurant, foodservice, hospitality, food & beverage CPG brands, or related experience is highly valued and is a priority for this role.

• 2+ years of professional experience in brand strategy, consulting, marketing strategy, innovation, product development, or a related strategic discipline.
• Hands‑on experience working in food & beverage, ideally with a restaurant, foodservice company, F&B brand, hospitality business, or agency/consultancy serving these industries.
• A genuine passion for restaurant and F&B brands and an interest in how consumers experience them.
• A strong understanding of consumer trends and their business implications, and the ability to distinguish a meaningful trend from a fad, particularly in the food world.
• A passion for brand storytelling and the ability to turn complex thinking into compelling, easy‑to‑understand narratives.
• Strong presentation skills and a keen visual sensibility. You know how to build a great deck and understand how content, narrative, and imagery work together to make an idea memorable.
• Confidence working directly with clients and presenting strategic thinking with composure, clarity, and enthusiasm.
• The ability to write and deliver presentations that are to‑the‑point, memorable, and impactful.
• The ability to work closely and collaboratively with cross‑functional teams and a willingness to learn as you go.

About Us

CORE Foodservice is a part of Acosta Group – a collective of the industry’s most trusted retail, marketing and foodservice agencies reimagining the way people connect with brands at every point in their shopping journey.

CORE Foodservice is revolutionizing the North American foodservice industry. With over 60 offices, we are a dynamic team dedicated to navigating the evolving landscape of foodservice operations. Our mission? To seamlessly connect top‑tier brands with consumers wherever they eat away from home – think ballparks, restaurants, schools and more. As the industry's premier foodservice sales agency, we drive demand, forge invaluable relationships, and accelerate growth across every dining destination.

At CORE Foodservice, we empower our employees to focus on what they love, fostering a culture where happy people drive remarkable outcomes. Our leaders are highly engaged, getting into the field and setting the example for pushing boundaries and innovation. Empowerment is our cornerstone; we believe in creating an environment where every voice is heard, and every idea valued. Join us in shaping the future of foodservice, where dedication and innovation meet opportunity.

Acosta Group is an equal opportunity employer and will ensure that applicants with disabilities are provided with reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact [e-mail]. Be sure to include "Applicant Accommodation" in the subject of your email to expedite the request.

Acosta Group believes in good faith that the minimum and maximum annual salary or hourly compensation range for this opportunity is accurate and reasonable at the time of posting.

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Acosta, and its subsidiaries, is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Job Category

Marketing

Position Type

Full time

Business Unit

Corporate

Salary Range

$70000.00 - $84000.00

Company

The CORE Group-Payroll, LLC